Harley-Davidson Back in MotoGP!
I
t was confirmed in Le Mans
that Harley-Davidson will return
to the World Championship in
2026 with a single-make Bag-
gers series running alongside
MotoGP at six rounds next year.
Each round will feature two
Baggers races. One round will
kick off at the Circuit of the
Americas, with the other five to
be held in Europe. "The grid is ex
-
pected to comprise six to eight
teams, each fielding two riders,
supported by Harley-Davidson
Factory Racing," an official state
-
ment read.
"We are looking to establish
racing as a core pillar of Harley-
Davidson," said Jeff Schuessler,
Global Director of Motorsports
at Harley-Davidson. "We have a
long heritage inside it, and we
believe racing will help us mod
-
ernize the brand with innovation
and technology.
"We've had four years now rac
-
ing in MotoAmerica with great
success, and we have started to
rebuild a factory team at our HQ
in Milwaukee, and we're look-
ing to grow that muscle, those
abilities and those skills, and
we believe with MotoGP we will
be working a lot with them for
logistics, operations and team
and sporting management.
"So, we believe in our history
and the fans we can bring to
these races, as well as our ability
to build these race bikes, taking
our learning from King of the
Baggers, taking our know-how at
Dorna, it's a great opportunity."
Carlos Ezpeleta, Chief Sport
-
ing Officer of MotoGP rights
holder Dorna Sports, said, "For
the first time in a very long
time, we are having something
completely different on track.
Everything else is focused on
the riders and the talent, and
this is something different. This
year we have 14 races in Europe,
which means there is some
space.
"It is a way to really touch
base with a community that
we're normally used to. The
Harley community loves to travel
and make a trip, and we cannot
wait to welcome them at GPs.
In addition to that, I would like
to say that as MotoGP we are
happy to be able to be a promo
-
tion platform for any product, es-
pecially motorcycles, and Harley
has a really distinct personality."
Former MotoGP-rider Bradley
Smith was also in France. The
Englishman, who's currently third
in this year's Mission King of
the Baggers series, heralded the
news. "Judging by most people's
comments, you either love it or
you hate it. I'm certainly a fan of
it. It's just great we've brought
another manufacturer to the
platform. It'll be a spec bike, a
spec series, with 16 riders on
the grid. It'll be very similar to
the baggers we're racing over in
America. It's been fun," he said.
"[Harley-Davidson staff]
walked in on Friday and the
grandstands are packed. It's a
sight to behold here at Le Mans.
I don't know exactly what race
-
tracks it'll be at. But there will be
six races next year, starting in
Austin, and then five in Europe.
It's exciting times for everyone
involved."
CN
VOLUME ISSUE MAY , P33
The baggers are coming to MotoGP
next year in a one-make Harley-
Davidson support series.
