Willy Bauer was a German

Germany

Germany , officially the Federal Republic of Germany , is a federal parliamentary republic in Europe. The country consists of 16 states while the capital and largest city is Berlin. Germany covers an area of 357,021 km2 and has a largely temperate seasonal climate...

 motocross

Motocross

Motocross is a form of motorcycle sport or all-terrain vehicle racing held on enclosed off road circuits. It evolved from trials, and was called scrambles, and later motocross, combining the French moto with cross-country...

 racer. He was one of the top racers in the Motocross World Championships of the early 1970s.

In 1973, as a member of the Maico

Maico

For the manga series, see Maico 2010.Maicowerk A.G. was founded in 1926, originally assembling 98 and 123 cc Ilo two stroke motors. After World War II the West German motorcycle manufacturer began producing its own unit construction two stroke engines, selling engines and complete motorcycles...

 factory racing team, he battled the reigning world champion, Suzuki's

Suzuki

is a Japanese multinational corporation headquartered in Hamamatsu, Japan that specializes in manufacturing compact automobiles and 4x4 vehicles, a full range of motorcycles, all-terrain vehicles , outboard marine engines, wheelchairs and a variety of other small internal combustion engines...

 Roger De Coster for the 500cc world championship. The title chase went down to the final race in Holland, when Bauer suffered a mechanical breakdown, losing the championship by two points. After falling to sixth place in the 1974 500cc world championship, he signed a contract in 1975 to race for the Suzuki factory racing team in the 250cc class. Bauer ended the season in third place behind Harry Everts

Harry Everts

Harry Everts is a former motocross racer from Belgium. Everts won the 1975 F.I.M. 250cc world championship as a member of the Puch factory racing team. After a period with Bultaco he signed with the Suzuki factory team and won three consecutive 125cc motocross world championships between 1979 and...

 and Hakan Andersson

Håkan Andersson (motorcyclist)

Håkan Andersson was a Swedish motocross racer. He won the F.I.M. 250cc Motocross World Championship in 1973.Andersson began racing in the motocross world championships for the Husqvarna factory, finishing second behind Suzuki's Joël Robert in the 1971 250cc motocross world championship...

.

Bauer moved back to the 500cc class with the KTM

KTM

KTM Sportmotorcycle AG is an Austrian motorcycle, bicycle and moped manufacturer.The company was founded in 1934 by engineer Hans Trunkenpolz in Mattighofen. It started out as a metal working shop and was named Kraftfahrzeuge Trunkenpolz Mattighofen...

 factory racing team in 1976 and placed tenth in the world championship. After a 12th place finish in 1977, he signed a contract to race for the Sachs

Sachs Motorcycles

Sachs Motorcycles is a German based motorcycle manufacturer, founded in 1886 in Schweinfurt as Schweinfurter Präzisions-Kugellagerwerke Fichtel & Sachs, formerly known as Fichtel & Sachs, Mannesmann Sachs and later just Sachs....

 factory in the 1978 250cc world championship. At the 1978 British motocross Grand Prix held at Kilmartin

Kilmartin

Kilmartin is a small village in Argyll and Bute, western Scotland. It is best known as the centre of Kilmartin Glen, an area with one of the richest concentrations of prehistoric monuments and historical sites in Scotland. It contains over 350 monuments within a 6 mile radius.-Kilmartin Parish...

, Scotland

Scotland

Scotland is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. Occupying the northern third of the island of Great Britain, it shares a border with England to the south and is bounded by the North Sea to the east, the Atlantic Ocean to the north and west, and the North Channel and Irish Sea to the...

, Bauer crashed and suffered spinal cord injuries that left him paralyzed

Paralysis

Paralysis is loss of muscle function for one or more muscles. Paralysis can be accompanied by a loss of feeling in the affected area if there is sensory damage as well as motor. A study conducted by the Christopher & Dana Reeve Foundation, suggests that about 1 in 50 people have been diagnosed...

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