TEAM HAMMER EXPANDS TWO-SEAT SUPERBIKE PROGRAM FOR 2017
Team Hammer is thrilled to announce the addition of Dunlop as title sponsor and key partner for its Two-Seat Superbike Program, with rider Chris Ulrich.
Already proven as a highly effective tool to help increase awareness of and engagement in the sport of motorcycle road racing, what will now be called the Dunlop M4 Suzuki Two-Seat Superbike Program is significantly expanding in its 17th year of operation.
“We’re really excited to expand the two-up program for this season,” said Chris Ulrich. “We have a brand-new 2017 Suzuki we’ve built, plus we have more involvement from industry partners and, of course, Dunlop. The best thing of all is that the fans can now experience it. It has been a lot of fun for me doing the VIP and media rides over the years but this is going to be awesome. It’s a once-in-a-lifetime deal and a unique program where you can feel what it is really like, on a real Superbike, on the same course, in front of the fans. We think people are going to get an experience they will never forget.”
As dynamic and compelling as the MotoAmerica AMA/FIM North American Road Racing Championship is for spectators watching on television or at the track, some aspects of the sport just cannot be fully appreciated without actually climbing aboard a Superbike.
The power, acceleration, and lean angles routinely achieved by a MotoAmerica Superbike piloted by a national caliber rider such as Ulrich on a closed circuit create a genuinely eye-opening experience.
“The Dunlop M4 Suzuki Two-Seat Program is really a unique opportunity for the fans and media to go around the racetrack and get the feel of what a racer feels, the acceleration of the bike, the hard braking, the lean angle in a corner. It’s the entire experience. It’s better than any ticket you’d get at any amusement park by a long way,” said MotoAmerica President Wayne Rainey.
The Dunlop M4 Suzuki Two-Seat Superbike Program provides an otherwise nonexistent opportunity for members of the media, VIPs, and regular fans to get a taste of that experience first-hand, during an actual MotoAmerica event weekend.
Mike Buckley, Dunlop Motorcycle’s Vice President of Sales and Marketing, said, “Team Hammer’s Two-Seat Superbike Program has been extremely successful in its efforts to expose the sport of motorcycling to mainstream press. At Dunlop, we believe it is our responsibility as an industry leader to support these types of programs to deliver a positive message about our sport to potential new customers and the efforts of Team Hammer deliver that in an impactful way.”
Furthering the program’s reach in 2017, VIP and media rides will be available on Thursday and Friday at each stop on the 2017 MotoAmerica calendar beginning at the Road Atlanta event.
Additionally, two-seat rides will be open to the public on race weekend Sundays, for people who purchase a $300 ticket package, which includes event admission and a $250 donation to the Roadracing World Action Fund (RWAF).
Tickets will be sold online on the MotoAmerica website prior to each race.
The Roadracing World Action Fund (RWAF) is a 501(c)(3) non-profit focusing on improving racetrack safety through the deployment of soft barriers.
About Team Hammer
The 2017 season will mark Team Hammer’s 37th consecutive year of operating as a professional road racing team. Racebikes built and fielded by Team Hammer have won 61 AMA Pro and MotoAmerica National races, have finished on AMA Pro and MotoAmerica National podiums 153 times and have won five AMA Pro National Championships, as well as two FIM South American Championships. The team has also won 134 endurance races overall (including seven 24-hour races) and 13 Overall WERA National Endurance Championships with Suzuki motorcycles, and holds the U.S. record for mileage covered in a 24-hour race. The team also competed in the televised 1990s Formula USA National Championship, famously running “Methanol Monster” GSX-R1100 Superbikes fueled by methanol, and won four F-USA Championships.
About Dunlop Motorcycle Tires
Dunlop is the largest supplier of original equipment and replacement motorcycle tires in the U.S. and the only manufacturer of motorcycle tires in North America. For more information, visit www.DunlopMotorcycleTires.
About MotoAmerica
MotoAmerica is the new AMA/FIM North America road racing series created in 2014. MotoAmerica is an affiliate of KRAVE Group LLC, a partnership that includes three-time 500cc World Champion, two-time AMA Superbike Champion, and AMA Hall of Famer Wayne Rainey; ex-racer and former manager of Team Roberts Chuck Aksland; motorsports marketing executive Terry Karges; and businessman Richard Varner. For more information on MotoAmerica, visit www.MotoAmerica.com. Also make sure to follow MotoAmerica on Twitter, Facebook and Instagram.