FACT FILE
Entered racing Early 1970s
Famous for Pouring cash into the GP paddock
Banned from racing 2006
Over several decades, bike racing was a favourite shop window for the tobacco giants. The sport had everything they wanted: glamour, heroism, adrenaline and a whiff of danger. But all that came to an end a decade ago when tobacco sponsorship was banned due to smoking’s health implications.
Marlboro, Rothmans and who else?
It’s a long list, but here’s a few that have sponsored various forms of motorcycle racing: Cabin, Camel, Chesterfield, Fortuna, Gitanes, Gauloises, HB, John Player Special, Kool, Lucky Strike, L&M, Marlboro, MS, Parisienne, Peter Jackson, Rothmans and West. During most of the 1980s, 1990s and 2000s, much of the MotoGP grid was funded by the tobacco industry. These were…