After his injury last year, Akira Watanabe made an extremely strong comeback. He became the first and so far only Japanese rider to win the Motocross World Championship.

For the extremely fast but injury- and bad luck-plagued defending champion Gaston Rahier, the series comes to an end after three consecutive world championship titles.

Despite numerous race wins, Yamaha's spearhead Gérard Rond is missing points in the final standings due to retirements and weaker days. The two Suzuki riders are more consistent in finishing races over the season, which carries extreme weight in the points system at the time.

Austrian rider Siegfried Lerner consistently performed well, bringing his KTM to an impressive fourth place.

Corrado Maddi Beta takes 10th place in the World Championship

In his first GP, young Marc Velkeneers immediately scores points.