Harley-Davidson changes strategy: goodbye to MotoAmerica, all-in on the World Cup

Harley-Davidson is reshaping its racing presence with a clear-cut choice. The Milwaukee company has announced that the Bagger World Cup, held within the MotoGP framework, will become its main racing platform. The price of this shift is steep: after the 2026 season, the official commitment to MotoAmerica’s King of the Baggers will end, and in 2027 there will no longer be a Harley-Davidson Factory Racing Team.

2026 marked the debut of the Bagger World Cup on the global stage. At Spielberg’s Red Bull Ring, Australian rider Archie McDonald was celebrated as the series’ first overall winner. The calendar featured six events for a total of twelve races, with a compact grid: four teams and around ten riders, depending on wild card entries. Small numbers, but spectacular duels. The new series also drew a headline name like Andrea Iannone.

For Harley-Davidson, it was primarily about building global experience, and the American manufacturer has consistently reiterated its intention to grow the championship: 2027 is slated to feature more teams, more riders, and more races. The assessment from Jeffrey Schuessler, the brand’s Director of Global Racing Programs, is enthusiastic: "What we achieved in the first season of the FIM Harley-Davidson Bagger World Cup exceeded our expectations. We witnessed incredible racing, five different winners, every team on the podium, and a title fight decided in the final race."

Schuessler is already looking ahead: "But I’m especially proud of how our teams, riders, partners, dealers, and the entire Harley-Davidson community have supported this championship and helped bring it to life around the world. This is just the beginning. We now have an incredible foundation to build on, and the opportunities ahead are enormous."

Buoyed by the first season and the collaboration with MotoGP, IRTA, and FIM, Harley-Davidson will invest in developing the Bagger World Cup as its flagship racing platform. In parallel, it will expand its commitment to grassroots racing: the goal is to offer Harley riders across different disciplines and experience levels more racing opportunities, and make them more accessible.

This dual expansion—on the world stage and at the grassroots—does, however, mean a cut. Harley-Davidson will end its participation as a factory team and its official support for teams in King of the Baggers after 2026. It’s a series where the brand has left its mark, as the company itself emphasized: "The collaboration with MotoAmerica has been pivotal in the growth of this category. The Harley-Davidson Factory Racing Team has shone on track, helped the brand capture three of the six national titles, and fielded Kyle Wyman, the most successful rider in the category’s history, with 27 wins."

Jason Kehl also wished to thank the American organizers: "Thank you to MotoAmerica for the partnership and commitment to King of the Baggers. Without their support and the series’ thrilling races, we would not have achieved the success we have." From here on out, Harley’s racing future runs through MotoGP weekends.

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