The most motorcycle racing on the planet

Nowhere else in the world can you find more motorcycle racing in one spot in one week than in Daytona during Bike Week.

The racing begins before you even get to Daytona, with the AMA Prostar’s Bike Week Nationals launching March 4 and 5 in Valdosta, Georgia.

All week long, there's amateur racing, from enduros to flat-track, including five days of competition in the AMA Sports Winter National Short Track Series, while the American Historic Racing Motorcycle Association runs on the Speedway, the dirt tracks, the motocross track and even observed trials.

Action picks up midweek with the AMA Flat Track Grand National Championship Series Short Track GNC Singles, as Travis Pastrana joins defending champ Chris Carr and the rest of the flat-track regulars. Daytona Municipal Stadium is known for producing surprise, underdog winners, so there's no way to guess who'll take the checkers this year.

The competition picks up speed on Thursday, March 9, with AMA Pro Honda Oils Supersport and AMA Repsol Lubricants Superstock finals running at the Speedway. Then, on Friday, the AMA Supercross Series crowd takes over the front stretch of the Speedway. Can Chad Reed hold off Florida home-state favorites James Stewart and Ricky Carmichael and retain his points lead?

Racing hits the redline on Saturday, March 11. Mat Mladin has won four of the last six AMA Superbike Championship races at Daytona International Speedway and six of the last seven Superbike season titles. Will he launch another championship-winning season at Daytona?

And finally, can Miguel Duhamel win a record sixth Daytona 200, thereby surpassing "Mr. Daytona" himself, Scott Russell, in the record books? To do it, he'll have to overcome tough competition not only from his Honda factory teammate, Jake Zemke, but also some fast riders on new bikes, such as Eric Bostrom and Jason DiSalvo on the new Yamaha YZF-R6 and a flock of fast competitors, including MotoGP veteran Jeremy McWilliams on the new and untested (but promising) Buell XBRR.

Can Miguel do it again? Nobody knows. That's why they run the race.

Be there if you can. Or be here for live reports and results.

© 2006, American Motorcyclist Association