Daytona Preview: The 200? It’s Anybody’s Guess

The 82^nd Daytona 200, Mission King Of The Baggers, BellissiMoto Twins Cup and Mission Super Hooligan National Championships Highlight MotoAmerica’s Daytona Bike Week, March 7-9

IRVINE, CA – March 7, 2024 – (Motor Sports NewsWire) – Welcome to the phenomenon that is the Daytona 200. Sixty-eight riders will attempt to qualify for the 82^nd running of the “Great American Motorcycle Race,” two of those MotoAmerica racers are women, and one of them is half of a married couple who will compete against her husband. Additionally, five different brands of motorcycles will be on the starting grid at Daytona International Speedway and 13 countries will be represented.

Josh Herrin will attempt to defend his Daytona 200 title on Saturday at Daytona International Speedway. Photo by Brian J. Nelson

Did we mention that the race is 200 miles long and features pit stops? And that three different tire manufacturers will battle for bragging rights in one of the few races left in road racing that doesn’t require the use of one tire brand?

Oh, it’s also worth noting that the margin of victory in the past three 200s was a combined .108 of a second.

All those things combined make the 200 an aberration. It really is like no other motorcycle race in the world.

82^nd Daytona 200 – All In

The list of potential winners in the Daytona 200 is lengthy, but it must begin with the defending race champion Josh Herrin and his Only Fans Warhorse Ducati Panigale V2. Herrin won a drafting war to the finish line of last year’s 200 on his Ducati to beat five-time AMA Superbike Champion Josh Hayes by just .070 of a second as five riders crossed the line separated by less than half a second.

Four of those five riders from a season ago will be back for another shot in the 200, led by Hayes who will go to battle on his CSU One Cure/J4orce Racing Yamaha YZF-R6 in what may end up being his only race of the 2024 MotoAmerica Championship. Hayes has yet to win a Daytona 200.

Cameron Petersen won’t be defending his third-place finish in last year’s 200 as he continues to rehab his wrist injury and is focusing on being 100 percent when the MotoAmerica Steel Commander Superbike series begins at Road Atlanta in April. Although the South African won’t be on the grid at the Speedway, his Attack Performance Progressive Yamaha Racing YZF-R6 will be in the capable hands of Xavi Forés, the 2023 MotoAmerica Supersport Champion.

Like Hayes, Daytona might be Forés’s only…