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While Dorna talks about a Women's World Championship, which will be hosted within Superbike with the Yamaha R7s, therefore in the end a one-make series, MotoAmerica under the enlightened guidance of Wayne Rainey and his supergroup continues to churn out interesting innovations, after that of the Baggers adopted by the BSB.
The latest is sixteen-year-old Kayla Yaakov (in the video podcast by Carruthers and Bice), the MotoAmerica rider, who only three years ago was competing in the Mission Mini Cup by Motul championship.
In the summer of 2021, when she turned 14 and became eligible, she immediately advanced to the MotoAmerica Junior Cup championship mid-season. In less than two years, Yaakov has achieved four wins and 12 podiums in MotoAmerica's entry-level class.
Last season she moved up to the Twins Cup class, where she picked up five top-five finishes, highlighting with a second place and a third place at the third round of the season at Barber Motorsports Park, which was her debut in the class after suffering a injury while training shortly before the season-opening Daytona round.
Last June Yaakov turned 16, making her eligible for Supersport, and she took over from Stefano Mesa of Tytlers Cycle Racing, who moved up to Superbike to replace the injured Cameron Beaubier.
Yaakov raced Mesa's Kawasaki ZX-6R in the final two rounds of the championship at Circuit of The Americas and New Jersey Motorsports Park. She made MotoAmerica history in the final Supersport race of the season, when she got onto the podium to become the first female road racer to stand on the Supersport rostrom during the MotoAmerica era of AMA-sanctioned professional road racing.
Many notable figures from the racing world have been keeping their eyes on Kayla Yaakov, including three-time AMA Superbike champion, 2009 World Superbike champion and MotoGP winner Ben Spies, Ducati motorcycling legend Eraldo Ferracci and sporting director of Ducati Corse Paolo Ciabatti.
When Spies was asked to become Team Principal of Bobby and Graham Rahal's new Rahal Ducati Moto team - which will participate in the 2024 MotoAmerica Supersport Championship - he immediately decided to sign Yaakov as a teammate alongside PJ Jacobsen, where the pair will race with the bright yellow Ducati Panigale V2 to defend the two consecutive class titles won by the Italian brand with Josh Herrin in 2022 and Xavi Forés in 2023.
The complete interview with the rider from Gettysburg, Pennsylvania, can be found HERE,
Photo: Courtesy MotoAmerica by Preston Brown.
