# 1963 FIM Motocross World Championship

The 1963 Motocross World Championship was the 7th edition of the Motocross World Championship organized by the FIM and reserved for 500cc and 250cc motorcycles.

## Summary

Rolf Tibblin overtook early championship points leader, Jeff Smith, to claim his second consecutive 500cc motocross world championship with his countryman, Sten Lundin taking second place. Tibblin took five Grand Prix victories riding for the Husqvarna factory racing team.
A significant moment in motocross history occurred when ČZ factory rider Vlastimil Valek rode a 263cc two-stroke motorcycle to win the first moto of the 500cc Czechoslovakian Grand Prix. The victory marked a turning point in motocross history as, it was the first win by a two-stroke powered motorcycle in the premier division of the Motocross World Championships.
Tibblin's Husqvarna teammate Torsten Hallman also claimed his second consecutive 250cc motocross world championship in dominating fashion by winning 8 of the 14 Grand Prix races. The ČZ factory continued to refine and improve their motorcycles with riders Vlastimil Valek, Igor Grigoriev and Karel Pilar finishing second, third and fourth in the 250cc class final points standings.

## Grands Prix
### 500cc

| Round | Date | Grand Prix | Location | Race 1 Winner | Race 2 Winner | Overall Winner | Report |
| 1 | April 21 | Austrian Grand Prix | Sittendorf | Rolf Tibblin | Sten Lundin | Sten Lundin | Report |
| 2 | May 5 | Swiss Grand Prix | Wohlen | Bill Nilsson | Sten Lundin | Sten Lundin | Report |
| 3 | May 12 | Danish Grand Prix | Volk Mølle | Jeff Smith | Jeff Smith | Jeff Smith | Report |
| 4 | May 19 | Dutch Grand Prix | Markelo | Jeff Smith | Rolf Tibblin | Rolf Tibblin | Report |
| 5 | May 20 | French Grand Prix | Saint-Quentin | Rolf Tibblin | Rolf Tibblin | Rolf Tibblin | Report |
| 6 | June 9 | Italian Grand Prix | Imola | Rolf Tibblin | Rolf Tibblin | Rolf Tibblin | Report |
| 7 | June 23 | Czechoslovakian Grand Prix | Divoká Šárka | Vlastimil Valek | Rolf Tibblin | Rolf Tibblin | Report |
| 8 | June 30 | Russian Grand Prix | Lviv | Ove Lundell | Ove Lundell | Ove Lundell | Report |
| 9 | July 7 | British Grand Prix | Hawkstone Park | Jeff Smith | Don Rickman | Jeff Smith | Report |
| 10 | August 3 | Belgian Grand Prix | Namur | Rolf Tibblin | Rolf Tibblin | Rolf Tibblin | Report |
| 11 | August 11 | Luxembourg Grand Prix | Ettelbruck | Ove Lundell | Per Olaf Persson | Sten Lundin | Report |
| 12 | September 8 | East German Grand Prix | Gumpelstadt | Jeff Smith | Jeff Smith | Jeff Smith | Report |
| Sources: ||||||||

### 250cc

| Round | Date | Grand Prix | Location | Race 1 Winner | Race 2 Winner | Overall Winner | Report |
| 1 | March 22 | Spanish Grand Prix | Ruta | Dave Bickers | Torsten Hallman | Dave Bickers | Report |
| 2 | March 31 | Italian Grand Prix | Gallarate | Torsten Hallman | Torsten Hallman | Torsten Hallman | Report |
| 3 | April 14 | French Grand Prix | Pernes-les-Fontaines | Torsten Hallman | Torsten Hallman | Torsten Hallman | Report |
| 4 | April 21 | Swiss Grand Prix | Payerne | Torsten Hallman | Torsten Hallman | Torsten Hallman | Report |
| 5 | May 12 | West German Grand Prix | Bielstein | Torsten Hallman | Torsten Hallman | Torsten Hallman | Report |
| 6 | May 26 | Luxembourg Grand Prix | Schifflange | Torsten Hallman | Torsten Hallman | Torsten Hallman | Report |
| 7 | June 9 | Dutch Grand Prix | Bergharen | Vlastimil Valek | Torsten Hallman | Vlastimil Valek | Report |
| 8 | June 16 | British Grand Prix | Shrubland Park | Torsten Hallman | Torsten Hallman | Torsten Hallman | Report |
| 9 | June 30 | Swedish Grand Prix | Vännäs | Torsten Hallman | Torsten Hallman | Torsten Hallman | Report |
| 10 | July 7 | Finnish Grand Prix | Vantaa | Torsten Hallman | Torsten Hallman | Torsten Hallman | Report |
| 11 | July 14 | Russian Grand Prix | Moscow | Vlastimil Valek | Torsten Hallman | Vlastimil Valek | Report |
| 12 | July 21 | Polish Grand Prix | Kielce | Vlastimil Valek | Karel Pilar | Vlastimil Valek | Report |
| 13 | July 27 | Czechoslovakian Grand Prix | Holice | Vlastimil Valek | Vlastimil Valek | Vlastimil Valek | Report |
| 14 | August 4 | East German Grand Prix | Apolda | Paul Friedrichs | Vlastimil Valek | Karel Pilar | Report |
| Sources: ||||||||

## Final standings

Points are awarded to the top 6 classified finishers. For the final 500cc championship standings, half of the competitors' results + 1 are retained. Thus with 12 500cc Grand Prix, the 7 best results are retained. For the final 250cc championship standings, the 7 best results are retained.
| Position | 1st | 2nd | 3rd | 4th | 5th | 6th |
| Points | 8 | 6 | 4 | 3 | 2 | 1 |

### 500cc

(Results in italics indicate overall winner)
| Pos | Rider | Machine | AUT | AUT | CH | CH | DEN | DEN | NED | NED | FRA | FRA | ITA | ITA | CZE | CZE | USSR | USSR | UK | UK | BEL | BEL | LUX | LUX | GDR | GDR | Pts |
| Pos | Rider | Machine | R1 | R2 | R1 | R2 | R1 | R2 | R1 | R2 | R1 | R2 | R1 | R2 | R1 | R2 | R1 | R2 | R1 | R2 | R1 | R2 | R1 | R2 | R1 | R2 | Pts |
| 1 | Rolf Tibblin | Husqvarna | 1 | 4 | 2 | 7 | 2 | 2 | 2 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 2 | 1 | 3 | 2 | 2 | - | 1 | 1 | 4 | - | - | - | 52 |
| 2 | Sten Lundin | Lito | 3 | 1 | 3 | 1 | 3 | 4 | 4 | 3 | 5 | 6 | 2 | 2 | 3 | 3 | - | - | - | - | 2 | 2 | 3 | 2 | 2 | 3 | 48 |
| 3 | Jeff Smith | BSA | 8 | 6 | 4 | 2 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 2 | 3 | 2 | NC | NC | 9 | 4 | 5 | 4 | 1 | 2 | 3 | 3 | 6 | 4 | 1 | 1 | 44 |
| 4 | Per Olaf Persson | Husqvarna | 6 | 5 | 6 | 4 | 8 | 6 | 7 | 4 | 10 | 10 | 4 | 4 | - | - | 2 | - | - | - | 8 | 6 | 9 | 1 | 3 | 2 | 20 |
| 5 | Arthur Lampkin | BSA | 12 | 9 | - | - | 4 | 5 | 8 | 10 | 12 | 34 | 5 | 3 | 5 | 9 | 4 | 5 | 3 | 3 | 7 | - | 8 | 5 | - | - | 18 |
| 6 | Bill Nilsson | BSA | 2 | 2 | 1 | 3 | 10 | 3 | 3 | - | 4 | 4 | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | 17 |
| 7 | Ove Lundell | Monark | 7 | - | - | - | - | - | 6 | 5 | - | - | 3 | 14 | 6 | - | 1 | 1 | - | - | 4 | 4 | 1 | - | - | - | 13 |
| 8 | John Burton | BSA | 11 | 3 | - | - | - | - | - | - | 14 | 21 | 7 | 5 | 13 | 6 | - | - | 17 | - | 11 | 15 | 5 | 3 | - | - | 9 |
| 9 | Vlastimil Valek | ČZ | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | 1 | 2 | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | 6 |
| 10 | Ervín Krajčovič | ESO | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | 8 | 5 | 6 | 3 | - | - | - | - | - | - | 6 | 6 | 5 |
| 11 | Derek Rickman | Triumph-Métisse | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | 4 | 4 | - | - | - | - | - | - | 4 |
| 12 | André Chuchard | Triumph | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | 2 | 5 | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | 4 |
| 13 | Mogens Rasmussen | Matchless | - | - | - | - | - | - | 8 | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | 7 | 5 | - | - | - | - | - | - | 3 |
| 14 | Karel Pilar | ČZ | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | 4 | 7 | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | 3 |
| 15 | Josef Hrebecek | ESO | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | 4 | 4 | 3 |
| 16 | Nic Jansen | Matchless-Métisse | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | 5 | 5 | 7 | 7 | - | - | 3 |
| 17 | Heinz Krech | ESO | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | 5 | 5 | 2 |
| 18 | Chris Horsfield | Matchless | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | 6 | 7 | - | - | - | - | - | - | 2 |
| 19 | Antonin Klavinsh | ESO | 4 | 7 | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | 7 | 8 | 2 |
| 20 | Hubert Scaillet | Triumph-Métisse | - | - | 5 | 5 | - | - | - | - | 8 | 3 | NC | NC | - | - | - | - | - | - | 6 | - | 2 | - | - | - | 2 |
| 21 | Broer Dirkx | Lito | 10 | 23 | - | - | - | - | 5 | 6 | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | 17 | - | - | - | 1 |
| 22 | Igor Kazakov | ESO | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | 6 | - | - | - | - | - | - | 17 | 17 | 5 |
| 23 | Emilio Ostorero | Husqvarna | - | - | 8 | 6 | - | - | - | - | 11 | 29 | 6 | 8 | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | 1 |
| 24 | Walter Baeten | Jawa | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | 8 | 6 | - | - | - | - | - | - | 1 |
| - | Fritz Betzelbacher | Maico | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | 6 | 7 | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | 0 |
| - | Don Rickman | Triumph-Métisse | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | 1 | - | - | - | - | - | - | 0 |
| - | Vic Eastwood | Matchless | - | - | - | - | - | - | 9 | - | 13 | 33 | NC | 6 | - | - | - | - | 5 | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | 0 |
| Source: ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||

### 250cc

(Results in italics indicate overall winner)
| Pos | Rider | Machine | ESP | ESP | ITA | ITA | FRA | FRA | CH | CH | GER | GER | LUX | LUX | NED | NED | UK | UK | SWE | SWE | FIN | FIN | USSR | USSR | POL | POL | CZE | CZE | GDR | GDR | Pts |
| Pos | Rider | Machine | R1 | R2 | R1 | R2 | R1 | R2 | R1 | R2 | R1 | R2 | R1 | R2 | R1 | R2 | R1 | R2 | R1 | R2 | R1 | R2 | R1 | R2 | R1 | R2 | R1 | R2 | R1 | R2 | Pts |
| 1 | Torsten Hallman | Husqvarna | 2 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 7 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | - | 1 | - | - | 2 | 2 | - | - | 56 |
| 2 | Vlastimil Valek | ČZ | - | - | - | - | 3 | 2 | 2 | - | 2 | 2 | 2 | 2 | 1 | 2 | 2 | 3 | - | - | 2 | 2 | 1 | 3 | 1 | 2 | 1 | 1 | - | 1 | 50 |
| 3 | Igor Grigoriev | ČZ | - | - | - | - | - | - | 3 | 2 | - | - | 9 | 6 | 5 | 3 | - | - | - | - | 4 | 5 | 2 | 4 | 2 | 3 | 7 | 5 | 2 | 3 | 32 |
| 4 | Karel Pilar | ČZ | - | - | - | - | 8 | 7 | - | - | 4 | 5 | 3 | 7 | 3 | 7 | 8 | 4 | - | - | 5 | - | 5 | 2 | 11 | 1 | 4 | 6 | 3 | 2 | 24 |
| 5 | Jan Johansson | Lindstrom | 6 | 5 | 3 | 4 | 31 | 32 | - | - | - | - | 6 | - | 2 | 4 | 5 | 7 | 5 | 3 | - | - | 7 | 5 | - | - | 3 | 4 | - | - | 21 |
| 6 | Cenneth Loof | Greeves | - | - | 5 | - | 4 | 10 | - | - | - | - | 4 | 4 | 8 | - | 4 | 5 | 4 | 2 | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | 13 |
| 7 | Dave Bickers | Greeves | 1 | 2 | - | - | - | - | - | - | 3 | 6 | 5 | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | 12 |
| 8 | Alan Clough | Greeves | 21 | 4 | 2 | 2 | 2 | 4 | 4 | - | 10 | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | 8 | 10 | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | 10 |
| 9 | Olle Pettersson | Husqvarna | - | - | - | - | 6 | 6 | - | - | 6 | 4 | - | - | - | - | - | - | 3 | 5 | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | 6 |
| 10 | Arne Kring | Husqvarna | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | 2 | 4 | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | 6 |
| 11 | Pentti Kalteva | Husqvarna | - | - | - | - | 16 | 26 | 13 | 5 | - | - | - | - | 9 | - | - | - | - | - | 3 | - | - | - | 3 | 4 | 9 | - | - | - | 5 |
| 12 | Fritz Selling | Greeves | - | - | 7 | 6 | 10 | 5 | 10 | 4 | 12 | 13 | 13 | - | 4 | 5 | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | 16 | 15 | 5 |
| 13 | John Banks | Dot | 10 | 13 | - | - | 9 | 28 | 8 | 3 | - | - | - | 13 | - | - | 3 | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | 4 |
| 14 | Christoph Specht | Maico | 3 | 6 | - | - | 32 | 8 | - | - | 13 | - | - | - | - | - | - | 10 | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | 7 | - | - | 4 |
| 14 | Paul Friedrichs | ČZ | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | 18 | - | - | - | 3 | - | - | - | - | - | 1 | 5 | 4 |
| 14 | Fritz Betzelbacher | Maico | - | - | 4 | 3 | - | - | - | - | - | 3 | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | 4 |
| 14 | Don Rickman | Bultaco-Métisse | 19 | 3 | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | 7 | 2 | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | 4 |
| 14 | Zdenek Polanka | ČZ | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | 5 | 10 | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | 6 | 9 | 4 | 4 | 4 |
| 14 | Fred Willamowski | MZ | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | 12 | 14 | - | - | 6 | 6 | - | - | - | - | 5 | 7 | 4 |
| 20 | Victor Arbekov | ČZ | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | 6 | 4 | 7 | - | - | - | - | - | - | 3 |
| 20 | John Griffith | Dot | 4 | - | - | 5 | 5 | 3 | 5 | - | - | - | - | 3 | - | - | 6 | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | 3 |
| 20 | Vladimir Gorulko | ČZ | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | 4 | 5 | - | - | - | - | 3 |
| 20 | Raimo Rein | Husqvarna | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | 20 | 8 | 6 | 4 | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | 3 |
| 20 | Petr Dobry | Jawa | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | 5 | 3 | - | - | 3 |
| 25 | Chris Horsfield | James | - | - | - | - | - | - | 6 | 9 | 11 | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | 2 |
| 25 | Emilio Ostorero | Husqvarna | - | - | 6 | 7 | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | 2 |
| 25 | Ulrich Gerster | Greeves | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | 20 | 9 | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | 5 | 7 | - | - | - | - | 2 |
| 25 | Joël Robert | Greeves | 9 | 8 | 9 | 10 | - | - | - | - | 17 | 7 | - | - | - | - | - | 8 | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | 2 |
| 25 | Sivert Eriksson | Greeves | - | - | - | - | - | - | 14 | 6 | 9 | 12 | 8 | 5 | - | - | - | 6 | 9 | 15 | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | 2 |
| 30 | Oriol Puig Bulto | Bultaco | 8 | 9 | - | - | 17 | 13 | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | 1 |
| 30 | Jussi Norrena | Husqvarna | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | 1 |
| 30 | Lars Olsson | Greeves | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | 6 | 6 | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | 1 |
| 30 | Ernst Wolff | MZ | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | 8 | 8 | 7 | 6 | 1 |
| - | Aarno Erola | Montesa | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | 3 | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | 0 |
| Sources: ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||