Which

countries

have

won

the

most

motorcycle

world

championships?

The

ranking

16th place – Austria, Brazil, Colombia, Finland, and Hungary: one title each

The country that has gone the longest without another World Championship is Austria: Rupert Hollaus was crowned 125cc world champion on an NSU back in 1954, a title awarded posthumously because he lost his life during qualifying for the Nations GP. A tragic fate also befell Finnish rider Jarno Saarinen, 250cc world champion in 1972 on a Yamaha, a title he would likely have repeated the following year after starting the season with three consecutive wins.

Hungary’s world title dates back to 2007, won by Gabor Talmacsi in the 125cc class on an Aprilia equipped with Brembo brakes, thanks to 15 Top-5 finishes. Much more recent are the last two countries to enter the roll of honor, both South American: in 2024 Colombia with David Alonso, Moto3 dominator with 14 wins in the season riding a CFMoto, and this year Brazil with the aforementioned Diogo Moreira in Moto2 on a Kalex, both bikes featuring Brembo calipers.

12th place – New Zealand, San Marino, Sweden, and Venezuela: two titles each

New Zealander Hugh Anderson began his World Championship career racing in the 500cc class but later focused on the smaller categories. His effort paid off with the 125cc title on Suzuki in 1963, which he repeated in 1965. After finishing runner-up in 1969 and 1972, Kent Andersson finally gave Sweden its first title in 1973. He succeeded in the 125cc class with Yamaha, winning five of the first six rounds, and doubled up in 1974.

After Johnny Cecotto’s 350cc title (not counted here), Venezuela returned to glory with Carlos Lavado in 1983 on a Yamaha in the 250cc class. He repeated the feat three years later thanks to six wins, despite three retirements. Manuel Poggiali brought San Marino into the spotlight: in 2001 he was 125cc champion with Gilera thanks to 11 podiums, and in 2003 he doubled up in the 250cc class with Aprilia. Both bikes were equipped with Brembo brakes.

10th place – Rhodesia and South Africa: three titles

Rhodesia claimed eight world championships, but five of those were in the 350cc class and therefore are not included in our count. In the 500cc class, Gary Hocking was champion with MV Agusta in 1961, the year Brembo was founded. In 1962 and 1963, Jim Redman took the 250cc title with Honda. South Africa earned six world championships, half of them in the 350cc class. The undisputed number one is Kork Ballington, who won the 250cc titles in 1978 and 1979 with Kawasaki. The most recent title came in 2016, when Brad Binder won Moto3 with KTM equipped with Brembo calipers.

9th place – Switzerland: four titles

The most decorated Swiss rider is Stefan Dorflinger, but since his hunting ground was the 50cc and 80cc classes, he does not appear in our calculations. Three titles were won by Luigi Taveri in the 125cc class with Honda, from 1963 to 1966, after having been runner-up five times. In modern times, Thomas Luthi entered the roll of honor as 125cc champion in 2005 with Honda, winning by just five points.

7th place – France and Japan: eight titles each

France boasts eight world titles, but only one rider managed to win twice: Johann Zarco, two-time Moto2 champion in 2015 and 2016 with Kalex and Brembo brakes. The most prestigious title, however, was claimed by Fabio Quartararo in MotoGP in 2021 with Yamaha. Japan also stands at eight titles, becoming Moto2 champion in 2024 with Ai Ogura on a Boscoscuro. In the 250cc class, Japan triumphed with Hiroshi Aoyama, Daijiro Kato, and Tetsuya Harada, but it was in the 125cc class that Japanese riders truly dominated: from 1994 to 1998, they won four titles with Haruchika Aoki and Kazuto Sakata.

6th place – Australia: 11 titles

Originally, Australian riders excelled in the smaller classes: Tom Phillis was champion in 1961 in 125cc, Kel Carruthers in 1969 in 250cc. Wayne Gardner resumed the streak in 1987 with Honda in the 500cc class. Same manufacturer and class for Mick Doohan, winner of five consecutive titles from 1994 to 1998 thanks to the thumb brake master cylinder built by Brembo to compensate for his right foot injury. Then came two MotoGP titles with Casey Stoner in 2007 and 2011, followed by the 11th with Remy Gardner in 2021 in Moto2.

5th place – Germany: 12 titles

Germany ranks fifth with 12 titles, despite having won only two World Championships in the 2000s and none in the last 13 seasons: the most recent was claimed by Sandro Cortese in 2012 in Moto3 with KTM, and the previous one by Stefan Bradl in Moto2 the year before. The most successful rider in a single class is Anton Mang, with three titles in the 250cc category, always on Japanese bikes, spread between 1980 and 1987. Werner Haas also earned three crowns in the 1950s with German NSU bikes in 125cc and 250cc. Dieter Braun took two in the 1970s, while Hermann Paul Müller and Dirk Raudies each secured one.

4th place – USA: 17 titles

American riders entered the World Championship late, but from 1978 they made a splash, dominating the 500cc class until 1993: four titles for Eddie Lawson, three each for Kenny Roberts and Wayne Rainey, two for Freddie Spencer, and one for Kevin Schwantz. In 1985, Spencer achieved the rare feat of winning both the 250cc and 500cc titles. Kenny Roberts Jr also triumphed in 500cc in 2000 with Suzuki, equipped with Brembo’s innovative radial caliper. John Kocinski was 250cc champion in 1990, while Nicky Hayden claimed the MotoGP crown in 2006, the 17th title for the USA.

3rd place – United Kingdom: 31 titles

Eleven British riders have been world champions (plus another five in the 350cc and 50cc classes), but almost half never managed to repeat the feat. From the early days through the 1960s, their dominance was impressive, while in the last 48 years they’ve only claimed one title, with Danny Kent in Moto3 in 2015. The greatest of all is Mike Hailwood, nine-time world champion (seven for our count, excluding two in 350cc), including four consecutive 500cc crowns in the 1960s with Honda and MV Agusta. Also notable are Phil Read’s six titles (plus one in 350cc) and the four each of John Surtees (plus three in 350cc) and Geoff Duke (plus two in 350cc). Seventeen titles were won in the 500cc class, the first with Leslie Graham and the last two with Barry Sheene. Nine titles came in the 250cc class.

2nd place – Spain: 50 titles

The dominance of Spanish riders contrasts with that of the British, as until 1968 they had not won a single title. The wake-up call came from the unforgettable Ángel Nieto, 13-time champion: seven in the 125cc class, plus six in the 50cc (mentioned here but not counted). The first champion in the premier class was Álex Crivillé in 1999. He was followed by Jorge Lorenzo (three times in MotoGP, five overall), Marc Márquez (seven in MotoGP, nine overall), and one each for Joan Mir and Jorge Martín—all always with Brembo braking systems. Spain has also dominated the lower categories thanks to Nieto and his successors: from Pedro Acosta (two titles) to Dani Pedrosa (three), passing through Sito Pons (two) and Álex Márquez (two).

1st place – Italy: 71 titles

As many as 30 Italian riders have been world champions, for a total of 71 titles, excluding MotoE, 350cc, and 50cc. Leading the way is the most successful of all time, Giacomo Agostini, with 15 titles—13 with MV Agusta and the last two with Yamaha, eight in 500cc and seven (not counted here) in 350cc. Equally legendary are Carlo Ubbiali and Valentino Rossi, each with nine world championships: Ubbiali dominated the 125cc and 250cc classes in the 1950s, while Rossi triumphed in four different classes (125cc, 250cc, 500cc, and MotoGP), always using Brembo brakes. Further back is Max Biaggi with four titles, followed by Walter Villa, Francesco Bagnaia, Bruno Ruffo, Luca Cadalora, and Loris Capirossi.

Out of the rankings: Brembo

Beyond any flag and any national ranking, the true constant in every victory on the track—the only one with no rivals and no borders—is technological excellence.
From the powerful queens of MotoGP, where kinetic energy reaches staggering peaks, to the lighter Moto3 bikes, where agility is everything, there is only one leader that can boast a triple-digit number of world titles: Brembo, with over 100 championships collected in the motorcycle world championship.
Just think: 37 titles in the 500cc-MotoGP class alone, including the last 32 consecutive, won by riders using Brembo brakes, plus countless titles in the lower categories—first 125cc and 250cc, then Moto3 and Moto2—for a total of more than 100 world titles across the three classes.