AMA Pro Flat Track Announces 2014 Season-Opening Dates for Daytona Short Track I & II Rounds



AMA Pro Flat Track today announced the season-opening rounds for the 2014 AMA Pro Flat Track Grand National Championship season, which again will see The Rolling Thunder Show kick off the new year with a doubleheader round held at the Daytona International Speedway short track on Thursday, March 13 and Friday, March 14.

With the track having hosted the annual stop at Daytona Beach since the series moved from the last location down the street, DIS has played host to the season-openers for the last several years at the oval located just outside of turn two of the speedway's massive oval.

With the balance of the schedule expected to be announced fairly soon, the first two events for the new season being announced today will help to usher in the holiday season as it approached quickly, and help to whet the appetites of fervent two-wheeled race fans the world over.

In the shot above, riders get ready to roll out for the first round of practice at round 7 of the 2013 AMA Pro Flat Track presented by J&P Cycles Grand National Championship at the Peoria TT on August 11.

(L-R) Brad Baker on his #12 Specialty Fabrication Incorporated/Fun Mart KTM 450 SX-F adjusts his goggles, while reigning AMA Grand National Champion Jared Mees on his #1 Montgomeryville Cycle/National Cycle Honda CRF450R appears to be relaxing before the action heats up on the track.

Brandon Robinson on the #44 TJ Burnett Farms/USC Racing Kawasaki KX450F looks to be in concentration mode, while Jeffrey Carver, Jr. on the #23 Mack Daddy Racing/Kiesow Racing Honda takes a look out on the track prior to rolling out, with Mikey Rush on his #54 Machete Energy/Southland Pro Honda checking out who will be following them out in the background.

Also seen in the background are Kenny Coolbeth, Jr. on the #2 Chaplin Kawasaki/Trantolo & Trantolo KX450F, Bryan Smith on the #42 Crosley Radio/Howerton Motorsports Honda and Jake Johnson on the #5 Parkinson Brothers Racing/Arai Honda. Barely noticeable in the front row is eventual Peoria winner Henry Wiles on the #17 Don's Kawasaki/Ramspur Winery Kawasaki/Honda, hidden just over Robinson's right shoulder.

These men, and many more, will be heading to Daytona for the 2014 season-openers, with all of them looking to repeat their 2013 results, or even looking to better them.  2013 round one winner Rush, round two winner Robinson and Baker, who left Daytona with his double 2nd-place finishes intact, but lost his points due to a rules infraction due to use of unapproved forks, won't have to sweat that one in '14 as that rule has been cast aside after the controversy it caused at the beginning of this season.

Check out the full press release below thanks to AMA Pro Racing and get your calendars marked for the 2014 season-openers for the greatest racing show on two wheels in the world, just 113 days away!

DAYTONA Flat Track to Host Season-Opening AMA Pro Flat Track Doubleheader Weekend on March 13-14, 2014

DAYTONA BEACH, Fla. (November 19, 2013) - DAYTONA Flat Track will once again play host to the AMA Pro Flat Track presented by J&P Cycles opener as the series kicks off the 2014 season with a doubleheader on the quarter-mile limerock track located outside Daytona International Speedway's west banking.

 

At the 2013 season opener, all four riders who crossed the finish line for the win recorded their first career victories at the professional level. Kyle Johnson and Jake Constantine, representing the J&P Cycles Pro Singles class, electrified a Daytona crowd with one victory each on their 450cc machines while Brandon Robinson and Mikey Rush also claimed one win a piece while putting on a show like no other in Grand National Expert Singles competition.

 

 

 

 

 

 

Brad Baker #12 leads Mikey Rush #54 during one of the season-opening rounds at the Daytona Short Track doubleheader in March 2013. AMA Pro Flat Track and Daytona announced today that the 2014 season-opening doubleheader rounds will be held on March 13-14. AMA Pro Flat Track photo by Dave Hoenig.

 

 

 

 

The buck didn't stop in Daytona for Robinson and Johnson, as the two would go on to have outstanding seasons in their respective classes. In his debut season in J&P Cycles Pro Singles competition, Johnson proved more than capable of hanging with the talented field of young riders, as he went on to podium three more times in 2013 on his way to a fifth-place finish in the point standings.

 

Robinson's Race 2 win at Daytona in 2013 ignited his breakout season that included six total podiums and three premier class victories. Robinson would go on to finish third in the overall Grand National Championship and the Oxford, Penn. native surely proved that he will be a top candidate to contend for the title in 2014.

 

In addition to the DAYTONA Flat Track Doubleheader, the DAYTONA 200 event weekend will feature the full complement of GEICO Motorcycle AMA Pro Road Racing classes on March 13-15, 2014. Kicking off the week's racing activities at the Speedway on March 8, 2014 will be the Daytona Supercross by Honda - the only AMA Supercross event in Florida in 2014. The tough and challenging course will once again be designed by Supercross legend Ricky Carmichael.

 

Tickets for all motorcycle racing events scheduled at Daytona International Speedway are available by calling 1-800-PITSHOP or online at http://www.daytonainternationalspeedway.com.

Fans can stay connected with Daytona International Speedway on Twitter, Facebook, Instagram and Pinterest for the latest news all season long. Fans can follow the latest on DAYTONA Rising, the $400 million frontstretch renovation at the "World Center of Racing" by using #DAYTONARising on Twitter or visiting www.daytonarising.com. 

 

About AMA Pro Flat Track presented by J&P Cycles 

AMA Pro Flat Track presented by J&P Cycles is a national motorcycle racing series in North America and is considered one of the oldest forms of motorcycle racing. Sanctioned by AMA Pro Racing, the Series is highly regarded as the most competitive form of dirt track racing in the world. The 2013 schedule consists of rounds on the country's finest flat track courses. For more information on AMA Pro Flat Track presented by J&P Cycles, please visit www.amaproracing.com/ft.

AMA Pro Racing is the premier professional motorcycle racing organization in North America, operating a full schedule of events and championships for a variety of motorcycle disciplines.  Learn more about AMA Pro Racing at www.amaproracing.com.   For additional information contact:   AMA Pro Racing Communications, (386) 492-1014, communications@amaproracing.com