ROAD AMERICA’S MOTOAMERICA PREVIEW
MotoAmerica brings professional motorcycle road racing to Wisconsin this weekend with three days of competition in seven classes at Road America, the rolling 4-mile course outside Elkhart Lake in rural Sheboygan County.
Here’s what you need to know.
What’s the schedule for Road America’s MotoAmerica weekend?
Practice and qualifying begin Friday. Racing begins Saturday.
Racing is scheduled to start at 1:10 p.m. Saturday with Super Sport 1000, and at noon Sunday with Royal Enfield BTR.
The headlining 12-lap Medallia Superbike features are scheduled for 3:10 p.m. each day.
The popular Mission King of the Baggers series, which includes touringstyle bikes from Harley-Davidson and Indian, is set to race at 4:05 p.m. Saturday and Sunday. Races are five laps apiece.
Are the MotoAmerica races at Road America broadcast on TV or available via streaming?
Some classes have TV packages that include live or delayed coverage on MATV and Fox Sports, and Twins Cup also streams on Facebook. Superbike races are scheduled for FS2 beginning at 6 p.m. each day.
What else is going on?
On Friday night, the nearby Plymouth Dirt Track at the Sheboygan County Fairgrounds hosts the Dairyland Classic Flat Track races. A free shuttle will be available to transport campers and fans to the fairgrounds, beginning at 5 p.m. at Gate 4.
Saturday includes Vintage MotoFest, a “ride-in vintage motorcycle show and party.” The event includes a mix of European, Japanese and American bikes. Owners can register from 9-11 a.m. or online at roadamerica.com. Additional entertainment includes live bands, axe throwing and stunt showed.
Is it possible to meet the racers?
Moto-America has open paddock, and access is included with general admission. That means fans can get up close
to the teams’ pits, and as time permits riders are typically approachable for photos and autographs.
Is it possible to get onto the track?
Road America sells “touring” passes for short on-track sessions each day (12:30 p.m. Friday, noon Saturday, 10:50 a.m. Sunday). Go to roadamerica.com for details.
What’s new at Road America?
A repave last fall provides a smooth, seam-free surface for racers. Fans will find a new viewing areas, most notably a road (open for walking, golf carts and smaller vehicles) that rings the outside of the Carousel and leads nearly to the kink where a sandy area has been spiffed up and affectionately branded as the Beach.
Who won last year’s Superbike races at Road America?
Cameron Petersen, who was eliminated by a mechanical failure while leading on Saturday, bounced back to take the shortened Sunday feature in mixed wet/dry conditions. On Saturday, Mathew Scholtz took advantage of the trouble that stranded Petersen for his first victory of the season after five runnerups.
What has happened so far this season in MotoAmerica?
The two-time defending Superbike champion Jake Gagne is rolling again. He comes to Road America off a tworace sweep at Barber Motorsports Park, where he led every lap. Gagne has won three straight races and 32 overall, which tied him for fourth on the all-time list with Miguel Duhamel and Toni Elias. Cameron Beaubier, who won five titles from 2015-20, is back in the series after a two-year run in the Moto2 world championship. Now on a BMW, Beaubier won a round at Road Atlanta and trails Gagne – his former Yamaha teammate – by 21 points, nearly a race win’s worth. Beaubier has won 11 times at Road America.
Newcomer Xavi Fores, a 37-year-old Spaniard who made 127 World Superbike starts, is unbeaten in three rounds of Supersport.