{"id":21773,"date":"2020-08-26T03:55:31","date_gmt":"2020-08-26T10:55:31","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.motoamerica.com\/?p=21773"},"modified":"2020-08-26T03:55:31","modified_gmt":"2020-08-26T10:55:31","slug":"those-were-the-eighties-five-years-of-ama-superbike-racing-in-the-pacific-northwest","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.motoamerica.com\/those-were-the-eighties-five-years-of-ama-superbike-racing-in-the-pacific-northwest\/","title":{"rendered":"Those Were The Eighties: Five Years Of AMA Superbike Racing In The Pacific Northwest"},"content":{"rendered":"<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img fetchpriority=\"high\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"1000\" height=\"934\" src=\"http:\/\/www.motoamerica.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/08\/Lawson-Spencer-sm.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-21776\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.motoamerica.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/08\/Lawson-Spencer-sm.jpg 1000w, https:\/\/www.motoamerica.com\/wp-content\/smush-webp\/2020\/08\/Lawson-Spencer-sm-600x560.jpg.webp 600w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 1000px) 100vw, 1000px\" \/><figcaption>Winner Lawson and runner-up Spencer on the Superbike podium in 1981 at Seattle International Raceway.<\/figcaption><\/figure><p>It\u2019s been \u201ca few years\u201d since AMA Superbikes turned their wheels in anger in America\u2019s Pacific Northwest, but exactly how long has it been, you might ask.<\/p><p>To be precise, it was a 35-year hiatus. Almost exactly three-and-half decades ago was the last time there was an AMA Superbike race in Washington State, and it was held on August 17, 1985 at Seattle International Raceway in Kent, Washington. Yoshimura Suzuki rider Kevin Schwantz was the final Superbike winner to notch a victory in that neck of the woods, and it was the end of a five-year span in which Superbike races were held in Washington and\/or Oregon.<\/p><div class=\"wp-block-image\"><figure class=\"alignright size-medium is-resized\"><img decoding=\"async\" data-src=\"http:\/\/www.motoamerica.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/08\/Wayne-Raineys-All-Time-Favorite-Racebikes-1-Kawasaki-GPZ-300x189.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-21775 lazyload\" width=\"475\" src=\"data:image\/gif;base64,R0lGODlhAQABAAAAACH5BAEKAAEALAAAAAABAAEAAAICTAEAOw==\" style=\"--smush-placeholder-width: 300px; --smush-placeholder-aspect-ratio: 300\/189;\" \/><noscript><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"http:\/\/www.motoamerica.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/08\/Wayne-Raineys-All-Time-Favorite-Racebikes-1-Kawasaki-GPZ-300x189.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-21775\" width=\"475\"\/><\/noscript><figcaption>MotoAmerica President Wayne Rainey was a Superbike race winner at Seattle International Raceway in 1983.<\/figcaption><\/figure><\/div><p>We say \u201cand\/or\u201d because Fred Merkel won the AMA Superbike race aboard a Honda in 1984, which was held on August 11 at Portland International Raceway in Portland, Oregon. For \u201cFlyin\u2019 Fred,\u201d it was his second win in a row at Portland, since he also took the checkers there aboard a Honda on July 24, 1983. Incidentally, 1983 was a banner year for AMA Superbike racing in the PNW because, later that year, our own MotoAmerica President Wayne Rainey won the AMA Superbike race at Seattle aboard a Kawasaki on September 11, 1983.<\/p><p>On September 12, 1982, at Seattle, Kawasaki\u2019s Eddie Lawson successfully defended his AMA Superbike victory from the year prior at SIR.<\/p><p>The five-year string of AMA Superbike events in Seattle and\/or Oregon began in 1981 at SIR, and what a race it was in that inaugural year. Seattle was the penultimate round of the 1981 season, and the Championship was coming down to a battle between Honda\u2019s Freddie Spencer and Kawasaki\u2019s Eddie Lawson.<\/p><p>A mere 13 points separated Lawson and Spencer coming into Seattle, and Spencer was on a roll after winning at Pocono, which was the round prior to Seattle. A victory for Spencer at Seattle would put him in striking distance and with a shot at snatching the title from Lawson in the Daytona finale.<\/p><p>Spencer won the pole by virtue of his heat race win, which was faster than the heat race that Lawson won. Yoshimura Suzuki\u2019s Wes Cooley led the race in the early laps, and then, Lawson passed Cooley for the lead on lap three with Spencer moving past Cooley and taking over second a lap later.<\/p><p>With eight laps to go, Spencer made a move around Lawson and took over the lead, but he couldn\u2019t shake \u201cSteady Eddie.\u201d Throughout the remainder of the race, the two fierce rivals battled hard for the win because both knew full-well that the 1981 AMA Superbike Championship was in the balance<\/p><p>Coming out of the final turn on the last lap of the race, Lawson got a better drive going onto the front straight and passed \u201cFast Freddie\u201d on the outside despite Spencer running wide to protect his line.<\/p><p>Lawson took the checkers and left Seattle with a 17-point lead. He only needed to finish 11th at the season finale at Daytona to clinch the championship. Incidentally, Spencer did win at Daytona, while Lawson finished third to clinch the 1981 AMA Superbike Championship.<\/p><p>1985<\/p><p>August 17&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; Kent WA&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; Kevin Schwantz&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; Suzuki<\/p><p>1984<\/p><p>August 11&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; Portland OR&nbsp; Fred Merkel&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; Honda<\/p><p>1983<\/p><p>July 24&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; Portland OR Fred Merkel&nbsp;&nbsp; &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; Honda<\/p><p>Sept 11&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; Kent WA&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; Wayne Rainey&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; Kawasaki<\/p><p>1982<\/p><p>Sept 12&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; Kent WA&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; Eddie Lawson&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; Kawasaki<\/p><p>1981<\/p><p>Sept 13&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; Kent WA&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; Eddie Lawson&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; Kawasaki<\/p><p><em>To purchase tickets for all MotoAmerica events, click&nbsp;<\/em><a href=\"https:\/\/www.motoamerica.com\/tickets\/\"><em>HERE<\/em><\/a><\/p><p><em>For information on how to watch the MotoAmerica Series, click&nbsp;<\/em><a href=\"https:\/\/www.motoamerica.com\/watch\/\"><em>HERE<\/em><\/a><\/p><p><em>For the full 2020 MotoAmerica Series schedule, click&nbsp;<\/em><a href=\"https:\/\/www.motoamerica.com\/schedule\/\"><em>HERE<\/em><\/a><em><u><\/u><\/em><\/p>","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>It\u2019s been \u201ca few years\u201d since AMA Superbikes turned their wheels in anger in America\u2019s Pacific Northwest, but exactly how long has it been, you might ask. To be precise, it was a 35-year hiatus. Almost exactly three-and-half decades ago was the last time there was an AMA Superbike race in Washington State, and it [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":4,"featured_media":21776,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"content-type":"","ocean_post_layout":"","ocean_both_sidebars_style":"","ocean_both_sidebars_content_width":0,"ocean_both_sidebars_sidebars_width":0,"ocean_sidebar":"","ocean_second_sidebar":"","ocean_disable_margins":"enable","ocean_add_body_class":"","ocean_shortcode_before_top_bar":"","ocean_shortcode_after_top_bar":"","ocean_shortcode_before_header":"","ocean_shortcode_after_header":"","ocean_has_shortcode":"","ocean_shortcode_after_title":"","ocean_shortcode_before_footer_widgets":"","ocean_shortcode_after_footer_widgets":"","ocean_shortcode_before_footer_bottom":"","ocean_shortcode_after_footer_bottom":"","ocean_display_top_bar":"default","ocean_display_header":"default","ocean_header_style":"","ocean_center_header_left_menu":"","ocean_custom_header_template":"","ocean_custom_logo":0,"ocean_custom_retina_logo":0,"ocean_custom_logo_max_width":0,"ocean_custom_logo_tablet_max_width":0,"ocean_custom_logo_mobile_max_width":0,"ocean_custom_logo_max_height":0,"ocean_custom_logo_tablet_max_height":0,"ocean_custom_logo_mobile_max_height":0,"ocean_header_custom_menu":"","ocean_menu_typo_font_family":"","ocean_menu_typo_font_subset":"","ocean_menu_typo_font_size":0,"ocean_menu_typo_font_size_tablet":0,"ocean_menu_typo_font_size_mobile":0,"ocean_menu_typo_font_size_unit":"px","ocean_menu_typo_font_weight":"","ocean_menu_typo_font_weight_tablet":"","ocean_menu_typo_font_weight_mobile":"","ocean_menu_typo_transform":"","ocean_menu_typo_transform_tablet":"","ocean_menu_typo_transform_mobile":"","ocean_menu_typo_line_height":0,"ocean_menu_typo_line_height_tablet":0,"ocean_menu_typo_line_height_mobile":0,"ocean_menu_typo_line_height_unit":"","ocean_menu_typo_spacing":0,"ocean_menu_typo_spacing_tablet":0,"ocean_menu_typo_spacing_mobile":0,"ocean_menu_typo_spacing_unit":"","ocean_menu_link_color":"","ocean_menu_link_color_hover":"","ocean_menu_link_color_active":"","ocean_menu_link_background":"","ocean_menu_link_hover_background":"","ocean_menu_link_active_background":"","ocean_menu_social_links_bg":"","ocean_menu_social_hover_links_bg":"","ocean_menu_social_links_color":"","ocean_menu_social_hover_links_color":"","ocean_disable_title":"default","ocean_disable_heading":"default","ocean_post_title":"","ocean_post_subheading":"","ocean_post_title_style":"","ocean_post_title_background_color":"","ocean_post_title_background":0,"ocean_post_title_bg_image_position":"","ocean_post_title_bg_image_attachment":"","ocean_post_title_bg_image_repeat":"","ocean_post_title_bg_image_size":"","ocean_post_title_height":0,"ocean_post_title_bg_overlay":0.5,"ocean_post_title_bg_overlay_color":"","ocean_disable_breadcrumbs":"default","ocean_breadcrumbs_color":"","ocean_breadcrumbs_separator_color":"","ocean_breadcrumbs_links_color":"","ocean_breadcrumbs_links_hover_color":"","ocean_display_footer_widgets":"default","ocean_display_footer_bottom":"default","ocean_custom_footer_template":"","ocean_post_oembed":"","ocean_post_self_hosted_media":"","ocean_post_video_embed":"","ocean_link_format":"","ocean_link_format_target":"self","ocean_quote_format":"","ocean_quote_format_link":"post","ocean_gallery_link_images":"on","ocean_gallery_id":[],"footnotes":""},"categories":[17],"tags":[814,815,64,52,679,816,817,338,32,29,39],"class_list":["post-21773","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-championships","tag-eddie-lawson","tag-freddie-spencer","tag-honda","tag-kawasaki","tag-pacific-northwest","tag-portland","tag-seattle","tag-superbike-history","tag-superbike-racing","tag-suzuki","tag-wayne-rainey","entry","has-media","owp-thumbs-layout-horizontal","owp-btn-normal","owp-tabs-layout-horizontal","has-no-thumbnails","has-product-nav"],"yoast_head":"<!-- This site is optimized with the Yoast SEO plugin v23.8 - https:\/\/yoast.com\/wordpress\/plugins\/seo\/ -->\n<title>Those Were The Eighties: Five Years Of AMA Superbike Racing In The Pacific Northwest - MotoAmerica<\/title>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/www.motoamerica.com\/those-were-the-eighties-five-years-of-ama-superbike-racing-in-the-pacific-northwest\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"Those Were The Eighties: Five Years Of AMA Superbike Racing In The Pacific Northwest - MotoAmerica\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"It\u2019s been \u201ca few years\u201d since AMA Superbikes turned their wheels in anger in America\u2019s Pacific Northwest, but exactly how long has it been, you might ask. 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