The United States national speedway team are an international

speedway Speedway may refer to: Racing Race tracks *Edmonton International Speedway, also known as Speedway Park, a former motor raceway in Edmonton, Alberta *Indianapolis Motor Speedway, a motor raceway in Speedway, Indiana Types of races and race cours ...

team from the United States who compete in the annual major international speedway competitions including the

Speedway World Cup The Speedway World Cup is an annual motorcycle speedway, speedway event held each year in different countries. The first edition of the competition in the current format was held in 2001 and replaced the old Speedway World Team Cup, World Team Cu ...

and

Speedway of Nations The Speedway of Nations is a speedway event for national teams, held each year in a different country. The first edition of the competition in the current format took place in 2018, replacing the Speedway World Cup on the international calendar. ...

and the former events the Speedway World Team Cup and the

Speedway World Pairs Championship The Speedway World Pairs Championship was an annual speedway (motorcycling) event held each year in different countries. The first competition was held in 1968 and the final competition was held in 1993. From 1994 it was merged with the World Team ...

. They are managed by

Lance King Lance King (born November 23, 1962) is an American heavy metal music singer and songwriter specializing in melodic progressive power metal. He has sung with many groups over the last 35 years and started the record label Nightmare in 1990 t ...

, who finished third in the 1984 World Final and the current captain is triple and four times world champion

Greg Hancock Gregory Alan Hancock (born June 3, 1970 in Whittier, California) is an American former professional motorcycle speedway rider. As of 2023, he was one of only six riders to have won the individual World Championship four or more times. In addit ...

. The team is governed by the

American Motorcyclist Association The American Motorcyclist Association (AMA) is an American nonprofit organization of more than 200,000 motorcyclists that organizes numerous motorcycling activities and campaigns for motorcyclists' legal rights. Its mission statement is "to promo ...

. After

Jack Milne John Walter Milne (4 June 1907 in Buffalo, New York, United States – 6 December 1995 in Pasadena, California, United States) was an international Speedway rider. He became the first American to win a motorcycling world championship when he won ...

and his brother Cordy had finished first and third at the 1937 World Final (with another American

Wilbur Lamoreaux Wilbur "Lammy" Lamoreaux (born 26 February 1907 in Roseville, Illinois, United States - died 11 May 1963) was an international motorcycle speedway rider who qualified for three Speedway World Championship finals and never finished lower than fi ...

finishing second), the USA went into the speedway wilderness until the early 1970s when international riders such as World Champions

Barry Briggs Barry Briggs (born 30 December 1934) is a New Zealand former speedway rider. Career He won the World Individual Championship title four times – in 1957, 1958, 1964 and 1966.Bamford, R. & Shailes, G. (2002). ''A History of the World Speedw ...

and

Ivan Mauger Ivan Gerald Mauger (4 October 1939 – 16 April 2018) was a New Zealand motorcycle speedway rider. He won a record six World Championships (Finals), a feat equalled only with the inclusion of the Speedway GP Championships by Tony Rickardsson ...

from New Zealand began visiting the

Costa Mesa Speedway Costa Mesa Speedway in Costa Mesa, California USA is a major motorsports venue credited with the renaissance of motorcycle speedway racing in Southern California. The long track hosts both Solo and Sidecar speedway. History In 1968, 1937 Spe ...

Los Angeles Los Angeles ( ; es, Los Ángeles, link=no , ), often referred to by its initials L.A., is the largest city in the state of California and the second most populous city in the United States after New York City, as well as one of the world' ...

. After

World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposin ...

Scott Autrey Scott Brian Autrey (born July 9, 1953) is an American former professional motorcycle speedway rider. In 1976, he became the first American rider to reach a speedway world final since Ernie Roccio in 1951. __TOC__ Motorcycle racing career Born in ...

's appearance in the 1976 World Final in

Poland Poland, officially the Republic of Poland, is a country in Central Europe. It is divided into 16 administrative provinces called voivodeships, covering an area of . Poland has a population of over 38 million and is the fifth-most populous ...

was the first American appearance since

Ernie Roccio Ernest Thomas Roccio (16 September 1927 – 22 July 1952) was a motorcycle speedway rider from the United States. Speedway career Roccio was a leading speedway rider in the early 1950s. He reached the final of the Speedway World Championship in ...

had finished 15th in

1951 Events January * January 4 – Korean War: Third Battle of Seoul – Chinese and North Korean forces capture Seoul for the second time (having lost the Second Battle of Seoul in September 1950). * January 9 – The Government of the United ...

. Autrey, who in the mid-1970s had campaigned hard and successfully to have American riders included in the

Speedway World Championship The World Championship of Speedway is an international competition between the highest-ranked motorcycle speedway riders of the world, run under the auspices of the Fédération Internationale de Motocyclisme (FIM). The first official championsh ...

, signalled an American resurgence in speedway and was soon followed by others such as

1981 Events January * January 1 ** Greece enters the European Economic Community, predecessor of the European Union. ** Palau becomes a self-governing territory. * January 10 – Salvadoran Civil War: The FMLN launches its first major offensiv ...

and

1982 Events January * January 1 – In Malaysia and Singapore, clocks are adjusted to the same time zone, UTC+8 (GMT+8.00). * January 13 – Air Florida Flight 90 crashes shortly after takeoff into the 14th Street bridges, 14th Street Bridge in ...

world champion

Bruce Penhall Bruce Lee Penhall (born May 10, 1957) is an American former professional motorcycle speedway racer who later starred in television and in film. He was the World Speedway Champion in 1981 and 1982 and rode for the successful Cradley Heath Heathen ...

, brothers

Kelly Kelly may refer to: Art and entertainment * Kelly (Kelly Price album) * Kelly (Andrea Faustini album) * ''Kelly'' (musical), a 1965 musical by Mark Charlap * "Kelly" (song), a 2018 single by Kelly Rowland * ''Kelly'' (film), a 1981 Canadi ...

and

Shawn Moran Shawn Moran (born November 19, 1961 in Lakewood, California) is an American former professional motorcycle speedway rider who was one of the most popular and talented riders ever to race for Sheffield Tigers who also represented the United State ...

, Bobby Schwartz,

Dennis Sigalos Arthur Dennis Sigalos (born August 16, 1959) is an American former professional motorcycle speedway, speedway rider. Career Born in Garden Grove, California, Sigalos was a rising star in speedway racing during the late 1970s. Sigalos served no ...

, 1993 world champion

Sam Ermolenko Guy Allen 'Sudden Sam' Ermolenko (born November 23, 1960 Maywood, California) is a former speedway rider. In 1993 he won the Speedway World Championship in Pocking, Germany.Bamford, R. & Shailes, G. (2002). ''A History of the World Speedway ...

, Rick Miller, 1996 world champion Billy Hamill, and four times world champion

all going on to be regarded as some of the world's best speedway riders.

Speedway World Cup

The USA national speedway team has won the Speedway World Team Cup on five occasions, including their first win in

which gave the USA the "Triple Crown" of speedway by winning the Individual, World Pairs and World Team Cup in the same year (the WTC was actually the first victory of the three). The USA were a major force in the early 1990s, winning 3 out of 4 tournaments. Key riding members of the title wins include Billy Hamill (4 wins), Sam Ermolenko and Greg Hancock (both 3 wins). The cup has eluded the USA since 1998 and the team has become weaker due to the retirements of Sam Ermolenko and Billy Hamill, and a lack of recognised experienced riders in Europe. The finals of both the

1985 The year 1985 was designated as the International Youth Year by the United Nations. Events January * January 1 ** The Internet's Domain Name System is created. ** Greenland withdraws from the European Economic Community as a result of a ...

and

1988 File:1988 Events Collage.png, From left, clockwise: The oil platform Piper Alpha explodes and collapses in the North Sea, killing 165 workers; The USS Vincennes (CG-49) mistakenly shoots down Iran Air Flight 655; Australia celebrates its Australian ...

World Team Cups were held at the Veterans Memorial Stadium in

Long Beach Long Beach is a city in Los Angeles County, California. It is the 42nd-most populous city in the United States, with a population of 466,742 as of 2020. A charter city, Long Beach is the seventh-most populous city in California. Incorporate ...

California California is a U.S. state, state in the Western United States, located along the West Coast of the United States, Pacific Coast. With nearly 39.2million residents across a total area of approximately , it is the List of states and territori ...

. In the 41-year history of the WTC, these were the only times that the finals were held outside of Great Britain or Europe.

Honours

World Championships

''*

was stripped of his 1990 Individual World Championship Silver Medal by the

FIM FIM may refer to: Organizations and companies * Fédération Internationale de Motocyclisme, the International Motorcycling Federation * Flint Institute of Music, in Michigan, United States * Fox Interactive Media, now News Corp. Digital Media * ...

after a failed drug test.''

Titles

Notable American riders

* Scott Brant * John Cook * Ronnie Correy *

* Ryan Fisher *

Billy Hamill William Gordon Hamill (born 23 May 1970, in California, United States) is an American international motorcycle speedway rider. He is a former Speedway World Champion, winning the title in 1996. Career Early career Hamill began junior speedwa ...

* Tommy Hedden *

Billy Janniro Billy Mitchell Janniro (born 30 July 1980 in Benicia, California, United States) is a former motorcycle speedway rider from the United States. Career Billy "The Kid" Janniro rode for the Coventry Bees and Peterborough Panthers in the British L ...

* Chris Kerr *

* Josh Larsen * Steve Lucero * Rick Miller *

Cordy Milne Corydon Clark Milne (April 14, 1914 – October 15, 1978) was an American international motorcycle speedway rider who finished third in the 1937 Speedway World Championship final, behind his brother Jack and second placed Wilbur Lamoreaux. Coryd ...

* Kelly Moran *

Ron Preston Ronald Nunan Preston (born July 15, 1958) is an American former international motorcycle speedway rider who was the European Junior Champion in 1979. __TOC__ Motorcycle racing career Born in Newport Beach, California, Preston began his racing ...

* Bobby Schwartz *

* Charlie Venegas *

Ricky Wells Ricky Wells (born 27 July 1991 in Auckland Auckland (pronounced ) ( mi, Tāmaki Makaurau) is a large metropolitan city in the North Island of New Zealand. The most populous urban area in the country and the fifth largest city in Ocea ...

Brent Werner Brent Werner (born April 15, 1974) is an American motorcycle speedway rider who was a member of United States team at Speedway World Cups.

References

{{USNationalTeams National speedway teams