Spies/Rahal Team Won't Be Racing Daytona 200
What do we know for sure truth hurts comments at no extra charge
The Spies/Rahal Ducati team has announced that they won’t be racing the Daytona 200 in March. However, they intend to compete in the rest of the MotoAmerica championship. Why are they not racing such a prestigious and important event? Because it's not worth it.

Shall we play Soup's "What Do We Know for Sure?"

  • What we know for sure is that Jim France is alive and well.

  • We know that Jim France is a billionaire and controls the Daytona International Speedway.
    (Forbes estimates his wealth at $1.8 billion, which, by Soup math, is almost two billion dollars.)

  • We know that Jim France is a motorcycle enthusiast and owns multiple motorcycles, many of which he regularly rides around Daytona and in North Carolina.

  • We know that Jim France purchased all of AMA Pro Racing's assets in 2008. He still owns the motocross/supercross championship, dirt track, and, of course, hill climb.

  • We know that before MotoAmerica took over sanctioning the Daytona 200, three-time world champion and former Daytona 200 winner Wayne Rainey called the Speedway with a proposal.
    Rainey suggested re-establishing the Daytona 200 as a major international race, framed as a USA vs. British event where American riders would compete against those from the British Superbike series.

    Rainey could not have been told to "pound sand" harder.

  • We know that if Jim France wanted to, with a few swipes of his pen, he could create a program to re-establish the Daytona 200 as one of the biggest races in the world in just a few years, if that.
    Yes, this would mean that some companies not already “partners” of Daytona might win the race and put their names next to "Daytona"—all without paying a fee.

  • We know that such an effort to re-establish the Daytona 200 might require Jim France to settle for a Forbes-estimated wealth of around $1.7 billion instead of $1.8 billion.

  • We know that until recently, Jim France and ISC employed former Honda/Ducati executive Michael Lock.
    Lock, the last true motorcycle evangelist, was fully capable of turning the Daytona 200 back into a major global event.

    Instead, we have a professional team deciding not to race Daytona because, essentially, it's not worth it.
  • — ends —
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