King Of The Baggers: Five Rounds In 2021
The King of the Baggers debut at the WeatherTech Raceway, Laguna Seca, California, in November 2020 is considered to have been such a rousing success that it will return in 2021 - with a five-round series held in conjunction with the 2021 MotoAmerica HONOS Superbike Series. "Naysayers be damned," says MotoAmerica!
The series, which adds fuel to the fire of one of the oldest rivalries in motorsport, Harley-Davidson vs. Indian, will begin at Michelin Raceway Road Atlanta, April 30-May 2, in Braselton, Georgia, and conclude September 17-19 with the MotoAmerica season finale at Barber Motorsports Park in Birmingham, Alabama.
In between there will be rounds at Road America in Wisconsin, back at the WeatherTech Raceway Laguna Seca in California and at the Pittsburgh International Race Complex.
While the debut of the King of the Baggers was an invitational, the 2021 series will be wide open to all qualified AMA license holders, with championship points being tallied at every round and a National Champion to be crowned at the season's end.
"Honestly, the MotoAmerica King of the Baggers debut race at WeatherTech Raceway Laguna Seca went better than we even dreamed of," said race legend and MotoAmerica President Wayne Rainey.
"The popularity of the event was crazy, so how could we not do more? We know there are plenty of Bagger fans out there as our videos of the debut Laguna event were watched by millions. Having five races gives us the opportunity to bring King of the Baggers to fans in several different areas of the country. We've also opted to make the series open to any qualified racer, which should bring new teams and new bike builds to the series from the aftermarket and motorcycle dealers who specialize in baggers."
The debut of the King of the Baggers at WeatherTech Raceway in November was won by S&S Indian's Tyler O'Hara over Vance & Hines Harley-Davidson's Hayden Gillim, with Roland Sands Designs-backed Frankie Garcia finishing third on his Indian.
Comment - Kudos to Drag Specialties for acting as the catalyst for the inaugural race in 2020 and setting in motion a program that could secure the viability of the burgeoning Performance Bagger market for years to some.