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AMA Pro Superbike
AMA SBK: Young And Restless
Will any AMA Pro Superbike take advantage of the prime opportunity to take a major step forward by signing two-time series runner-up Blake Young?
Blake Young (Photo: Evan Williams)
Imagine if Dani Pedrosa had not been able to find a MotoGP ride this year. Or if Tom Sykes and Ryan Dungey were left scrambling and in danger of not lining their respective grids this season. Or if no Formula 1 team could find a way to slot in Fernando Alonso or if no NFL club wanted 2nd team All-Pro quarterback Aaron Rogers to lead their offense.
That's effectively the situation in AMA Pro Superbike where Blake Young -- arguably the series' most gifted and exciting rider -- has been repeatedly passed over and, as of yet, unable to secure a full-season ride for 2013 with few attractive seats remaining.
The championship has been defined over its history by a series of collectively questionable personnel decisions.
When the paddock was jammed full with factory efforts, teams looked to every corner of the globe in an attempt topple the all-conquering Mat Mladin/Ben Spies freight train at Yoshimura, however, rarely (if ever) did anyone make a serious attempt to poach either rider away.
At the same time, even though Josh Hayes clearly ranked as the most promising on the undercard, it took years for him to get a decent shot in the premier class.
Evaporating budgets resulted in a shallower talent pool, with established Superbike race winners Jamie Hacking, Aaron Yates, and Jake Zemke either prematurely retired or removed from the scene for extended periods because no one had the scratch or creativity to find them a seat.
And last year, Tommy Hayden, after enjoying the best season of his decorated career in which he blossomed into a genuine Superbike title threat, found himself unable to continue in the class on a competitive bike.
However, Young's current situation may rank as the most baffling.
Was Young's 2012 campaign a relative disaster? Yes, but the word that should be emphasized is relative.
Certainly, he did not take the expected step forward following his breakthrough '11 in which won as many races as every other rider combined (and typically in heroic fashion) and came up just a handful of corners short of dethroning defending champ Hayes.
However, that's the only measure by which Young's season can be described as a failure. Otherwise, he was the best rider in the championship outside of Hayes and by a massive margin. He registered three victories (again, two of them in absolute barnburners, and one perhaps ranking as the most amazing win in AMA Pro history), nine runner-ups, and 16 total podiums in 20 starts.
Not only did Young's remarkable '11 negatively impact the way the paddock viewed his '12 performance, it also damaged his career in a way that may not be obvious on the surface. Had Blake enjoyed a nice 2011 but ultimately been handily beaten by Hayes, his rival might have been offered that World Superbike ride he was campaigning for throughout the season. However, Young's seven wins to the champ's three made #1 a bit less attractive of a prospect to potential WSBK suitors. Ultimately, Hayes had no real option but to race in the States again in 2012.
Of course, we all know what happened next -- Hayes came back stronger than ever. And armed with a significantly improved R1, he took out all of his frustrations from the season prior on Young and company while rewriting the record books.
But suppose for a minute that Hayes had graduated to world championship competition in 2012. How would Young's 'dismal' season look then? While it's not quite as simple as erasing Hayes' results and bumping everyone up a position, doing so would credit Young with an epic '12 of his own in which he won the title going away with a record-tying 12 victories in hand.
And had that been the case, we still might be talking about Young not racing in AMA Pro Superbike in 2013… but only because he likely would have been World Superbike-bound with factory offers from multiple teams.
That's effectively the situation in AMA Pro Superbike where Blake Young -- arguably the series' most gifted and exciting rider -- has been repeatedly passed over and, as of yet, unable to secure a full-season ride for 2013 with few attractive seats remaining.
The championship has been defined over its history by a series of collectively questionable personnel decisions.
When the paddock was jammed full with factory efforts, teams looked to every corner of the globe in an attempt topple the all-conquering Mat Mladin/Ben Spies freight train at Yoshimura, however, rarely (if ever) did anyone make a serious attempt to poach either rider away.
At the same time, even though Josh Hayes clearly ranked as the most promising on the undercard, it took years for him to get a decent shot in the premier class.
Evaporating budgets resulted in a shallower talent pool, with established Superbike race winners Jamie Hacking, Aaron Yates, and Jake Zemke either prematurely retired or removed from the scene for extended periods because no one had the scratch or creativity to find them a seat.
And last year, Tommy Hayden, after enjoying the best season of his decorated career in which he blossomed into a genuine Superbike title threat, found himself unable to continue in the class on a competitive bike.
However, Young's current situation may rank as the most baffling.
Was Young's 2012 campaign a relative disaster? Yes, but the word that should be emphasized is relative.
Certainly, he did not take the expected step forward following his breakthrough '11 in which won as many races as every other rider combined (and typically in heroic fashion) and came up just a handful of corners short of dethroning defending champ Hayes.
However, that's the only measure by which Young's season can be described as a failure. Otherwise, he was the best rider in the championship outside of Hayes and by a massive margin. He registered three victories (again, two of them in absolute barnburners, and one perhaps ranking as the most amazing win in AMA Pro history), nine runner-ups, and 16 total podiums in 20 starts.
Not only did Young's remarkable '11 negatively impact the way the paddock viewed his '12 performance, it also damaged his career in a way that may not be obvious on the surface. Had Blake enjoyed a nice 2011 but ultimately been handily beaten by Hayes, his rival might have been offered that World Superbike ride he was campaigning for throughout the season. However, Young's seven wins to the champ's three made #1 a bit less attractive of a prospect to potential WSBK suitors. Ultimately, Hayes had no real option but to race in the States again in 2012.
Of course, we all know what happened next -- Hayes came back stronger than ever. And armed with a significantly improved R1, he took out all of his frustrations from the season prior on Young and company while rewriting the record books.
But suppose for a minute that Hayes had graduated to world championship competition in 2012. How would Young's 'dismal' season look then? While it's not quite as simple as erasing Hayes' results and bumping everyone up a position, doing so would credit Young with an epic '12 of his own in which he won the title going away with a record-tying 12 victories in hand.
And had that been the case, we still might be talking about Young not racing in AMA Pro Superbike in 2013… but only because he likely would have been World Superbike-bound with factory offers from multiple teams.
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