Aermacchi Harley-Davidson 250 1972

When Renzo Pasolini severed his ties with Benelii at the end of the 1970 season, he went back to Aermacchi, the company he had raced for before joining Benelii. Pasolini started out his racing career with Aermacchi and won his first races with the rod-and-rocker Ala d'Oro.

Aermacchi and Harley-Davidson now worked together. One of the many projects that they were considering was a particularly interesting plan for a 250-cc. engine, two-stroke, consisting of two paired Ala d'Oro 125 cylinders. Pasolini had his eye on that model as an instrument of revenge, and Aermacchi consented to build it for him in the hope of regaining lost ground in speed racing.

The Aermacchi 250 two-cylinder, two-stroke prototype was ready in the spring of 1971. Although the first version was very heavy and the cylinders were made of steel rather than aluminum, the initial tests were excellent. The racing team was so enthusiastic about the new 250 that an enlarged 350 version was readied.
In 1972 Renzo Pasolini rode a vehicle very similar to the prototype to win three Grand Prix races. He lost the 250-class world championship by a single point. In the 350 class he came in third, behind Giacomo Agostini with MV Agusta and Jarno Saarinen with Yamaha.

Motorcycle: Aermacchi-Harley-Davidson 250 Two-cylinder
Manufacturer: Aermacchi-Harley-Davidson, Varese
Type: Racing
Year: 1972
Engine: Aermacchi-HD two-cylinder, two-stroke, with cross-port distribution. Displacement 246.3 cc. (56 mm. x 50 mm.)
Cooling: Air
Transmission: Six-speed block
Power: Over 50 h.p. at 11,400 r.p.m.
Maximum speed: Over 140 m.p.h.
Chassis: Double cradle, continuous, tubular. Front and rear, telescopic suspension
Brakes: Front, central drum, four shoes, four-cam; rear, central drum, double cam