Jaroslav Falta
| Jaroslav Falta | |
|---|---|
| Nationality | Czech |
| Born | 22 March 1951 (age 66) |
| career | |
| Years active | 1970s |
| Teams | CZ |
| Wins | 4 |
Jaroslav Falta (born 22 March 1951) is a former racer from the former Czechoslovakia. As a member of the CZ factory racing team, Falta was one of the top motocross racers of the early 1970s in the 250cc .
Falta almost won the 250cc world championship, however Russian riders used questionable tactics during the final race of the season to secure the title for Guennady Moisseev. The 250cc championship was a battle between Soviet KTM rider Moisseev and Falta which ended in controversy at the final race of the season. Moisseev won the first race of the season and took the overall victory at the season opening Spanish Grand Prix. Falta won both races at the Italian Grand Prix followed with a win in the first moto of his home Grand Prix in Czechoslovakia but, then suffered two breakdowns in Poland while Moisseev won both races. Falta won a moto in Yugoslavia and at the halfway point of the season, he trailed the Russian rider by 20 points. Each rider took a second place at the West German Grand Prix but, Falta won a moto at the Dutch Grand Prix to close the points gap to 5 points going into the final race of the season in Switzerland.
Falta took the lead in the first race and appeared to be heading for victory while Moisseev was being slowed by a rear suspension failure. When Falta came upon the slowing Russian rider and tried to pass him, the KTM rider made an attempt to obstruct him allowing second and third place riders, Harry Everts and Håkan Andersson to catch up. When Falta attempted to pass Moisseev, the Russian rider collided with him causing him to fall off his bike. Falta was quickly able to remount but, finished the race in third place. Falta had to win the final moto to have any chance to claim the world championship. As the race began, Falta once again jumped into the lead while Moisseev was forced to retire on the seventh lap. When Falta came upon two Russian riders, Victor Popenko and Eugeny Rybaltchenko, they appeared to attempt to block him. As Falta tried to pass them, Rybaltchenko rode into him, knocking him down. He remounted in third place as race officials waved the black flag at the two Russian riders, disqualifying them from the race. Falta was able to catch up and pass Everts and Gaston Rahier to recapture the lead and win the race, apparently clinching the world championship. However two hours after the conclusion of the race, jury officials penalized him one minute for jumping the start which dropped him to eighth place handing the world championship to Moisseev.
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