King Of The Baggers had a thrilling weekend at New Jersey Motorsports Park, where Vance & Hines racer Hayden Gillim raced his Harley-Davidson Road Glide to a win on Saturday and a runner-up finish on Sunday, earning him the prestigious King Of The Baggers championship. Gillim’s teammate James Rispoli netted 2nd in the title chase, while Harley-Davidson factory racer Kyle Wyman claimed 3rd, making it a 1-2-3 for the MoCo for 2023.
Heading into Saturday’s race, Hayden Gillim led the points standings by two points ahead of James Rispoli and 11 points ahead of Kyle Wyman. Rain fell on a wet track as racers lined up, and the drama started early as Kyle Wyman low-sided on the damp track during the warmup lap. Wyman continued to race for a short while before damage to his bike caused him to pull into the pits and retire from the race, putting himself out of championship contention.
Up front, it was James Rispoli in the lead until Lap 2, when Hayden Gillim pulled ahead and continued to put distance between himself and Rispoli, increasing his lead to over 9 seconds. Travis Wyman on the second factory Road Glide finished in 3rd, his best result of the season.
Sunday’s finale started with the Vance & Hines racers guaranteed a 1-2 in the championship. The question would be whether Gillim or Rispoli would claim the Number 1 plate. Once again, Rispoli darted into the lead at the start and was opening a gap to the rest of the field, but he ran wide on Turn 1 in Lap 2, running into the grass and falling back to 7th, where he stayed until the checkered flag.
Up front, Kyle Wyman led Hayden Gillim to the finish. In 3rd, Max Flinders on an M3 Indian Challenger claimed the first MotoAmerica podium of his career to energetic applause by fans and fellow racers alike, giving Indian its only KOTB podium of the weekend. Reigning champ Tyler O’Hara had a miserable weekend on his Indian Challenger, finishing 8th on Saturday and suffering a DNF on Sunday.
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The KOTB title is Gillim’s second MotoAmerica championship of 2023, as he also claimed the Stock 1000 title at the Circuit of the Americas race two weekends ago.
King Of The Baggers 2023 ended with Gillim holding 260 points followed by teammate Rispoli with 242 points and H-D factory racer Kyle Wyman with 229 points. Congratulations to the Vance & Hines team for their 1-2 championship finish and to Harley-Davidson with three Road Glides in the top three championship spots! King Of The Baggers will return in 2024 with Hayden Gillim carrying the Number 1 plate.
For more information, read Harley-Davidson’s press release below.
MILWAUKEE (September 24, 2023) – Harley-Davidson Screamin’ Eagle factory rider Kyle Wyman scored his seventh win of the season and Vance & Hines/Mission Foods Harley-Davidson rider Hayden Gillim secured the season championship on Sunday in the final race of the 2023 MotoAmerica Mission King of the Baggers series at New Jersey Motorsports Park in Millville, N.J. Vance & Hines/Mission Foods rider James Rispoli finished second in the championship standings, and Wyman was third as Harley-Davidson riders claimed the top three spots in final series points.
“It’s been one of, if not the best, year of my life,” said Gillim, who won three races with eight additional podium finishes on the season. “I’m really happy to bring this home for Vance & Hines, for Mission Foods, and for Harley-Davidson. Next season will be a real scrap in this series. Honestly the field is stacked, and if everybody stays next year it’s going to be a tough championship to hold onto.”
Related: King Of The Baggers at Circuit of the Americas Race Results
In the Friday qualifying session, Wyman broke his own New Jersey Motorsports Park class lap record of 1:24.447 aboard his race-prepared Harley-Davidson Road Glide motorcycle. That time would never be approached for the rest of the weekend, as rain resulted in very wet to damp conditions on the 2.25-mile, 12-turn road course on Saturday and Sunday.
Gillim (215 points), Rispoli (213 points), and Wyman (204 points) were each in contention for the championship before the start of the first eight-lap King of the Baggers race on Saturday. As the riders completed a warm-up lap in the rain, Wyman lost control and slid off track. He was able to remount and start the race, but his motorcycle was damaged, and he retired on lap 3. Gillim took the race lead on lap 3 and was never challenged as early leader Rispoli could not match his pace on the wet track and settled for second place, 9.10 seconds behind Gillim. Harley-Davidson Screamin’ Eagle factory rider Travis Wyman battled to finish in third place and scored his first podium finish of the season, just 0.40 seconds behind Rispoli. After the Saturday race, Gillim led Rispoli by 7 championship points, and Wyman was out of contention for the title.
Kyle Wyman bounced back to win the Sunday race, taking the lead on lap 2, after Rispoli ran off the wet track. Wyman opened a gap and stretched his lead to 3.724 seconds over second-place Gillim at the finish. Max Flinders finished third on the M3/Revolution Performance Indian. Rispoli finished in seventh place.
“After Rispoli went off, I just tried to be patient, not make a mistake and open a gap,” said Wyman. “I suppose a win in the last race sends a message. It really stings to come up short in the championship after winning the most races, but I’m also proud of my race wins, proud of the team and what it has accomplished from a development standpoint, which trickles down to the other Harley teams. This has been a crazy year, and obviously this weekend did not end as we hoped it might, but Harley-Davidson is one-two-three in the championship, and that’s the next-best result for us. I want to send a big thanks to everyone at Harley who worked so hard for us this season, and we’ll be back to get them next year.”
At the conclusion of the 14-race 2023 MotoAmerica Mission King of the Baggers series, Gillim wins the championship with 260 points. Rispoli is second with 242 points, followed by Kyle Wyman with 229 points. Wyman won seven of 14 races on the season, with one additional podium finish. Jake Lewis rode a Team Saddlemen Harley-Davidson Road Glide motorcycle to seventh place with 126 points. Travis Wyman placed eighth with 112 points.
The Mission King of the Baggers series features race-prepared American V-Twin touring motorcycles. Harley-Davidson Factory Team Road Glide motorcycles are powered by modified Screamin’ Eagle Milwaukee-Eight 131 Performance Crate Engines. The team bikes also feature upgraded suspension components, including Screamin’ Eagle/Öhlins Remote Reservoir Rear Shocks, plus competition exhaust, race tires, and lightweight bodywork.
MotoAmerica King Of The Baggers Race Results – New Jersey Motorsports Park Race 1
- Hayden Gillim (H-D) Vance & Hines/Mission Foods/Harley-Davidson
- James Rispoli (H-D) Vance & Hines/Mission Foods/Harley-Davidson
- Travis Wyman (H-D) Screamin’ Eagle Harley-Davidson
- Kyle Ohnsorg (Ind) Roland Sands Design
- Bobby Fong (Ind) Sacramento Mile/SDI Racing/Roland Sands Design
- Jake Lewis (H-D) Team Saddlemen
- Max Flinders (Ind) M3/Revolution Performance
- Tyler O’Hara (Ind) Progressive/Mission Foods
- Frankie Garcia (H-D) Team Saddlemen
- Patricia Fernandez-West (H-D) Team Saddlemen
- DNF. Kyle Wyman (H-D) Screamin’ Eagle Harley-Davidson
- DNF. Cody Wyman (H-D) Team Saddlemen
- DNF. Jeremy McWilliams (Ind) Progressive/Mission Foods
MotoAmerica King Of The Baggers Race Results – New Jersey Motorsports Park Race 2
- Kyle Wyman (H-D) Screamin’ Eagle Harley-Davidson
- Hayden Gillim (H-D) Vance & Hines/Mission Foods/Harley-Davidson
- Max Flinders (Ind) M3/Revolution Performance
- Bobby Fong (Ind) Sacramento Mile/SDI Racing/Roland Sands
- Jeremy McWilliams (Ind) Progressive/Mission Foods
- Travis Wyman (H-D) Screamin’ Eagle Harley-Davidson
- James Rispoli (H-D) Vance & Hines/Mission Foods/Harley-Davidson
- Kyle Ohnsorg (Ind) Roland Sands Design
- Jake Lewis (H-D) Team Saddlemen
- Frankie Garcia (H-D) Team Saddlemen
- Patricia Fernandez-West (H-D) Team Saddlemen
- DNF. Tyler O’Hara (Ind) Progressive/Mission Foods
- DNF. Cody Wyman (H-D) Team Saddlemen
Harley-Davidson invites you to enhance the 2023 MotoAmerica King of the Baggers season with some adrenaline-pumping action. Check out Push the Limit, a film that shares the story of defending 2021 champion Kyle Wyman, teammate Travis Wyman, and the Harley-Davidson Screamin’ Eagle race team’s 2022 championship pursuit. Watch it now on Harley-Davidson’s YouTube channel.
Harley-Davidson stands for the timeless pursuit of adventure and freedom for the soul. Go to H-D.com to learn more about the complete line of 2023 Harley-Davidson Grand American Touring, Sport, Adventure Touring, Cruiser and Trike motorcycles, Harley-Davidson Certified pre-owned motorcycles, Harley-Davidson Genuine Motor Parts & Accessories, Harley-Davidson MotorClothes and gear, and Harley-Davidson Financial Services.
About Harley-Davidson
Harley-Davidson, Inc. is the parent company of Harley-Davidson Motor Company and Harley-Davidson Financial Services. Our vision: Building our legend and leading our industry through innovation, evolution and emotion. Our mission: More than building machines, we stand for the timeless pursuit of adventure. Freedom for the soul. Since 1903, Harley-Davidson has defined motorcycle culture with an expanding range of leading-edge, distinctive and customizable motorcycles in addition to riding experiences and exceptional motorcycle accessories, riding gear and apparel. Harley-Davidson Financial Services provides financing, insurance and other programs to help get Harley-Davidson riders on the road. Learn more at the Harley-Davidson website.
