Moto America Twins Cup 2024 – Part 3
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Here we go again. Next week, Moto America will host round one of the twins cup championship at Daytona. For 2024, the twins cup championship has been reduced to 6 rounds with 12 races total. Daytona, Road Atlanta, Barber, Road America, and Brainerd will happen March thru June, then the twins cup racers have a 2 month hiatus before finishing up the season at COTA. Although entries for the Daytona Twins Cup race are down, the talent level is extremely high. 2023 runner-up Gus Rodio returns to the class on his Rodio Racing Powered by Robem RS660 and will be accompanied by teammates Ben Gloddy, and 15 year old Alessandro Di Mario. 2021 champ Kaleb DeKyrel returns to the class for a one off race on a 1-800-CJKNOWS Yamaha R7, and 2020 champ Rocco Landers will compete on a Vance and Hines Suzuki GSX8R. Rocco will not be the only rider on the new Suzuki as Rossi Moor will be on a Team Hammer prepared GSX8R. Dominic Doyle returns for 2024 on the Giaccmoto Yamaha R7, and 2023 Junior Cup champ Avery Dreher will grid up on a Top Pro Aprilia RS660. Some noticeable absentees are Jackson Blackmon, 2018 champ Chris Parrish (who will join the grid at Road Atlanta), and Hayden Schultz who is moving to Hooligans. MP13 no longer has a twins entry, and N2/Bobblehead Racing has moved with their rider Blake Davis into supersport. Luckily for us, Rodney Vest is returning for another season. Will he stick with his dress blues themed leathers or possibly move on to a camo pattern. We will have to wait and see…
The anticipated homologation of the KTM790 for 2024 did not happen, so the new Suzuki will be the only newcomer to the grid. Being that the new Zuki is 776cc, the bike will have restrictions as it has a substantial displacement advantage over the other bikes in the class. Unlike next generation supersport, a spec ECU with locked out throttle maps will not be required for the GSX8-R, and balancing will be accomplished with restrictions on engine mods, RPM limits, and weight. In a nutshell, the new Suzuki will be limited to a valve job, skimming the head for more compression, a set of spec cams with adjustable sprockets, and velocity stacks. RPM will be limited to 11k, and the minimum weight has yet to be determined. Moto America technical director Tige Daane is taking a cautious approach with the new Suzuki and he will be keeping a very close eye on how it stacks up. Considering the short amount of time Moto America and the race teams have had with this bike, we can expect adjustments to the technical regulations throughout the season.
So that’s it for my quick review of Moto America Twins Cup 2024. We can expect close competition as the riders do their best to actively compete throughout the year. Time to place your bets on who leaves COTA with the number one plate. Who is your pick?
Bonus thought: Daytona will be the first time in Twins Cup history that a Suzuki SV650 will not be on the grid. Hopefully we see a few out there throughout this 2024 season.
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