Back in 1989, the Phillip Island circuit had been refurbished and the Australian Motorcycle Grand Prix joined the FIM Road Racing World Championship.

Since then, three Australian riders have won: Wayne Gardner, Mick Doohan and Casey Stoner.

Wayne Gardner – 1989 and 1990

Out of Wayne Gardner’s 18 Grand Prix victories, one that is etched forever in the memories of Australian race fans is his win at the very first Phillip Island GP in 1989.

Gardner’s worldwide motorcycle racing success was a major factor in the World Championship coming to Australia.

Gardner struggled with his Honda to keep pace but in the end, he triumphed over Wayne Rainey. Seeing race favourite Kevin Schwantz crash during the first lap gave him the hope that he could win the race. Over the 30 laps of the race, the lead changed 18 times. Gardner described the win as the greatest moment of his life. He went on to win Phillip Island in 1990 as well, edging out teammate Mick Doohan.

Mick Doohan – 1998 

Mick Doohan won at Phillip Island in 1998. He had previously won the Australian Grand Prix at Eastern Creek in 1992 and 1995.

The Queensland born Australian legend began his career in superbikes.

In 1989 he joined the World Championship and was teammate to fellow Australian Wayne Gardner at Honda, who he stayed loyal to throughout his entire career. He secured his first race win of 54 victories in 1990.

Doohan won his first Australian Grand Prix in 1992 at Eastern Creek before a nasty crash in Holland saw his rise to the top slowed by a badly broken right leg.

By 1994 he was back in form and took out the first of his five World Championships, breaking the US dominance of the sport.

Doohan won the World Champion from 1994 to 1998. His riding prowess in 1997 saw him win 12 of the 15 races.

Another broken leg saw him retire from the sport in 1999.

Casey Stoner – 2007 to 2012

Casey Stoner won at Phillip Island six years in row from 2007 to 2012.

After debuting in the MotoGP class in 2006 riding for Honda, Stoner switched to Ducati the following year.

2007 saw Stoner secure his first premier class win in the season opener race in Qatar, beating Valentino Rossi. His good fortune continued as he went on to take 10 race wins, including his first Phillip Island title and ultimately his first World Championship.

In 2011 Stoner moved back to Honda. He claimed his second World Championship with a win on his home ground at Phillip Island for his ninth race victory of the year.

2012 started with Stoner winning two of the first three races. He then shocked the racing community by announcing he would be retiring at the end of the season as he was no longer enjoying racing. He went on to win three more races that year, including Phillip Island. Ankle surgery in the middle of the season saw him miss three races which put him out of contention of another title.

The third corner at Phillip Island Grand Prix Circuit was named ‘Stoner Corner’ in his honour in 2012.

Catch all the action from the Australian Motorcycle Grand Prix live and free on 10 and 10 play.