H-D revealed its new King Of The Baggers team livery today in advance of the race season kicking off March 7-9 in Daytona. Kyle Wyman returns to the Harley-Davidson factory race team as the winningest racer in KOTB history, with 12 wins in 24 races. James Rispoli, who placed second in the points standings on the Vance & Hines team in 2023, will be Wyman’s teammate in 2024. Reigning KOTB champ Hayden Gillim remains on the V&H squad and hopes to become the first repeat champion in series history.
To kick off the 2024 season, Harley-Davidson has released a video featuring Wyman, Rispoli, and the race-prepared Harley-Davidson Road Glides. Scroll down past this press release about Harley’s 2024 KOTB team to view it.
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MILWAUKEE (February 16, 2024) – The Harley-Davidson Factory Race Team today launches its 2024 season with an exciting video featuring team riders Kyle Wyman and James Rispoli aboard new race-prepared 2024 Harley-Davidson Road Glide motorcycles based on the all-new touring platform for the MotoAmerica Mission King Of The Baggers road racing series. The video, with exclusive behind-the-scenes footage of the team, dials up the fun and irreverence of the King of the Baggers series, and will debut today on the Harley-Davidson YouTube Channel and other social channels.
An exciting special round was recently added to the 2024 Mission King Of The Baggers Championship by appearing during the third round of the FIM MotoGP World Championship at Circuit of The Americas in Austin, Texas, April 12-13. This two-race appearance during the Red Bull Grand Prix of The Americas weekend will mark the first time an international audience will see the thundering King Of The Baggers bikes in competition. In addition to the two points-paying races on Saturday, April 13, there will be a three-lap Mission Challenge on Friday afternoon with the six fastest qualifiers battling for a $5000 winner-take-all purse. This special round expands the 2024 Mission King Of The Baggers schedule to 18 total races.
Related: King Of The Baggers Joins MotoGP
Wyman and Rispoli will compete aboard race-prepared 2024 Harley-Davidson Road Glide motorcycles powered by modified Screamin’ Eagle Milwaukee-Eight 131 Performance Crate Engines. These motorcycles are based on the all-new 2024 Road Glide model, including the sleek new next-generation sharknose fairing design. Many of the race motorcycle body panels are formed with the same lightweight forged carbon fiber material featured on the 2024 CVO Road Glide ST model. The team bikes also feature upgraded suspension components, including Screamin’ Eagle/Öhlins Remote Reservoir Rear Shocks, and competition Screamin’ Eagle exhaust, along with upgraded Brembo Racing braking systems, Marchesini wheels, and premium Harley-Davidson racing components produced by Protolabs. The team motorcycles will appear in all-new livery featuring the classic Legendary Racing Orange color long associated with Harley-Davidson Factory Team racing bikes.
Wyman returns for a fourth season with the Harley-Davidson Factory Race Team. He won seven races during the 2023 King of the Baggers season and finished third in the season championship. Wyman is the most winning racer in MotoAmerica King of the Baggers history, with 12 total race wins in the 24 events since the start of the series in the 2021 season, plus the 2021 season championship to his credit. Wyman won the Daytona 200 in 2019.
Rispoli joins the team for the 2024 season after placing second in King of the Baggers series points in 2023 riding for the Vance & Hines Harley-Davidson team. In 2023, Rispoli won two races, and scored five second place finishes and three third place finishes. Rispoli began racing Harley-Davidson motorcycles as a teenager and earned the nickname “Hogspoli” after winning the 2020 American Flat Track Production Twins championship aboard a Latus Motors Racing Harley-Davidson XG750R. He also won back-to-back AMA Pro Racing Supersport championships in 2011-2012.
Related: KOTB Champ Hayden Gillim Interview
For the 2024 season, the Harley-Davidson Factory Race Team is sponsored by Mission Foods, Rockford Fosgate, Brembo, Öhlins, Protolabs, SYN3 lubricants, and Screamin’ Eagle Performance Parts and Accessories.
The MotoAmerica King Of The Baggers series offers exciting competition between American V-Twin touring motorcycles prepared for competition and equipped with a fairing/windscreen and saddlebags. The 2024 series has expanded to 18 races over nine double-header weekends held in conjunction with the MotoAmerica Superbike Series. The series opens on the high banks of Daytona International Speedway in Daytona Beach, Florida, March 7-9. To experience all the King Of The Baggers action in 2024, check out the Harley-Davidson Factory Race Fan Ticket Packages.
2024 MotoAmerica Mission King Of The Baggers Season Schedule
(Two races each weekend)
- March 7-9: Daytona International Raceway – Daytona Beach, Fla.
- April 12-13: Circuit of The Americas – Austin, Texas (Red Bull Grand Prix of The Americas)
- April 19-21: Michelin Raceway Road Atlanta – Braselton, Ga.
- May 31-June 2: Road America – Elkhart Lake, Wis.
- June 14-16: Brainerd International Raceway – Brainerd, Minn.
- July 12-14: WeatherTech Raceway Laguna Seca – Monterey, Calif.
- August 16-18: Mid-Ohio Sports Car Course – Lexington, Ohio
- September 13-15: Circuit of the Americas – Austin, Texas
- September 27-29: New Jersey Motorsports Park – Millville, N.J.
