Barry Sheene’s 1977 Championship-winning Suzuki RG500 XR14 will be auctioned on April 26.
London, UK (March 3, 2026) – Bonhams|Cars has confirmed it will offer one of the world’s most historically significant motorcycles for sale—Barry Sheene’s 1977 World Championship-winning works Suzuki RG500 XR14. The auction marks the 50th anniversary of Barry Sheene’s first 500cc World Championship in 1976 and will take place at The International Classic MotorCycle Show at Stafford, UK on April 26. The sale will also offer approximately 90 other machines of note from the same single owner collection, as well as The Rex Judd Collection.
Brought to the market for the first time in nearly 40 years, without reserve and with an estimate of £160,000 – £200,000 GBP, this uniquely important works Suzuki RG500 displays frame number 1201 and engine number RR 1202 RG500. The machine dates from 1977 – the year Barry Sheene won his second, and final, 500cc World Championship. Frame 1201 is one of only two factory machines on which he contested the 1977 World Championship. Importantly, it is the bike that Sheene crossed the finishing line on at the final race of the season to win the title. The sister motorcycle to frame 1201 remains within the Sheene family ownership.
Announcing the sale, Ben Walker, International Department Director of Bonhams Collectors’ Motorcycles, said; “The sale of Barry Sheene’s 1977 World Championship-winning works Suzuki RG500 is a once-in-a-generation opportunity for the most discerning two-wheel collector. This is the first time in nearly 40 years that this historic motorcycle has re-emerged into public view. It represents a truly exceptional chance to acquire a fully documented works Suzuki RG500 XR14 and, crucially, the actual bike that Barry Sheene won the final race of the 1977 season on and therefore, the World Championship. Machines of this caliber and importance rarely come onto the market, let alone one belonging to the late great Barry Sheene.”
In the mid-1970s, Sheene enjoyed a public profile among British sportsmen matched only by that of his contemporary, James Hunt—the 1976 Formula 1 World Champion. But Sheene’s 1976 season very nearly failed to get off the ground when Suzuki announced they would be concluding their Grand Prix racing programme. Fortunately, Chairman and Managing Director of UK importer Heron Suzuki GB, Peter Agg, convinced the factory to continue supplying machines for a Grand Prix campaign run from the UK and sponsored by oil company Texaco. Thus, Texaco Heron Team Suzuki was born.
Sheene won the opening round of the 1976 season at Le Mans and by the end of the year, he had added a further four wins to his tally with victories in Austria, Italy, Holland and Sweden, taking the title with three rounds to spare. In the UK, Sheene was once again crowned Shellsport 500 Champion and MCNSuperbike Champion, winning another MCN ‘Man of the Year’ award.
Following success in 1976, Sheene dominated the 1977 500cc World Championship—the year of the motorcycle offered for sale. He won six of the 11 rounds and finished 2nd and 6th in two others. He took the World Championship title with a total of 107 points—27 points ahead of Steve Baker on a Yamaha. Following an established pattern, he was once again also confirmed as Shellsport 500 Champion, MCNSuperbike Champion and MCN ‘Man of the Year.’
By September 1980, frame number 1201 was recorded as being held in the private collection of Peter Agg. Agg was one of the most respected custodians of historic motor vehicles, and his ownership of Sheene’s 1977 World Championship-winning RG500 further reinforces its rightful place within Suzuki’s competition history. By early 1987, the present owner acquired the machine, since when it has remained in their private collection.
Further entries in the Spring Stafford Sale at The International Classic MotorCycle Show on April 25-26 includes The Rex Judd Collection, offered directly from the Judd family for the first time in many decades.
Rex Judd was a renowned British motorcycle racer and collector with a passion for pioneering machines that helped shape early 20th-century motorcycling. A competitor at legendary venues such as Brooklands in the 1920s and 1930s, Judd developed a deep appreciation for significant historic motorcycles and amassed an extraordinary private collection spanning veteran, vintage and early classics.
For the first time in many decades, this exceptional group of motorcycles is being offered directly from the family:
Sale: The Stafford Sale
Location: The International Classic Motorcycle Show, Stafford, UK
Date: April 26, 2026
- c.1898 Holden 800cc Flat Four ‘Motor Bicycle’, estimate £40,000-70,000.
- c.1911 Pierce Four, estimate £50,000-80,000
- c.1910 Wilkinson TAC, estimate £20,000-40,000
- c.1928 Douglas 750cc Brooklands Special, estimate £12,000-16,000
Learn more at www.bonhams.com
