Opening weekend at COTA of new Harley bagger series with MotoGP

The opening round of the FIM Harley-Davidson Bagger World Cup delivered spirited on-track battles and dramatic moments at the Circuit of the Americas, as the new global championship in partnership with MotoGP officially came to life alongside the MotoGP Grand Prix of the Americas race round.

Both the races of the weekend were contested into the final laps, producing the first two winners in the history of the new category. Archie McDonald (Joe Rascal Racing) claimed victory in Race 1 on Saturday, while Oscar Gutiérrez (Niti Racing) secured the win in Race 2 on Sunday.

For those unfamiliar with the new H-D Bagger World Cup, this championship was formed by Harley-Davidson and MotoGP as the first global race series dedicated to “high-performance Harley-Davidson bagger motorcycles” as the press release read. Inspired by the explosive growth of the “King of the Baggers” in MotoAmerica, this newly minted race series on the world stage is quite the achievement by Harley-Davidson. Having effectively shut out Indian Motorcycle from the new series (which also happened in American Flat Track in recent years), Indian being so competitive in the KofB and AFT series stateside, Harley has pulled off an amazing coup by securing a deal with MotoGP, then getting the series recognized by the Fédération Internationale de Motocyclisme (FIM).

Leaving Indian out in the cold, once again.

Time will tell whether or not the new racing class of Harley competition baggers will take off like it has here in the States, but already the series produced a decent grid of teams for the opening round at Circuit of the Americas in Austin, Texas over the weekend. The paddock and grid saw riders from Australia, Spain, Italy, Brazil and Indonesia as well as USA line up at the start. The races both days delivered KotB level action, with races coming down to the final laps and final sprints to the checkered flag.

Race 1

At the start of the first race, young Australian Archie McDonald launched perfectly from the grid, getting the better of teammate Eric Granado, who had secured pole position in qualifying with a lap time of 2:12.387. The battle between the two intensified by mid-race, with Granado taking the lead after a mistake from McDonald. However, the Australian responded shortly after, reclaiming the position when Granado lost the front under braking and dropped back through the field.

Jake Lewis (Saddlemen Race Development) delivered a strong and consistent ride to take second place, showcasing experience and control across the race distance, while Filippo Rovelli (ParkinGO Team) secured third with a steady, disciplined performance to round out the podium.

Race 2

McDonald and Granado were once again protagonists at the start of Race 2, with the Australian repeating his strong launch off the line. The two Joe Rascal Racing riders immediately set a fast pace, but were unable to break away from Oscar Gutiérrez (Niti Racing), who steadily increased his rhythm lap after lap. The Spanish rider closed the gap and executed two clean overtakes to take the lead, going on to secure victory at the checkered flag. Second at the finish line was Archie McDonald, but a three-second penalty for failing to complete the prescribed “Long Lap” after twice exceeding track limits dropped the Australian to third in the final classification, promoting Eric Granado to second.

Jeffrey Schuessler, Director of Global Racing Programs at H-D, had these observations:

“This weekend delivered exactly what we set out to build. Close racing, battles decided in the final laps, and riders pushing these machines to the limit from the very start. The level of competition showed up immediately, and that’s a strong indication of where this championship is headed. We also saw different riding styles coming together on track, with riders finding their own way to be fast on these bikes. That created some really interesting race dynamics and showed how competitive and adaptable this grid already is from the first round. What’s been especially powerful is the global nature of the championship, with riders and teams from different parts of the world coming together to be part of something new. That’s a significant step forward for the series. And then there’s the emotion. You feel it in the sound, the torque, and the presence of these bikes on track. It’s raw, it’s different, and it’s real. This is not just racing. We’re building something new here, a global platform that brings a different kind of energy to the MotoGP stage and connects with fans in a way that is authentic to Harley-Davidson.”

The current standings and teams stack up thus-

Archie McDonald (AUS) – 41 (25 / 16)
Oscar Gutiérrez (SPA) – 33 (8 / 25)
Jake Lewis (USA) – 33 (20 / 13)
Eric Granado (BRA) – 30 (10 / 20)
Filippo Rovelli (ITA) – 27 (16 / 11)
Cory West (USA) – 23 (13 / 10)
Travis Wyman (USA) – 11 (11 / -)
Cody Wyman (USA) – 9 (9 / -)
Dimas Ekky Pratama (INA) – 9 (- / 9)

The next round for Harley-Davidson Bagger World Cup will be at the Mugello round, MotoGP Grand Prix of Italy, May 29-31. How well those bagger races will be attended and/or viewed is anybody’s guess. It’s one thing to have a good debut here stateside, where Harley is still the big player, on track and on the streets. How Europe and the rest of the world respond and buy in remains to be seen.

Road Dirt crew

*All photos provided by Harley-Davidson.