Before the MotoGP name, the premier class of Grand Prix motorcycle racing was called the 500cc class. The designation referred primarily to the engine-displacement limit used by the category for much of its history.
The 500cc class was part of the inaugural 1949 World Championship, alongside the 125cc, 250cc, 350cc, and sidecar categories. From the 1960s onward, two-stroke engines increasingly dominated the class because they delivered strong power for their size. Famous machines included the Honda NSR500, Yamaha YZR500, Suzuki RG500, and MV Agusta’s four-strokes.
The final 500cc season was 2001. Valentino Rossi won that championship and became the last premier-class champion of the two-stroke era. In 2002, MotoGP replaced the 500cc class, introducing larger four-stroke machines while temporarily allowing some 500cc two-strokes during the transition. Moto2 is not the old premier class; it replaced the intermediate 250cc category in 2010.