• Believed works bike ex-Cecil Sandford or Carlo Ubbiali
• An older restoration
• Found in Barcelona, Spain

MV Agusta's racing 125cc two-strokes that first appeared in 1948 were a major success but at World Championship level the MVs were outclassed by the four-stroke FB Mondial with its twin-overhead-cam engine. Count Agusta's response was to hire Gilera's chief designer, Piero Remor, together with its chief mechanic, Arturo Magni in 1950. However, the new Remor-designed 125cc four-stroke was not an immediate success. It was only following Mondial's withdrawal from racing that MV bagged its first 125cc World Championship, Cecil Sandford taking the riders' title in 1952. MV's 125 had been extensively redesigned for '52, gaining telescopic forks, full-width alloy hubs and a sleeker fuel tank, while maximum power increased to 15bhp. Les Graham's influence saw the 125 equipped with Ernie Earles' leading-link front forks for 1953 and these also found their way onto the 500cc four. Graham won the Ultra-lightweight TT at the Isle of Man that year but his tragic death a few days later dealt a severe blow to the team's fortunes; NSU works rider Werner Haas took the riders' title in the 125cc class but MV did at least have the satisfaction of retaining the manufacturers' crown.

NSU continued its dominance of the 125cc class in 1954, works rider Rupert Hollaus being crowned World Champion at the year's end with MV's Carlo Ubbiali runner-up. The German factory's withdrawal at the end of 1954 left no credible opposition in the lightweight classes for MV, which duly scooped its second 125cc World Championship in 1955, winning all six Grands Prix that year. Carlo Ubbiali's five wins ensured the Italian of his second world title. For the next five years the combination of Ubbiali and the 125 MV would prove almost unbeatable. The Italian would secure four more 125cc World Championships before retiring at the end of the 1960 season, an almost unprecedented run of success only interrupted in 1957 by Mondial-mounted Tarquinio Provini. Ubbiali also claimed the 250cc world title for MV in 1956, '59 and '60. Ubbiali's retirement coincided with MV's withdrawal from serious involvement in the lightweight classes at international level, but what an extraordinary achievement it had been.

Found in Barcelona, Spain, this MV Bialbero had already been restored when purchased (the original aluminium 'dustbin' fairing was found later). It is believed to be a works bike used in World Championship competition, possibly by Cecil Sandford or Carlo Ubbiali. The machine is offered with photocopied literature and an original photograph taken at Monza in August 1958 of Carlo Ubbiali on a full-faired MV.