H-D and V & H Take a Win Each at COTA King Of The Baggers
Round 11 of the 2023 Mission King Of The Baggers series at the Championship of the Americas (COTA) circuit at Austin, Texas (September 10), saw Harley-Davidson Screamin' Eagle factory rider Kyle Wyman win his sixth race of the season and Harley riders claim all three of the podium spots - they went on to take five of the six available podium spots for the weekend.
On the Saturday, racers endured the challenge of temperatures topping 100 degrees at the start of the six-lap race. Wyman got a great start from the pole and opened a 1.02-second lead after two laps, stretching that to more than 2 seconds at the finish.
Hayden Gillim was second on a Vance & Hines/Mission Foods Road Glide, followed by his teammate James Rispoli in third place. Travis Wyman was fourth on the H-D team's second Road Glide. The win moved Kyle Wyman two points ahead of Gillim for the series championship.
Wyman was the top qualifier for the weekend with a quickest lap of 2:15.621 on the challenging 3.4-mile, 20-turn COTA course. Wyman led the Saturday race from start to finish.
Rispoli won the Sunday race (Championship Round 12) on the V & H prepared Road Glide - Kyle Wyman having got caught in traffic at the start was running eighth when he crashed in turn 13 following contact with another rider.
Kyle Wyman was able to pick up his motorcycle and rejoined the race in last place, then battled back to finish in ninth place and earn valuable championship points. Rispoli took the race lead on lap 4 and crossed the finish line 8.66 seconds ahead of his teammate Gillim. Travis Wyman was running second before crashing out on the last lap, promoting Gillim and Kyle Ohnsorg, who finished third on the Roland Sands Design Indian.
After 12 of 14 rounds in the 2023 MotoAmerica Mission King Of The Baggers series, Vance & Hines' Gillim leads the championship with 215 points, followed by his teammate Rispoli with 213 points, and Harley's Kyle Wyman in third place with 204 points. Travis Wyman is in eighth place with 86 points.
Up Next: The season finale (Rounds 13 and 14) on September 22-24 in the MotoAmerica Superbikes at New Jersey Motorsports Park in Millville, N.J.
Race 1 (Round 11) Circuit of the Americas - September 9
- Kyle Wyman (H-D) Screamin' Eagle Harley-Davidson
- Hayden Gillim (H-D) Vance & Hines/Mission Foods/Harley-Davidson
- James Rispoli (H-D) Vance & Hines/Mission Foods/Harley-Davidson
- Travis Wyman (H-D) Screamin' Eagle Harley-Davidson
- Kyle Ohnsorg (Ind) Roland Sands Design
- Jake Lewis (H-D) Team Saddlemen
- Max Flinders (Ind) M3/Revolution Performance
- Hawk Mazzotta (Ind) Lloydz Garage
- Frankie Garcia (H-D) Team Saddlemen
- Patricia Fernandez-West (H-D) Team Saddlemen
- DNF. Bobby Fong (Ind) Sacramento Mile/SDI Racing/Roland Sands Design
Race 2 (Round 12) Circuit of the Americas - September 10
- James Rispoli (H-D) Vance & Hines/Mission Foods/Harley-Davidson
- Hayden Gillim (H-D) Vance & Hines/Mission Foods/Harley-Davidson
- Kyle Ohnsorg (Ind) Roland Sands Design
- Jeremy McWilliams (Ind) Progressive/Mission Foods
- Jake Lewis (H-D) Team Saddlemen
- Max Flinders (Ind) M3/Revolution Performance
- Hawk Mazzotta (Ind) Lloydz Garage
- Frankie Garcia (H-D) Team Saddlemen
- Kyle Wyman (H-D) Screamin' Eagle Harley-Davidson
- Travis Wyman (H-D) Screamin' Eagle Harley-Davidson
- Patricia Fernandez-West (H-D) Team Saddlemen
- Robert Johnson (H-D) Johnson Engine Technology
- DNF. Bobby Fong (Ind) Sacramento Mile/SDI Racing/Roland Sands
- DNF. Tyler O'Hara (Ind) Progressive/Mission Foods