The closest racing in Daytona this year was the two rounds of MotoAmerica's Battle Of The Baggers as the behemoths went two and three wide around the Tri-Oval. However, Harley-Davidson Factory Racing rider Kyle Wyman did the Daytona double by winning the first two races of the 2024 season by fractions of a second over Indian-mounted challenger Troy Herfoss. Fellow H-D Factory Racer James Rispoli finished in third place in both races. Wyman and Rispoli were aboard race-prepped 2024 Road Glides. Meanwhile it was a clean sweep for Harley racers in the Hooligan class.
Team Saddlemen rider Cory West rode a race-prepared Pan America 1250 Special to victory and topped an all-Harley podium in the Mission Super Hooligan race on Saturday. Team Saddlemen rider Jake Lewis finished second, and Gator Harley/KWR rider Cody Wyman was third completing the sweep. West also finished in third place in the Super Hooligan race on Friday and leads the series points after two of 10 scheduled rounds.
The first King of the Baggers race on Friday saw a thundering pack of 17 bagger race motorcycles topping 185 mph on the high-banked oval portion of the 3.52-mile Daytona International Speedway road course. Wyman and Rispoli were part of a four-bike group that battled for the lead for the entire race and started the last of six laps separated by less than one second.
Wyman had been quick through the backstraight chicane all race and on the last lap got a strong drive out of the final corner to pass Factory Indian rider Troy Herfoss for the lead heading onto the last section of the oval. Wyman had enough momentum to hold off Herfoss and Rispoli across the finish line with a 0.018 second advantage over Herfoss and 0.137 second over Rispoli. Defending King of the Baggers series champion Hayden Gillim finished fourth on the RevZilla/Vance & Hines Harley-Davidson Road Glide, 0.837 seconds behind Wyman.
“On that last lap we were just about parked, but I refused to pass to lead the race until the moment it counted,” said Wyman. “I saw a window coming out of the chicane and was just able to hold them off for the win.”
The second King of the Baggers race on Saturday saw Wyman, Rispoli, Herfoss, Gillim, and Factory Indian rider Tyler O’Hara break away from the pack early in the race and swap positions on each lap. On the final lap, Herfoss gapped Wyman on the back stretch but braked late and over-shot the entry to the chicane, giving Wyman an opportunity to pounce. Wyman again got a strong drive onto the last section of the high-bank oval and was able to out-run Herfoss to the finish by 0.137 seconds. Rispoli finished 1.518 seconds back in third place.
“I was in survival mode on the last lap,” said Wyman. “I lost my quick-shifter and I was going to be happy to finish second, but Herfoss gave me a chance and we made it work. Hats off to my entire Harley-Davidson crew for all their hard work this weekend.”
“What an unreal weekend,” said Rispoli. “There was so much nervousness before the races. So, it was a massive relief to get two podiums in my first weekend with the Factory Harley-Davidson team. I am so stoked for the entire team, and I know we will be a force for the future rounds.”
After 2 of 18 rounds in the 2024 MotoAmerica Mission King of the Baggers series Kyle Wyman leads with 50 points. Herfoss is second with 40 points, followed by Rispoli with 32 points and Gillim with 24 points. Next up for Baggers will be at the Red Bull Grand Prix of The Americas, April 12-13 at the Circuit of The Americas in Austin, Texas.
MotoAmerica King of the Baggers Race Results – Daytona International Speedway Race 1
Kyle Wyman (H-D) Harley-Davidson Factory Racing
Troy Herfoss (Ind) S&S/Indian Motorcycle
James Rispoli (H-D) Harley-Davidson Factory Racing
Hayden Gillim (H-D) RevZilla/Vance & Hines Harley-Davidson
Rocco Landers (H-D) RevZilla/Vance & Hines Harley-Davidson
Kyle Ohnsorg (Ind) RydFast Racing
Bobby Fong (Ind) SDI/Roland Sands Racing
Travis Wyman (H-D) Saddlemen/Harley-Davidson
Max Flinders (Ind) Mad Monkey Motorsports
Tyler O’Hara (Ind) S&S/Indian Motorcycle
MotoAmerica King of the Baggers Race Results – Daytona International Speedway Race 2
Kyle Wyman (H-D) Harley-Davidson Factory Racing
Troy Herfoss (Ind) S&S/Indian Motorcycle
James Rispoli (H-D) Harley-Davidson Factory Racing
Tyler O’Hara (Ind) S&S/Indian Motorcycle
Hayden Gillim (H-D) RevZilla/Vance & Hines Harley-Davidson
Kyle Ohnsorg (Ind) RydFast Racing
Jake Lewis (H-D) Saddlemen/Harley-Davidson
Cory West (H-D) Saddlemen/Harley-Davidson
Travis Wyman (H-D) Saddlemen/Harley-Davidson
Rocco Landers (H-D) RevZilla/Vance & Hines Harley-Davidson
Max Flinders (Ind) Mad Monkey Motorsports
Jesse Janisch (H-D) Suburban Motors H-D/Slyfox/Trask Performance
Zachary Schumacher (H-D) Nowaskey Extreme Performance
Gunnar Ouellette (H-D) Trask Performance
Ruben Xaus (H-D) Feuling Parts