Notes:
Jan Bruins was a Dutch motorcycle racer born on 27 May 1940.

A specialist on small-displacement engines, Bruins debuted in the World Motorcycle Championship in the 50 cm³ class of the 1970 Dutch Tourist Trophy at Assen. Competing with a Kreidler, prepared by himself, Bruins faced the best riders of the time and completed the race in a admirable tenth place, scoring one point.

The following year Bruins raced in three events of the 50 cm³ World Championship, scoring a 4^th at the Dutch Tourist Trophy, a 6^th at the Swedish Grand Prix and a 5^th at the Spanish Grand Prix, completing the year with 19 points on his pocket.

Bruins' best racing season would be 1972. Still competing with his self-tuned Kreidler, he started the World Championship fight with a sixth place at the West German Grand Prix at the Nürburgring. After missing the Grand Prix of Nations, that year held at Imola, Bruins returned for the Yugoslavian Grand Prix, staged at the difficult public roads course of Opatija on 18 June. Jan De Vries, the leading rider of Kreidler works team, led the race by a large margin when he was forced to abandon it due to a mechanical problem. Angel Nieto - De Vries' toughest rival in the 50 cm³s and a future multiple world champion - grabbed the lead, but fell behind when his Derbi went straight on a turn. Bruins passed the Spanish and dashed to the finish line, winning his first and only grand prix. Bruins was followed Nieto, Otello Buscherini in a Malanc), Swedish Kurt Carlsson in a Monark, and the Yugoslavian Adrian Bernetic in a Tomos. Curiously, no sixth place was awarded as only five riders completed the event.

In spite of this victory, Bruins missed the Dutch Tourist Trophy at Assen the following Saturday, returning to the world circuit for the Belgian Grand Prix at Spa-Francorchamps in early July with a sixth place. At Anderstorp in Sweden, in a race wholly dominated by De Vries' Kreidler, Bruins obtained a fourth place. From there Bruins entered the last race of the 1972 World Championship - the Spanish Grand Prix, at the beautiful Monjuich street course in Barcelona, to where Nieto and De Vries took their neck-to-neck fight for the title. To support De Vries' bid for the crown, Kreidler enlisted the services of Kent Andersson, a leading Yamaha rider in the 125 and 250 cm³ categories. Nieto won the battle, followed by De Vries and Andersson. Bruins by his turn made another great race, crossing the line in fifth place just after local rider Benjamino Grau. These results meant that Nieto and De Vries tied in points. Only a month later, at the Fédération Internationale de Motociclisme Congress in London, the Spanish was named world champion as the total cumulative time in the races where both were classified (at Nürburgring, Imola, Assen, Spa-Francorchamps and Montjuich) was shorter - by merely 21.3 seconds. And to Bruins that had been an epic season too, as he managed to score 39 points and finished the World Championship in fourth place, despite competing in only five of the eight races of its schedule.

Jan Bruins passed away on 16 April 1997 in consequence of a debilitating illness. He was fifty-seven years old.

Career Summary:

• Book "Coureurs van Oranje", by Hans van Loozenoord, chapter "Eregarerij GP-Winnaars", published by Roadrace Publicity BV [G1].
• Website Elsberg Tuning, article "50cc Roadracing 1972", page http://www.elsberg-tuning.dk/1972.html.
• Website Racing Memory II, by Vincent Glon, article "Les Championnats du Monde de Courses sur Route - L'année 1972", page http://racingmemo.free.fr/MOTO-GP-1972.htm.
• E-mail by Nikola Antely, dated 19 November 2010.
• E-mail by Vincent Glon, dated 20 November 2010, citing also [G1].