Stefan Everts
Stefan Everts (born 25 November 1972) is a Belgian former professional motocross racer. He competed in the Motocross World Championships from 1988 to 2006. Everts is notable for winning a record 10 FIM motocross world championships and 101 motocross Grand Prix race victories, making him the most successful world championship motocross racer in history.[1][2]
Stefan Everts | |
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Nationality | Belgian |
Born | 25 November 1972 48) Bree, Belgium | (age
Motocross career | |
Years active | 1988 - 2006 |
Teams | Suzuki, Honda, Yamaha, Kawasaki, KTM |
Championships | 125cc- 1991 250cc- 1995, 1996, 1997 500cc- 2001, 2002 MX1-GP- 2003, 2004, 2005, 2006 |
Wins | 101 |
Biography
Everts was born in Bree, Belgium as the son of four-time motocross world champion, Harry Everts. He began riding motorcycles at the age of four. At the age of 17, he made his debut in the 125cc World Championship, and two years later he secured his first title in that division. During the following years, the Belgian moved up through the different divisions and collected an as yet unsurpassed number of World Championship titles (10) and GP victories (101).
Everts was known for his very smooth style on the bike, making his riding look effortless. In particular, he maintained a standing position on the bike much more frequently than other riders, even in very tight corners. His cornering control was unique and he was noted for running his engine in a higher gear to torque his way around the track, as opposed to revving it out hard in each gear, even on the 125cc and 250cc two-stroke machines he used at the beginning of his career. While he never placed much focus on American-style supercross tracks or riding styles, he nevertheless proved to be competitive with top US riders even at their own game. In the later stages of his career, Everts' vast experience helped him to reach an impressive consistency, making erratic movements or mistakes very rare, as illustrated by the fourteen-to-one win-loss record in his final season.
After ending his active riding career at the end of 2006, Everts became motocross race director for the KTM factory team, ultimately responsible for coaching their riders on the technical, mental and physical level. In July 2007 he renewed his contract with the Austrian manufacturer for another two years. Most of the time he lives in Monaco (a move for which he was criticized very much like fellow Belgian sports personalities Justine Henin and Tom Boonen), together with his wife Kelly and his son Liam.
2007 Stefan was racing in the biggest enduro competition in the world Gotland grand national in Sweden but he didn't finish because his radiators became full of mud and the bike became overheated.
2008 Stefan was once again one of the riders in Gotland grand national but he crashed in the end of the race and didn't finish.
Records and awards
- 10 times World Champion
- 101 GP victories in total
- 14 out of 15 GPs won in the 2006 season
- Second man, after Eric Geboers, to become "Mr. 875cc" (winning world titles in 125/250/500cc)
- In the 2003 season, he won 3 GPs (125cc, MXGP and 650cc) on the same day in Ernee, France.
- Only rider to become World Champion on all four Japanese manufacturers (Suzuki, Kawasaki, Honda and Yamaha).
- 5 times Belgian Sportsman of the year (2001, 2002, 2003, 2004 and 2006, only surpassed by Eddy Merckx), plus a Lifetime Achievement award.
Career
- 1990: Belgian Champion, 125cc (Suzuki)
- 1991: World Champion, 125cc - winner 5 GPs; Belgian Champion, 125cc; Youngest world champion at that time (Suzuki)
- 1993: Belgian Champion, 250cc (Suzuki)
- 1995: World Champion, 250cc - winner 5 GPs (Kawasaki)
- 1996: World Champion, 250cc - winner 5 GPs (Honda)
- 1997: World Champion, 250cc - winner 9 GPs; Winner "Motocross of Nations" (Honda)
- 1998: Belgian Champion, 250cc; Winner "Motocross of Nations" (Honda)
- 2001: World Champion, 500cc - winner 7 GPs; First rider winning world championships on all four Japanese bikes (Yamaha)
- 2002: World Champion, 500cc - winner 4 GPs (Yamaha)
- 2003: World Champion, Motocross GP - winner 8 GPs; Winner "Motocross of Nations" (Yamaha) Is the overall winner
- 2003: International Six Days Enduro Brasil overall winner (scratch)(Yamaha)[3]
- 2004: World Champion, Motocross GP - winner 7 GPs; Winner "Motocross of Nations" (Yamaha)
- 2005: World Champion, MX1-GP - winner 8 GPs; Belgian Champion (Yamaha)
- 2006: World Champion, MX1-GP winner 12 GPs (Yamaha)
RECENT SEASONS:
Year | BEL Z | ESP | POR | BEL Na | GER T | JPN | GBR | ITA | GBR | FRA | SWE | RSA | BEL Ni | CZE | GER D | GBR I | NED | IRL | Pos. | Points |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
2005 | 1 | 5 | 1 | 1 | 4 | 1 | 1 | 2 | 1 | 4 | 3 | 2 | 3 | 2 | 1 | 5 | 1 | 1 | 1st | 721 |
2006 | 1 | 1 | 3 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 2 | 1 | 1 | 1st | 739 |
References
- "Interview: Stefan Everts on Liam, health and coaching". gatedrop.com. Retrieved 8 May 2020.
- "Interview: Stefan Everts". mxgp.com. Retrieved 8 May 2020.
- http://360graus.terra.com Archived 6 July 2011 at the Wayback Machine
External links
- Media related to Stefan Everts at Wikimedia Commons
Sporting positions | ||
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Preceded by Donny Schmit |
World Champion - 125cc (1) 1991 |
Succeeded by Greg Albertyn |
Preceded by Greg Albertyn |
World Champion - 250cc (3) 1995–1997 |
Succeeded by Sebastien Tortelli |
Preceded by Joël Smets |
World Champion - 500cc (2) 2001–2002 |
Succeeded by Cancelled |
New creation | World Champion - MX1 (4) 2003–2006 |
Succeeded by Steve Ramon |