1985 in sports - Definition and Overview

See also: 1984 in sports, other events of 1985, 1986 in sports and the list of 'years in sports'.

Auto Racing

• Stock car racing:
  • Bill Elliott won the Daytona 500
  • NASCAR Championship - Darrell Waltrip
  • Ken Schrader enters NASCAR
• CART Racing - Al Unser Sr won the season championship
  • • Indianapolis 500 - Danny Sullivan
• Formula One Championship - Alain Prost of France
• 24 hours of Le Mans: the team of Klaus Ludwig / Paolo Barilla / John Winter won, driving a Porsche 956
• Rally racing - Timo Salonen in a Peugeot won the World Rally Championship
  • the team of Ari Vatanen / Terry Harryman won the Monte Carlo Rally driving a Peugeot 205T16
• Drag racing:
  • Don Garlits won the NHRA Top Fuel championship
  • Gary Beck won Top Fuel at the NHRA World Finals

Baseball

• Rollie Fingers breaks Sparky Lyle's American League career record of 232 saves.
• World Series: The Kansas City Royals defeat the St. Louis Cardinals 4 games to 3, becoming the first team to come back from a 3 to 0 deficit to win a series in baseball.
• Books published:
  • Bill James, The Bill James Historical Baseball Abstract: A seminal volume of baseball history by the leading sabermetrician of the day. He revised the book into a new edition in 2001.

Basketball

• NCAA Men's Basketball Championship:
  • Villanova wins 66-64 over Georgetown

• NBA Finals:
  • Los Angeles Lakers win 4 games to 2 over the Boston Celtics

Boxing

• April 15 - The War: Marvin Hagler knocks out Thomas Hearns in three rounds to retain the world's Middleweight title.
• August 10 - Hector Camacho defeats Jose Luis Ramirez to lift the WBC's world Lightweight title.
• September 21 - Michael Spinks beats Larry Holmes by a decision in 15 rounds to become the first world Light Heavyweight champion to win a world Heavyweight title.

Cricket

• Kim Hughes leads a "rebel" team of players on tour of South Africa, banned from official cricket since 1970 because of apartheid.

Cycling

• Giro d'Italia won by Bernard Hinault of France
• Tour de France - Bernard Hinault of France
• World Cycling Championship: Joop Zoetemelk of the Netherlands

Field Hockey

• November 16 - 24 - Seventh Men's Champions Trophy held for the first time in Australia at Perth won by hosts Australia. Great Britain finished second, their best show till then.

Figure Skating

• World Figure Skating Championships:
  • Men's champion: Alexander Fadejew, (Soviet Union)
  • Women's champion: Katarina Witt, (Germany)
  • Pairs champions: Jelena Walowa & Oleg Wassiljew, (Soviet Union)

Football (American)

• Super Bowl XIX: San Francisco 49ers won 38-16 over the Miami Dolphins

Football (Australian Rules)

• Victorian Football League
  • Essendon wins the 89th VFL Premiership (Essendon 26.14 (170) d Hawthorn 14.8 (92))
  • Brownlow Medal awarded to Brad Hardie (Footscray)

Football (Canadian)

• Grey Cup: B.C. Lions win 37-24 over the Hamilton Tiger-Cats
• Vanier Cup: Calgary Dinos win 25-6 over the Western Ontario Mustangs

Football (Soccer)

• The NASL announced that it was suspending operations and hoped to return in 1986; it never did.

• England - FA Cup: Manchester United won 1-0 (aet) over Everton

Golf

Men's Golf

• Grand Slam of golf results:
  1. May - The Masters - Bernhard Langer
  2. June - US Open - Andy North
  3. July - British Open - Sandy Lyle
  4. August - PGA Championship - Hubert Green

• PGA tour's leading money winner for the year: Curtis Strange - $542,321
• PGA Champions Tour leading money winner: Peter Thomson - $386,724
• Ryder Cup: Europe won 16 1/2 to 11 1/2 over the USA in world team golf

Women's Golf

• US Women's Open - Kathy Baker
• LPGA Championship - Nancy Lopez
• Nancy Lopez: leading money winner on the LPGA tour, earning $416,472

Thoroughbred Horse Racing

• Australia - Melbourne Cup - What A Nuisance
• Canada - Queen's Plate - La Lorgnette
• France - Prix de l'Arc de Triomphe - Rainbow Quest
• Ireland - Irish Derby Stakes - Law Society

• English Triple Crown Races:
  1. Two Thousand Guineas Stakes - Shadeed
  2. Epsom Derby - Slip Anchor
  3. St. Leger Stakes - Oh So Sharp

• United States Triple Crown Races:
  1. Kentucky Derby - Spend a Buck
  2. Preakness Stakes - Tank's Prospect
  3. Belmont Stakes - Creme Fraiche

• Breeders' Cup:
  1. Breeders' Cup Classic - Proud Truth
  2. Breeders' Cup Distaff - Life's Magic
  3. Breeders' Cup Juvenile - Tasso
  4. Breeders' Cup Juvenile Fillies - Twilight Ridge
  5. Breeders' Cup Mile - Cozzene
  6. Breeders' Cup Sprint - Precisionist
  7. Breeders' Cup Turf - Pebbles

Harness Racing

• North America Cup - Staff Director

• United States Pacing Triple Crown races:
  1. Cane Pace - Chairmanoftheboard
  2. Little Brown Jug - Nihilator
  3. Messenger Stakes - Pershing Square

• United States Trotting Triple Crown races:
  1. Hambletonian - Prakas
  2. Yonkers Trot -
  3. Kentucky Futurity - Flak Bait

• Australian Inter Dominion Harness Racing Championship:
  • Pacers: Preux Chevalier
  • Trotters: Scotch Notch

Ice Hockey

• Art Ross Memorial Trophy as the NHL's leading scorer during the regular season: Wayne Gretzky, Edmonton Oilers

• Hart Memorial Trophy for the NHL's Most Valuable Player: Wayne Gretzky, Edmonton Oilers

• Stanley Cup: Edmonton Oilers win 4 games to 1 over the Philadelphia Flyers

• World Hockey Championship:
  • Men's champion: Czechoslovakia defeated Canada
  • Junior Men's champion: Canada defeated Czechoslovakia

Skiing

• Alpine Skiing
  • The men's overall season champion: Marc Girardelli, Luxembourg
  • The women's overall season champion: Michela Figini, Switzerland

Snooker

• World Snooker Championship: Dennis Taylor beats Steve Davis 18-17 in one of the greatest snooker matches of all time
• World rankings: Steve Davis remains world number one for 1985/86

Tennis

• Grand Slam in tennis men's results:
  1. Australian Open - Stefan Edberg
  2. French Open - Mats Wilander
  3. Wimbledon championships - Boris Becker
  4. US Open - Ivan Lendl

• Grand Slam in tennis women's results:
  1. Australian Open - Martina Navratilova
  2. French Open - Chris Evert
  3. Wimbledon championships - Martina Navratilova
  4. US Open - Hana Mandlikova

• Davis Cup: Sweden wins 3-2 over Germany F.R. in world team tennis.

General sporting events

• Libby Riddles with her lead dogs, Axle & Dugan, becomes the first woman to ever win the Iditarod Trail Sled Dog Race

Births

• February 5 - Cristiano Ronaldo, Portuguese football star
• May 2 - Sarah Hughes, figure skater
• June 30 - Michael Phelps, American swimmer
• October 24 - Wayne Rooney, English football star

Deaths

• August 12 - Manfred Winkelhock, auto racing driver
• November 13 - Pelle Lindbergh, NHL goaltender Philadelphia Flyers
• December 14 - Roger Maris, Major League Baseball player