Following a fact-finding mission to a recent MotoAmerica event, Kawasaki may be on the brink of making a full-scale return to road racing in the United States. This morning the company announced the return of Bruce Stjernstrom, who headed racing before leaving to run Monster Energy’s motorsports programs (as Vice President of Sports Marketing) about five years ago.
MotoAmerica’s alignment with World Superbike rules could facilitate the company’s return to factory-team racing in the United States. Kawasaki’s Tom Sykes won the Superbike World Championship in 2013 and Kawasaki’s Jonathan Rea currently leads the 2015 Superbike World Championship points by a huge margin.
The company’s Dan Fahie and former racing boss Reid Nordin were both wandering through the MotoAmerica pit area at the combined MotoGP and MotoAmerica event held at Circuit Of The America’s earlier this year, and other Kawasaki executives have been talking about a return to road racing in a big way.
Kawasaki’s press release on Stjernstrom’s return follows:
Kawasaki Names Stjernstrom to Lead Racing Program
IRVINE, Calif. (June 9, 2015) – Kawasaki has named renowned racing industry veteran Bruce Stjernstrom to lead racing operations, replacing senior racing manager Reid Nordin, who has left the company. Stjernstrom returns with 20 years of experience at Kawasaki, having previously led both the racing and marketing departments, and will report to Chris Brull, Vice President of Marketing for Kawasaki Motors Corp. U.S.A.
“Bruce brings a wealth of knowledge and business acumen to our racing program,” said Brull. “Bruce was a cornerstone of Kawasaki Team Green™, as well as leading multiple championship winning teams while directing our professional racing programs. We know he has a passion for the sport that is only matched by his passion for Kawasaki.”
Since joining Team Green in 1983, Stjernstrom has been instrumental in Kawasaki’s success over the last three decades. During his tenure with Kawasaki, Stjernstrom has led the Team Green, Off Road, ATV, Flat Track, Jet Ski®, Road Racing and supercross/motocross teams.
“Kawasaki has a strong racing heritage that I am proud to be a part of once again,” said Stjernstrom. “I’m looking forward to working with Dan Fahie, Manager of Motocross Racing and Ryan Holliday, Supervisor for Team Green, together with their staff and our partners to keep Kawasaki as a championship winning program.”
For further information, contact Tom McGovern at Next Level Sports Management ([email protected]) or Kevin Allen at Kawasaki Motors Corp., U.S.A. ([email protected])
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Kawasaki Motors Corp., U.S.A. (KMC) markets and distributes Kawasaki motorcycles, ATVs, side x sides, and Jet Ski® watercraft through a network of approximately 1,100 independent retailers, with close to an additional 7,700 retailers specializing in general purpose engines. KMC and its affiliates employ nearly 3,100 people in the United States, with approximately 300 of them located at KMC’s Irvine, California headquarters.
Kawasaki’s tagline, “Let the good times roll.®”, is recognized worldwide. The Kawasaki brand is synonymous with powerful, stylish and category-leading vehicles. Information about Kawasaki’s complete line of powersports products and Kawasaki affiliates can be found on the Internet at www.kawasaki.com.