1979 Venezuelan motorcycle Grand Prix

  1979 Venezuelan Grand Prix

Race details
Race 1 of 13 races in the 1979 Grand Prix motorcycle racing season
Date	18 March 1979
Official name	Gran Premio de Venezuela[citation needed]
Location	San Carlos Circuit
Course	Permanent racing facility 4.135 km (2.569 mi)
500cc
Pole position Rider Barry Sheene Time 1:34.140 Fastest lap Rider Barry Sheene Time 1:34.080 Podium First Barry Sheene Second Virginio Ferrari Third Tom Herron
350cc
Pole position Rider Carlos Lavado Time 1:35.400 Fastest lap Rider Carlos Lavado Time 1:34.490 Podium First Carlos Lavado Second Walter Villa Third Patrick Fernandez
250cc
Pole position Rider Carlos Lavado Time 1:38.190 Fastest lap Rider Walter Villa Time 1:37.550 Podium First Walter Villa Second Kork Ballington Third Victor Soussan
125cc
Pole position Rider Iván Palazzese Time 1:44.550 Fastest lap Rider Ángel Nieto Time 1:43.480 Podium First Ángel Nieto Second Thierry Espié Third Maurizio Massimiani
50cc
Pole position Rider No 50cc race was held Fastest lap Rider No 50cc race was held Podium First No 50cc race was held Second No 50cc race was held Third No 50cc race was held

The 1979 Venezuelan motorcycle Grand Prix, the first of 13 rounds of the F.I.M. 1979 Grand Prix motorcycle racing season, was held on 18 March at the San Carlos Circuit. British rider Barry Sheene, world champion in 1976 and 1977, won the 500cc GP by 18 seconds^[1] from Italian Virginio Ferrari to make it three successive Venezuelan GPs. Venezuelan racer Carlos Lavado won the 350cc class from Italian Walter Villa and Frenchman Patrick Fernandez.^[2]

Villa won the 250cc event, ahead of South African rider Kork Ballington by 20 seconds, marking the final Grand Prix victory of Villa's motorcycle racing career.^[3] Spanish rider Ángel Nieto won the 125cc class from Frenchman Thierry Espié and Italian Maurizio Massimiani.^[4] Nieto would later win the 125cc season championship.^[5] Yamaha won two races, and Suzuki and Minarelli one each.