Source: American Rider –
[[{“value”:”The latest round of King Of The Baggers racing again served up thrilling action, this time at WeatherTech Raceway Laguna Seca during July 13-14. Harley-Davidson enjoyed podium lockouts at the iconic roadracing circuit, with the highest-finishing Indian Motorcycle riders in 4th place.
Coming into this round near Monterey, California, Hayden Gillim was riding high after dominating at Brainerd International Speedway in June. The reigning class champ won both feature races aboard his Vance & Hines H-D Road Glide, stealing maximum points away from title contenders Kyle Wyman (Screamin’ Eagle Harley-Davidson) and Troy Herfoss (S&S Indian Motorcycle), who was carrying a 205 to 192 points advantage over Wyman.
Kyle Wyman, the 2022 KOTB champ, looked seriously fast during Friday’s events at Laguna Seca, breaking his own track record in qualifying and winning the 3-lap Mission King of the Baggers Challenge.
“The great weekend really started on Friday,” said Wyman. “It put us a step ahead and I was really feeling the flow on the track right away.”
Wyman’s dominance continued during Saturday’s race – he led every lap of the nine-lap feature. In the opening laps, he was followed by factory H-D teammate James Rispoli, Gillim, and Gillim’s upstart Vance & Hines teammate, Rocco Landers. Indian riders Herfoss and Bobby Fong (Roland Sands Racing) tried to keep pace.
Gillim was keeping Wyman honest, riding hard to keep the factory Road Glide in his sights, with Landers and Herfoss trailing. Landers pushed past teammate Gillim late in the race, and Herfoss had an off-track excursion that took him out of contention, ending up in 11th place. Wyman took a dominating victory over Landers and Gillim, followed by Fong and Rispoli.
Sunday’s race proved to be more exciting. Wyman again led from the start, but he wouldn’t be able to stay there. Gillim looked just as aggressive as Wyman as the 620-lb baggers ripped around the undulating 2.2-mile track, and the V&H rider elbowed his way past Wyman as the Harleys rushed into the world-famous downhill Corkscrew corner on lap 3.
Wyman held close to Gillim for a few laps and then took the lead back on lap 6 with a bold inside pass in Turn 2. But Gillim wouldn’t be denied, again barging past Wyman in the Corkscrew later in the race, and he held a 0.2-second lead when they crossed the finish line. Herfoss looked secure in 3rd place, but Landers took over the spot from the Indian rider on the last lap.
“I knew I had to take whatever shot I could at Kyle,” said Gillim. “He’s riding really good. I’m really happy – we have the number-one plate, and the team deserves to see this bike up front.”
“I’ll take nothing away from Hayden,” Wyman said after his runner-up finish. “He really wanted the win. I’m concerned with points for the championship, so didn’t want to take a chance on the last lap.”
After 12 of 18 rounds in the KOTB series, Wyman has bumped Herfoss to 2nd place and takes over the championship lead with 237 points over Herfoss’ 223. Gillim moves up to third place with 176 points, followed by O’Hara with 161 points, Rispoli with 130 points, and Landers with 106 points.
Super Hooligan
The Mission Super Hooligan series is every bit as exciting as the KOTB big boys, and the class served up another Harley-Davidson vs. Indian battle to enjoy.
Reigning class champ Tyler O’Hara had a resurgent outing on his Indian FTR1200 on Saturday, fighting hard to earn a tough victory over the Harley Pan Americas of Cory West and KWR/H-D rider Hayden Schultz.
“This win couldn’t have come at a better time,” said O’Hara about his victory in front of hometown fans. “At this point in the season, a win is exactly what we needed to stay atop the leaderboard and push for another championship.”
But, at least at Laguna Seca, the Pan Ams are proving to be the hot ticket. On Sunday, polesitter Cory West raced his Saddlemen-sponsored Pan America 1250 Special to victory over teammate Jake Lewis and Indian’s O’Hara. West’s solid outing moved him into second place in the series behind O’Hara, followed by Cody Wyman (86 points), Lewis (78 points), and Herfoss (71 points).
The Mission King of the Baggers and the Mission Super Hooligan series return to action August 16-18 at Mid-Ohio Sports Car Course in Lexington, Ohio.
MotoAmerica King of the Baggers Race 1 Results 1. Kyle Wyman (H-D) Harley-Davidson Factory Racing 2. Rocco Landers (H-D) RevZilla/Vance & Hines Harley-Davidson 3. Hayden Gillim (H-D) RevZilla/Vance & Hines Harley-Davidson 4. Bobby Fong (Indian) SDI/Roland Sands Racing/Indian Motorcycle 5. James Rispoli (H-D) Harley-Davidson Factory Racing 6. Max Flinders (Indian) Mad Monkey Motorsports 7. Tyler O’Hara (Indian) S&S/Indian Motorcycle 8. Jake Lewis (H-D) Saddlemen/Harley-Davidson 9. Travis Wyman (H-D) Saddlemen/Harley-Davidson 10. Ruben Xaus (H-D) Feuling Parts
MotoAmerica King of the Baggers Race 2 Results 1. Hayden Gillim (H-D) RevZilla/Vance & Hines Harley-Davidson 2. Kyle Wyman (H-D) Harley-Davidson Factory Racing 3, Rocco Landers (H-D) RevZilla/Vance & Hines Harley-Davidson 4. Troy Herfoss (Indian) S&S/Indian Motorcycle 5. James Rispoli (H-D) Harley-Davidson Factory Racing 6. Tyler O’Hara (Indian) S&S/Indian Motorcycle 7. Cody Wyman (H-D) KWR/Harley-Davidson8. Travis Wyman (H-D) Saddlemen/Harley-Davidson 9. Jake Lewis (H-D) Saddlemen/Harley-Davidson 10. Danny Spina (H-D) Ruthless Road Racing
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