that was then and this is now and
an American racer hasn't won a
significant MotoGP or World Su-
perbike Series Grand Prix since
Texan Ben Spies last won the
Grand Prix at Assen on a Yamaha
in 2011.
"Cameron is a great kid," Spies
said. "We talked a few weeks ago
and he told me he had this option
and asked me what I would do.
He's gotten to the point where
winning here isn't enough and he
needs something new to spark
his motivation and obviously
Moto2 makes the most sense.
I said to him, 'Okay, here's the
deal: If you go over there, you've
got to bring it. That's the deal.
CYCLE NEWS RIDER OF THE YEAR / MOTOAMERICA SUPERBIKE CHAMPION CAMERON BEAUBIER
P68
Interview
and I'm super-excited for it. I think
it's going to be awesome. I think
the bike, obviously I have a lot
of adapting to do to new tracks,
the bike, all this stuff, the team,
the travel. But there's no better
time than now. I feel like I'm rid-
ing better than I ever have. The
Moto2 bikes right now are 765cc,
so they're a little bit closer to the
1000cc bike I've been racing on.
So, I think definitely it's going to
take some adapting, but hope-
fully I'm just going to try to do it
as quick as I can and see what I
have for the world guys."
As motorcycle racing history
in the United States of America
has taught all of us reading this
feature centering upon the
plight of Cameron Beaubier, the
one and only Kenny Roberts of
Modesto, California, stunned
most everyone when he packed
up his dirt track racing skills
on rough and tumble American
half-mile and mile horse-racing
tracks to Europe and duly won
the 1978 500cc World Cham-
pionship. That's when the levy
broke as during the next two
decades American-born racers
such as Eddie Lawson, Kevin
Schwantz, Wayne Rainey and
Freddie Spencer ruled global
road racing, winning 13 premiere
class championships in 16 World
Championships seasons. But
I'VE BEEN
LOOKING AT
CYCLE NEWS
SINCE I WAS A
LITTLE KID AND
I'VE SEEN THE
NAMES OF GUYS
WHO WON RIDER
OF THE YEAR
THROUGHOUT
THE YEARS, AND
IT'S SPECIAL TO
ME TO BE RIDER
OF THE YEAR
FOR CYCLE
NEWS, THAT'S
FOR SURE."
Don't let the
boyish looks fool
you: under that
innocent façade is
the mind of a steel-
hard champion.
''
