Sent on behalf of Indian
Motorcycle
MINNEAPOLIS (FEBRUARY
16, 2023) – 2022 was a
historic year for Indian
Motorcycle Racing, capturing an
unprecedented triple crown with
championships across three
different racing classes,
including MotoAmerica® Mission®
King of the Baggers® (KOTB),
Super Hooligan® National
Championship (SHNC) and
Progressive Insurance® American
Flat Track Mission SuperTwins
classes. Now America’s First
Motorcycle Company enters the
2023 racing season intent on
defending its triple crown and
raising the bar yet again with
its factory racing program.
Running three No. 1 plates,
Indian Motorcycle Racing
welcomes back reigning champions
Tyler O’Hara and Jared Mees,
along with KOTB and SHNC factory
rider Jeremy McWilliams. The
company has also announced more
than $405,000 in combined
privateer contingency for KOTB,
SHNC and AFT.
Founded by racers who developed
America’s first motorized
bicycles, fueled by a desire to
go faster and win races, Indian
Motorcycle has been racing, and
winning, for 122 years. From
founder Oscar Hedstrom’s
endurance racing dominance at
the turn of the century, to O.C.
Godfrey winning the first
Mountain Circuit race at the
famed Isle of Man in 1911, to
Burt Munro’s land speed records
or the Wrecking Crew’s
domination in flat track in the
1950s and, more recently, it’s
six consecutive AFT
Championships from 2017-2022,
the list of history-making
racing milestones is
unparalleled. Now the innovative
American motorcycle company
prepares to defend a triple
crown.
“Racing and an overriding spirit
of competition has been a
driving force for Indian
Motorcycle for more than a
century, and that competitive
fire continues to drive us
forward to this day,” said Gary
Gray, Vice President – Racing,
Technology and Service for
Indian Motorcycle.“We’re
incredibly proud of the success
we had in 2022 with three
different championships, but
it’s only going to get tougher
in 2023, with our competition
gunning for us more than ever.
But that challenge is what
motivates us and pushes us to
get better every day, and we’re
chomping at the bit to go racing
in 2023.”
MotoAmerica® KOTB &
SHNC
For 2023, Indian Motorcycle and
S&S® will pit a two-man factory
race team that will take on
double duty across the King of
the Baggers® and Super Hooligan®
classes. Proudly running the No.
1 plate in both classes,
dual-threat champion Tyler
O’Hara enters his fourth year
aboard the Indian Challenger and
his second year piloting an
Indian FTR. Pitting alongside
O’Hara in both classes is
veteran Moto GP racer Jeremy
McWilliams, whose technical
knowledge and extensive
experience at racing’s highest
levels proved invaluable to the
team’s success in 2022.
In
the 2022 Mission King of the
Baggers® class, the team’s
success was driven by O’Hara’s
versatility, the expertise of
the S&S® crew, and the
consistency and reliability of
the Indian Challenger. Through
seven rounds aboard his Indian
Challenger, O’Hara captured five
podiums, including a Daytona
win, and two fourth-place
finishes.
With the No. 1 plate and an
expanded 14-round KOTB series,
O’Hara will be the man to beat.
But the competition will be
tougher than ever, as
Harley-Davidson® continues to
increase its significant
investment in the series, adding
even more bikes and riders to
the King of the Baggers® grid
for 2023.
“The odds were definitely
against us in 2022, and that’s
what made climbing that mountain
and ending up on top all the
more special to our entire
Indian Motorcycle-S&S® team. We
grinded week in and week out to
rise to that challenge and in
the end, we got the job done,”
said O’Hara. “But now we start
over and the climb begins again.
This team is truly a family, and
we could not be more motivated
to defend the championship and
successfully rise to the
challenge again in 2023.”
In
addition to its factory efforts,
Indian Motorcycle is offering up
to $83,000 in KOTB privateer
contingency and up to $41,000 in
SHNC Contingency.
2023 Indian Motorcycle
KOTB Privateer Contingency
-
Championship: $20,000
-
1st: $3000
-
2nd: $1000
-
3rd: $500
2023 Indian Motorcycle
SHNC Privateer Contingency
-
Championship: $5,000
-
1St: $3000
-
2nd: $1000
-
3rd: $500
AFT Mission SuperTwins
Piloting the Indian FTR750 for
his seventh-consecutive year,
reigning Progressive Insurance®
Mission SuperTwins Champion
Jared Mees enters 2023 with
eight AFT Grand National
Championships to his name – just
one shy of the historic record
of nine held by Scottie Parker.
A record that many have assumed
would never be matched or
broken, Mees is looking to do
just that as he chases his
ninth.
As
Mees chases history, he’ll rely
on his trusted team led by Crew
Chief Kenny Tolbert, Assistant
Mechanic Bubba Bently and
Suspension Technician Jimmy
Wood. Mees will also receive
support from Rogers Racing, SDI
Racing, Drag Specialties®, Twigg
Cycles, Mission® Foods, Monster
Energy®, Bell® Helmets, Service
Pro, Öhlins® Suspension, Klotz®
Oil, Klock Werkssm, RK Chain®,
Corbin®, Seats, Engine Ice®, RMR
Construction, Motion Pro®, VP
Racing®, Vertex Pistons, Pro
Plates and DBI Motorsports.
In
addition to its AFT factory
efforts around Mees, Indian
Motorcycle is offering the
sport’s most robust privateer
contingency, equating to more
than $280,000.
2023 Indian Motorcycle
AFT Privateer Contingency:
-
Championship: $25,000
-
1st: $7,500
-
2nd: $2,500
-
3rd: $1,500
-
4th: $1,000
-
5th: $750
-
6th: $350
-
7th: $250
-
8th: $150
-
9th: $125
-
10th: $100
Indian Motorcycle factory race
efforts are presented by Progressive Insurance®, Mission®
Foods and Medallia®,
with additional support from Indian
Motorcycle Motor Oil, S&S®, Parts
Unlimited, Drag
Specialties®, Performance
Finance, and J&P
Cycles®.
KOTB, SHNC and AFT seasons begin
March 9 at the Daytona
International Speedway. For more
information on the 2023 AFT
season, visit AmericanFlatTrack.com,
for KOTB and SHNC, visit MotoAmerica.com.
For information about Indian
Motorcycle, visit IndianMotorcycle.com,
or follow along on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram.
