| Author | Message | ||
     Blake |
WOW! This is HUGE! And can only be very very good for American motorcycle racing! Woohoo! AMA selects Daytona Motorsports Group to manage professional racing series | ||
| Elvis |
Wow!! Roger Edmondson hinted at something big related to Moto-St, and this must be it . . . but how does it affect Moto-ST? Will Moto-St be rolled into AMA? (Message edited by elvis on March 07, 2008) | ||
| Elvis |
Here's an interesting article: http://www.motorcycle.com/events/motost-bringing-t wins-back-to-the-track-76165.html "But Edmondson has big plans for the series future. He imagines a series where the top 25 teams will have the backing of corporate America beyond the motorcycle industry (The Richie Morris Racing/Bruce Rossemeyer Buell team has already earned the support of companies like Coca-Cola, Geico and Budweiser). Rumors abound at the possibility of Moto-ST becoming part of the AMA series, bringing the roar of Twins back into the mainstream of American motorcycle road racing, with a possible announcement to be made during Bike Week. But either way, Moto-ST is here to stay, just ask the experts." So should we assume that as of this moment, Moto-St is basically part of AMA? | ||
| Mark61 |
The AMA sent out a letter recently stating they were getting out of the race promotion business and focusing on rights and riding. Like everything else as a group the AMA members are getting older and care more about politics and rallies than racing. Watch the price to race or get into the races skyrocket now!!!!$$$$$$$$$$ mark61 | ||
| Blake |
That is unfounded. You need an audience first and you don't penalize the folks who are providing the entertainment and risking their lives at the same time. | ||
| Wolfridgerider |
Maybe we well get our own 15 min. TV on Speed now! Your quick Blake!  | ||
| No_rice |
im not so sure this will be a good thing. i dont want motorcycle racing to become the next nascar. | ||
| Mutation_racer |
I do. what so bad about nascar. big sponsor big money. As a buell racer this is the best thing that has happened to motorcycle racing in the u.s. in years. It can only be a good thing for V-Twin racing and buell. | ||
| Benm2 |
There will always be club racing, making the top ranks more "pro" should be a good thing. The thing that amazed me at Daytona was the empty stands: NASCAR fills them. If motorcycle racing can do the same, then that would be great! If Grand-am can even out the playing field, that might be good too. I can't imagine I'm the only one a bit tired of the Matt/Ben show... The moto-st folks just introduced the "best dressed" award. They are trying to look the part, to put on the show, and to fill the stands. I hope they succeed! | ||
| Elvis |
A few comments that might be interesting to think about. I don't know the exact relationship between Roger Edmondson and Erik Buell . . . but I'll bet if they're not good friends they have, at the very least, spent some long lunches discussing the future of motorcycle racing in America. Keep in mind that Roger Edmondson's baby - Moto-ST - has rules that seem to be specifically tailored to Buell. Keep in mind also that Buell sponsors the SST class and Buells have been active and successful in the series. Keep in mind also that Bruce Rossmeyer somehow convinced Coke, Toyota, Budweiser and Geico to sponsor his modest little racing program. Do you think Roger Edmondson might have had a hand in landing those sponsorships, and isn't it interesting that if he did, he pointed them toward a Buell team? Something very interesting you will notice - if you look at the list of bikes eligible for Moto-ST - is that there are 8 different references to American bikes: http://www.moto-st.com/CONTENT/Docs/2008MOTO-STEli gibleMachineListv2.pdf Including Harleys and the Fischer MRX which most of us wouldn't have even thought to include on a list of racing motorcycles. I think that shows that Mr. Edmondson recognizes the marketing value of having American motorcycles participating in an American road-race series. I think most of us realize that one of the main things holding Buell back from getting more involved in road-racing is money. Getting some sponsorship money from companies like Coke and Toyota sure could be useful, couldn't it? I may be overstating it, and I certainly haven't been a fly on the wall for any of the meetings leading up to this, and I may be letting my optimism get the better of me, but I suspect that Buell's involvement in this up to this point and their future participation may be more significant than may be immediately obvious. One other thing to remember is there is a connection (not entirely sure of the details, but I know there's something there) between Moto-ST and the Canadian Superbike series in which Steve Crevier will be racing the 1125R. Some of the things running through my mind are likely the result of an over-active imagination, but still some interesting things to think about. | ||
| Wolfridgerider |
Cross promotion. Air the Motorcycle races before the car races. I can't believe people find NASCAR racing entertaining. BUT..... Once the get to see some guy hanging off at 100 + mph they will be hooked! I hope | ||
| Benm2 |
Well, I saw John Flickinger (sp?) at Daytona, talking to Buell racers. I saw Henry Duga there, doing the same & offering support. I DIDN'T see that from Suzuki, for example, even though the SV650 & SV1000 were popular bikes for MOTO-ST. I think Buell is VERY interested in racing, but maybe not in the same ballpark as Honazukasakiamaha. I don't think that the choice of twins for MOTO-ST was coincidence, but it is important to note that the Title sponsors are BMW and Buell. | ||
| Blake |
Did anyone notice the program lead-in on SpeedTV for the Daytona AMA races yesterday? Very nice! Very Hollywood/NASCARish. I have to say that Freddie and Ralph are the best commentating team I've seen/heard for motorcycle racing. Someone's been bragging about Buell being involved some world class racing within five years. Looks very plausible given the current state of things.  | ||
| José_quiñones |
Roger Edmonson comes full circle. (google it) This is great news for road racing, flat track, motorcross,supermoto, hill climb and ATV privateer teams, small manufacturers/companies and the fans of these types of racing. Bad news for the current AMA factory teams and DUNLOP, among others. Their advantages are about to be legislated away. | ||
| José_quiñones |
Looking forward to: Spec fuels, maybe tires, no factory riders in the "developmental" classes (like Supersport), greater variety of eligible bikes, HP/WEIGHT enforced Superbike rules, more sponsors. In other words, a better "show" | ||
| José_quiñones |
So should we assume that as of this moment, Moto-St is basically part of AMA? No the AMA is basically part of MotoST/CanadianSuperbike/GrandAM/International Speedway Corporation (ie NASCAR) There's a press conference going on this evening down there, should be interesting. | ||
| Benm2 |
I would NOT like to see spec tires, maybe not so good for tire development. Even without spec tires, Pirelli has been making plenty of inroads. Maybe that's FROM their spec tire program with WSB, maybe not. No factory riders in supersport/stock might be tough to enforce. Is Erion "factory"? How about Jordan? I'd guess that those classes will go hp/weight, and may the best TEAM win (riding fast is good, but the support is a key part). More sponsors would ALWAYS be a good thing. | ||
| Wolfridgerider |
I'm looking forward to Jordons reaction. We may see some heavy promotion from him now. He said something to the effect that the AMA wanted him to get his sponsors on board and help spread the AMA racing word. He didn't want anything to do with it until the playing field was level. I can't wait to see what happens next | ||
| Jackbequick |
If the new guys make motorcycle racing into the same thing that NASCAR is now, they'll probably lose me. I just can't get interested in watching NASCAR any more most because of the way it is presented with all the talking heads and stuff. It is aimed at people that can turn off their brains and just go into a trance. The racing itself is not too bad but NASCAR has lost the bubble on controlling the conduct of drivers on the track. It's like "NASCAR Meets The WWF." And not stopping the "team driving" thing with people putting other cars into the wall to benefit a third party is just disgusting. So if DMG turns motorcycle racing into something similar to NASCAR it will be too bad. As for the prices, I don't know what it costs now to go to a NASCAR event but I've heard Daytona described as a "$2,000 weekend" not including the cost of getting there and back. So it they turn motorcycle racing into another circus for gouging fans for their loyalties while reaping mega-millions from TV revenues, that is not necessarily going to be a good thing for motorcycle racing or fans of it. I'll wait and see what happens before I decide if it is good or bad. Jack | ||
| Benm2 |
Personally, NASCAR is a total turn-off for me. The Grand-am Rolex series, as far as cars go, is cool. I'm sure there's a happy medium. MotoGP crowds in Europe are HUGE. I would love to see that here. | ||
| Blake |
You can, go to a NASCAR race.  Guys, if you think what we have now and have had in the AMA for the past two decades or more is just great, then yeah, you will likely be disappointed to see professional motorcycle racing elevated to a true world class sport here in America. Otherwise, it's ALL good. Yeah, I dig NASCAR. But I can only stand to watch the last 30 laps or so. The races are WAY too long for television watching. If NASCAR were even more savy, they'd break each race into two separate races, thus giving the fans double the climax, just like Superbike. Hmmmm... | ||
| José_quiñones |
AMA & Daytona Motorsports Group Press Conference Transcript SUPERBIKES will run the 2009 Daytona 200! The Future of AMA PRO RACING | ||
| Bads1 |
Jose is correct. Like Michael Jordan had said,he'd like to see a level playing field. New faces are going to start to win. | ||
| Elvis |
Great info José! Do you think Edmonson's comments (about making close competition a key and not comitting to the Superbike rules) as well as his history are pointing toward the possibility of a horsepower limited Superbike competition? That would be great for Buell, but I like the idea of matching WSBK (I can't argue with a race series that leads to bikes like the 1098R). I wonder if Edmondson gave a wink and a nod to Erik Buell regarding the future of AMA Superbike that may have led to the Crevier effort. I'd love to see AMA simplified down to three races: They could run Moto-ST on Saturdays (to showcase a long, entertaining endurance race), and then run Formula X-Treme (to showcase a divers group of all types of bikes) and Superbike (the featured, high performance race) on Sundays. I think something like that would make a very entertaining weekend of racing, and all of the classes would be unique and clearly differentiated. I like the idea of making the 200 Superbike again. It really should be a top race with the fastest bikes and best riders possible. | ||
| Benm2 |
I always thought that making the 200 an FX race was a bad idea. The whole idea that "the tires couldn't take it" may have been true for ONE year, in the early season, but the fact remains that MOTO-GP bikes were already making more hp than the superbikes. Also, they could have added a chicane to break up the bowl. I think it would be great if this new move brought the 200 back to a world-class event, but I'm not sure its possible. The format doesn't match any other "world" series, so it might be hard to get Rossi to run an event with fuel stops. Maybe just make it a combo event like Laguna? Right now, that race seems to represent the "world center of racing" for motorcycles in the US now. The difference is that the Daytona location is better equipped to handle the traffic that such an event would attract. I don't think that the track passes FIM standards though. | ||
| Elvis |
It would be interesting to see Moto-ST "grow into" an extension of the 200. For example: I can imagine, as Moto-ST gains exposure and more teams participate, there may be enough good teams to eliminate the lower classes and fill up a grid with bikes in the "SST" class. From there, the HP limits in that single class could be nudged up, and it may make sense to allow other engines other than twins. Eventually, with enough participation, the Moto-ST could evolve into something with a maximum HP of, say 180 HP and different weights for different engine configurations to keep things even, etc. Then you'd have some highly skilled teams running very high performance machines in an exciting, unique, world-class endurance racing series, and the 200 could be the opening race in that series. The only question I'd have then is: do you keep it at 200 miles for the historic significance, or do you let it become "The Daytona 300"? (Message edited by elvis on March 08, 2008) | ||
| José_quiñones |
Here's my dream race program Five Classes: Superbike (using Superstock rules, expanded to allow more types of bikes) Superbike Lites (ie Formula Extreme, expanded to allow more types of bikes) Supersport (Same as Superbike lites except with superstock type rules, Expert/Amateurs only, separate East/West championships, meet at MidOhio for the overall championship) MotoST 450 singles class at selected events (time permitting) Friday Practice for Superbike/Superbike Lites Practice/qualifying for Supersport and MotoST Saturday Practice for all classes Superpole type qualifying procedure for the top 10 Superbike and Superbike Lites racers Lunch Supersport race followed by MotoST 3 hr endurance race Sunday Morning practice for remaining classes Superbike Race 1 Lunch 450 Singles Class Superbike Lites Superbike Race 2 | ||
| Smoke |
i like your program Jose. tim | ||
| Trojan |
Hi Jose, Although your programe probably makes a lot of sense to spectators, it doesn't make sense for up and coming riders who are looking for a career path into International racing. Both the UK and USA have concentrated far too much effort into the 'diesel' Superbike/Supersport clsses over the last few years, with the result that there is no route into 250GP classes that traditionally (and even more now) feed the MotoGP class. Riders such as James Toseland, Colin Edwards, Nicky Hayden and John Hopkins are the minority in MotoGP in not going through the 250GP route, and just looking at the latest results shows this to be the way things are shaping up (top 5 in Qatar were all ex-250 riders). We have a bunch of young British riders now getting noticed in the 125 GP class, but these have all had to leave Britain and race in the Spanish championship to get into MotoGP (Where most of the young guns are coming from). This is also where Stoner had to go in order to further his career a few years ago. Outside of the premier class there is only one American racing in the GP series and that is Steve Bonsey in 125GP. Where are the rest going to come from? The Red Bull Rookies series is a great way to get young talent noticed, but where do they go from there? National level 250GP racing is the only answer and needs top be addressed by both the AMA and ACU in Britain if we are to see any more World Champions from either of our shores. | ||
| Benm2 |
Trojan, I thought that the FIM was talking about taking the 250GP's to 4-stroke anyway. I thought they were talking about 500cc twins, or something like that. I think it would be great if they did, and agree that it would be nice if it were brought back to the US (and factory supported). As far as superbike goes, I'd like to see it follow WSB rules OR go to a hp-limited class. I'd rather see hp-limited than straight superstock, since SS rules still enable factories to cherry-pick castings, cranks, etc. I'd rather see the hopped-up class be the fastest machines, not the 600-class. With something like a 200hp limit, it would be possible for a lot of people to compete, and they would still be race engines. I like the 450moto class a lot, but I'd rather see 500cc 4-stroke GP machines in both the AMA and in the GP series. |
