| July 22, 2006 | Why MotoGP Is Not as Popular in the U.S. as it is in Europe? |
MotoGP may not be as well-known in the U.S. as it is in Europe and other parts of the world, but you wouldn't know it if you had seen the crowds at Laguna Seca waiting on the hot asphalt in the relentless sun to catch a glimpse of their favorite riders coming out of the pit. The fans clamored to get the riders to sign posters, hats, shirts and to snap photos with them. Four-time MotoGP world champion Italian Camel Yamaha rider Valentino Rossi seemed to have the biggest fan-base, with folks wearing shirts and hats in his trademark yellow and black.  American Repsol Honda Nicky Hayden may have a chance at winning MotoGP this year, and there are plenty of people wearing his "star-69" logo as well. Hands gripped Sharpie pens and reached through the fence, as fans pushed for autographs from American Camel Yamaha rider Colin Edwards and screamed for t-shirts that Colin shot into the crowd from a pressurized air gun as he stood atop the stairs to his trailer. Fans were jumping to grab the shirts and pushing and elbowing each other. It was crazy. I was glad that there was a chain link fence between us and the crowd. I didn't want to be caught in the melee. We were also lucky to have a small sliver of shade to stand in if we stayed close to the riding team's trailers. Even with big hats and wet bandannas tied around their necks -- I didn't know how those folks in the crowd were doing it. Even standing in the shade of the riding team's trailers, I became lightheaded that I almost fainted. Or maybe it was standing so close to Valentino Rossi that almost made me faint...  This morning on Yahoo! Answers, I posted a question that I've been also asking all of the folks here at Laguna Seca, Why is MotoGP huge in Europe but not as popular in the U.S.? I was wondering why NASCAR is so hugely popular in America, while MotoGP and Formula One racing don't have quite the dedicated fan-base. racing. I've received some interesting responses so far from the fans at Laguna Sec. The most common reasons people mentioned are: There's no live network TV video coverage of MotoGP. (MotoGP is only televised on the Speed network in the U.S. NASCAR, in comparison, is televised all over.) Motorcycles are more popular means of transportation in Europe and Asia than they are in the United States. People in Europe grow up around motorcyles and ride them more so they are more interested in them, in general. As for other motor sports -- although Formula One is held in high esteem throughout the rest of the world, NASCAR is much more popular in America. I followed up my initial question about MotoGP by asking people why NASCAR is more popular than Formula One racing in the U.S. Some folks mentioned that American audiences enjoy watching the cars rub and bump each other on the NASCAR track. Others said it's because Americans can relate to NASCAR better since the cars are stock cars made by Chevy and Ford, similar to the cars most Americans are driving themselves. Exotic Formula One cars are more expensive and less familiar to people, less like the cars the average Americans actually drive. This made me think that Americans may be less familiar with sport bikes than they are with chopper-type bikes. Think about it. Choppers and hogs have been hugely popular American icons for over 50 years. Counterculture motorcycle gangs, the Hells' Angels, and 1969's 'Easy Rider' paved the way for today's TV shows like Discovery channel reality TV show 'American Chopper' and the Speed channel's show "V-Twin." Choppers and hogs continue to be a symbol of outlaw cool in American culture. From high school rebel James Hurley on David Lynch's "Twin Peaks" to high school rebel Jason Dean "JD" (played by Christian Slater) in 1989's 'Heathers' to boxer Butch Coolidge (played by Bruce Willis) in 1994's 'Pulp Fiction' -- "cool guys" in popular American TV and films drive choppers and hogs. (Chris pointed out that there are a few exceptions where sports bikes are represented as the cool guy's ride in popular films: in 1986's "Top Gun" Maverick (played by Tom Cruise) rides a Kawasaki Ninja and in 2004's futuristic 'I Robot' Will Smith's character rides an MV Augusta. Although the MotoGP bikes aren't American, there are still some great American MotoGP riders: Nicky Hayden (who won MotoGP at Laguna Seca in 2005), Colin Edwards, Kenny Roberts Jr, and John Hopkins. A British guy also told me, "The reason MotoGP isn't so popular in the U.S. is, Americans like sports where Americans win." It's true that there hasn't been an American rider to win a World Championship yet (Italian Valentino Rossi won the World Championship of MotoGP for the past 4 years), but American Nicky Hayden has the current lead in points, and has a strong chance of taking the World Championship this year. If Nicky Hayden wins the World Championship it could certainly increase Americans awareness of, and enthusiasm for, this sport. Labels: motogp, motorcycle, speed, valentinorossi posted by Jess Barron @ 1:23 PM 
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