Lambretta is set to return to world championship motorbike racing more than half a century after the the famous Italian name last competed with a factory team. Two entries from the Italian firm were posted on the official entry list released by the governing body, FIM.

Lambretta is set to return to world championship motorbike racing more than half a century after the the famous Italian name last competed with a factory team. Two entries from the Italian firm were posted on the official entry list released by the governing body, FIM.

The newly-formed Lambretta Reparto Corse division will enter two machines in the 125cc championship, taking on tough opposition from Derbi, Aprilia and Honda in a 27-strong provisional field. Italian rider Marco Ravaioli will pilot one of the machines while Spaniard Luis salom will be onboard the other.  The return to racing comes as Lambretta rolls out its first all-new scooter range since 1970.

"It's is a wonderful day for Lambretta and one we've been working towards for nearly two years," Lambretta’s marketing director John Scully told Autosport. "We're delighted to be back on the racetrack and to compete in such an exciting and expanding sport. It'll be fun to compete with the big boys and see what happens. We're determined to do well and develop winning racing technology that can then be translated into our production machines that will again make Lambretta scooters the most innovative on the market."

Lambretta Reparto Corse has been created out of the infrastructure of the Loncin team which ran under the name of the Chinese motorcycle manufacturer last year and will be run by the same personnel and operate from the same premises in Bologna with Nicola Casadei as the team principal. The Lambretta bike that will contest the 125cc championship this year will however use a brand new engine and frame.

Lambretta traces its roots back to the final years of World War II when Ferdinando Innocenti was inspired by the Cushman, the compact scooter that the American army brought with them on their push up through Italy, and set up production in Milan. Fast off the mark in the post-war reconstruction of Italy, Lambretta quickly grew into a household name before its sales slid, and it is known today almost as much for the diverse fashion accessories that bear its name as the small bikes that it builds. The Lambretta factory actually raced bikes between 1950 and 1953 although the Italian machines proved popular with privateers through the following years.