It’s no secret that Wayne Rainey is a hero to us here at Road Dirt. We’ve long admired the man for his dominance in the sport of motorcycle road racing in the late 80s to early 90s, his reinventing of himself following a debilitating crash back in 1993, and how he and his team have revived American road racing with the MotoAmerica series, now in its 8th season. We’ve had the privilege to chat with and interview him on several occasions, and Wayne is always friendly, approachable, candid and enjoyable to talk with.

Our respect and admiration for Wayne Rainey went through the roof over this past weekend when we learned of his amazing feat at the annual Goodwood Festival of Speed, held yearly in Sussex, England. The three-time 500cc Grand Prix world champion (1990-92) was reunited with his 1992 championship-winning YZR500, and in fact rode the historic machine multiple times around the famed Goodwood course over the festival weekend.

What makes this such an iconic moment, is the fact that Rainey was paralyzed from the chest down in that race crash at the ’93 Italian Grand Prix in Misano, and has been confined to a wheelchair ever since. But in 2019, Wayne rode a motorcycle again for the first time since his crash, when Yamaha provided him with a modified YZF-R1 at Buttonwillow Raceway in California. Wayne rode again a month later in Japan’s “The Sound of Engine” at the famed Suzuka Raceway, with greats Kenny Roberts, Eddie Lawson and Japan’s own Takuma Aoki.

Watching him ride those two times brought tears to my eyes.

Now this year, Wayne rode his actual last championship-winning machine, pulled from a museum in Japan and adapted by Yamaha engineers so Wayne could shift gears via controls on the left handlebar. Strapped to the motorcycle, with attendants supporting the bike and rider at launch and recovery, Wayne throttled his beloved YZR500 around the world famous track at Goodwood to thunderous applause, accompanied by former race team boss Kenny Roberts, old rivals Kevin Schwantz and Mick Doohan, and retired MotoGP great Dani Pedrosa. The legendary Giacomo Agostini was even on hand to turn a few laps as well. It was an amazing occasion to watch.