Gary Hocking
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| Motorcycle Grand Prix Career | |
| Nationality |  Rhodesian |
|---|---|
| Active years | 1958 - 1962 |
| Team(s) | MZ, MV Agusta |
| Grands Prix | 38 |
| Championships | 350cc - 1961 500cc - 1961 |
| Wins | 19 |
| Podium finishes | 33 |
| Pole positions | N/A |
| Fastest laps | N/A |
| First Grand Prix | 1958 500cc Dutch TT |
| First win | 1959 250cc Swedish Grand Prix |
| Last win | 1962 500cc Isle of Man TT |
| Last Grand Prix | 1962 500cc Isle of Man TT |
Gary Stuart Hocking (September 30, 1937 - December 21, 1962) was a Grand Prix motorcycle road racer.
Contents |
[edit] Early life
Hocking was born in Caerleon, near Newport, Monmouthshire in south east Wales but was raised in Rhodesia, now known as Zimbabwe. As a teenager, he began racing motorcycles on grass tracks. Before long, he had moved on to road racing circuits.
[edit] Motorbike Racing
He left Rhodesia to compete in Europe in 1958 and made an immediate impact, finishing 3rd behind the works MV Agustas at the Nürburgring. He was sponsored by Manchester tuner/dealer Reg Deardon, who provided him with new 350cc & 500cc Manx Norton racers.[citation needed] He spent the winter of 58/59 with the Costain family at there farm near Colby on the South of the Isle of Man, working on the farm & learning the Isle of Man TT course with George Costain, a former rider for the Deardon team, who had won the Senior Manx Grand Prix on a 500 Deardon-tuned Manx in 1954. In the 1959 Junior TT, he finished an amazing 10th from 22nd on the grid, a fantastic achievement for a first-timer. In 1959, he was offered a ride by the East German MZ factory and finished second in the 250cc championship. At one point during the 1959 season, his 350 Manx was fitted with the top-secret works 350cc Desmodromic engine, it was entered in the Southern 100 races that July on the Isle of Man, but blew-up during one of the races.[citation needed] MV Agusta offered him full factory support for the 1960 season and he repaid their confidence by finishing 2nd in the 125cc, 250cc and 350cc classes.
Following the retirement from motorcycle racing by defending champion, John Surtees in 1961, Hocking became MV Agusta's top rider and went on to claim dual World Championships in the 350cc and 500cc classes.
[edit] Auto Racing
Hocking was affected deeply by the death of his friend, Tom Phillis at the 1962 Isle of Man TT. After winning the Senior TT, he announced his retirement from motorcycle racing and returned to Rhodesia. He felt motorcycle racing was too dangerous and decided a career in auto racing would be safer.
Ironically, later that year he was killed during practice for the 1962 South African Grand Prix at the Westmead Circuit in Natal, South Africa. His car, a Lotus 24, went straight on a fast curve and somersaulted after hitting a ditch. There is speculation that he blacked out on the long back straight as he made no attempt to slow down or steer into the corner as the car carried on into the bank at full speed. He was 25 years old.
[edit] Motorcycle Grand Prix results
| Year | Class | Classification | Machine | Victories |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1958 | 500cc | 6th | Norton | 0 |
| 1959 | 125cc | 9th | MZ | 0 |
| 1959 | 250cc | 2nd | MZ | 2 |
| 1959 | 350cc | 4th | Norton | 0 |
| 1959 | 500cc | 5th | Norton | 0 |
| 1960 | 125cc | 2nd | MV Agusta | 0 |
| 1960 | 250cc | 2nd | MV Agusta | 2 |
| 1960 | 350cc | 2nd | MV Agusta | 2 |
| 1961 | 250cc | 8th | MV Agusta | 1 |
| 1961 | 350cc | 1st | MV Agusta | 4 |
| 1961 | 500cc | 1st | MV Agusta | 7 |
| 1962 | 350cc | 8th | MV Agusta | 0 |
| 1962 | 500cc | 5th | MV Agusta | 1 |
| Preceded by John Surtees |
500cc Motorcycle World Champion 1961 |
Succeeded by Mike Hailwood |
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