Shakespeare said “all the world’s a stage and all the men and women merely players; They have their exits and their entrances…” Certainly the motorcycle worlds’ biggest stage was deep in the heart of Texas as MotoGP took over Circuit of The Americas this past weekend and it was a passion play of epic proportions.
It is April Fool’s Day, not Saint Crispin’s Day and I am certainly no Bill Shakespeare, but motorcycles were on the world stage between MotoGP, Supercross in the “Motor City” of Detroit and the announcement that SEMA is inviting powersports dealers to the largest aftermarket trade show in the world. Even Electrify Expo announced they were transforming to the Demo Days Festival and inviting ICE fans to join the EV effort to get butts on seats at festivals around the country. Busy week!
As Althoff suggests in his column, the F1 play book has already been opened and motorcycles are about to take centerstage if Liberty Media (now rebranded as “MotoGP Sports Entertainment Group” following its $5 billion acquisition from Dorna Sports in July 2025) has their way about it.
About time, too. We have the most compelling stories to tell, and unlike an F1 car, the average Joe or Josephine can actually buy a motorcycle and ride it.
“We deserve it,” says my friend Zap, speaking from Verona, site of Shakespearian tragedy Romeo And Juliet, and more importantly the Motor Bike Expo. Before Dealer Expo exited stage left on the trade side and IMS took its final curtain call in 2021, America used to have shows on the scale of Motor Bike Expo… well, almost. EICMA in Milan and now MBE in Verona are hugely successful hybrids merging trade and consumer components with global rather than regional appeal. In fact, 32% of the 180,000+ attendees in Verona were from outside Italy.
Unlike Romeo and Juliet’s ill-fated relationship, the world’s love affair with powersports is alive and well!
“Easily the one take-away I had was just how passionate European moto enthusiasts are about motorcycles,” adds Zap. And from that thought, the question arose, “why is it that such grand motorcycle shows don’t/can’t exist in America? Don’t we love motorcycles too?”
From Althoff to Zap, the groundswell of support asking for the limelight to shift back to motorcycles. Once more is the breach for powersports! MotoGP and SEMA are here (well almost, the SEMA show hits in November, but you get the idea).
Time to bring up the lights and get this passion play started!
