Fred Merkel

Fred Merkel (born September 28, 1962 in Stockton, California) is an American former professional motorcycle road racer and two-time Superbike World Champion.

Fred Merkel
Motorcycle racing career statistics
Superbike World Championship
Active years1988 - 1993
ManufacturersHonda
Championships2 (1988, 1989)
1993 championship position11th (91,5 pts)
Starts Wins Podiums Poles F. laps Points
117 8 24 4 7 848,5

Motorcycle racing career

In 1984 he teamed with Mike Baldwin to win the Suzuka 8 Hours endurance race.[1] He is a three-time AMA Superbike Champion, winning in 1984/5 on the VF750 and 1986 on the VFR750F.[2] He jointly holds the record for the most wins in a season with Mat Mladin.

In 1988 the Superbike World Championship began, with Merkel entered on the RC30. He won the championship from Fabrizio Pirovano and Davide Tardozzi with two wins and three other podiums.[3] He successfully defended the crown in 1989, with 3 wins, 7 other podiums, and 4 poles. He took three more wins en route to sixth overall in 1990, but was less competitive after this.

Merkel retired from racing at the end of the 1995 season after being injured in an accident at Firebird International Raceway in Chandler, Arizona. Merkel and his family moved to a ranch they owned in New Zealand. He lives there with his wife Carla and son Travis, and as of the summer of 2009 welcomed newborn son Jhett.

He was inducted into the AMA Motorcycle Hall of Fame in 2001.[4]

He was inducted into the Motorsports Hall of Fame of America in 2018.[5]

Career statistics

Races by year

Year Make 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 Pos. Pts
R1 R2 R1 R2 R1 R2 R1 R2 R1 R2 R1 R2 R1 R2 R1 R2 R1 R2 R1 R2 R1 R2 R1 R2 R1 R2
1988 Honda GBR
4
GBR
2
HUN
1
HUN
5
GER
17
GER
Ret
AUT
Ret
AUT
8
JPN
2
JPN
11
FRA
6
FRA
C
POR
4
POR
5
AUS
4
AUS
3
NZL
1
NZL
5
1st 99
1989 Honda GBR
4
GBR
6
HUN
1
HUN
1
CAN
1
CAN
3
USA
4
USA
3
AUT
11
AUT
3
FRA
8
FRA
4
JPN
16
JPN
12
GER
8
GER
4
ITA
2
ITA
2
AUS
11
AUS
5
NZL
3
NZL
3
1st 272
1990 Honda SPA
2
SPA
3
GBR
1
GBR
3
HUN
1
HUN
6
GER
1
GER
3
CAN
5
CAN
10
USA
7
USA
10
AUT
7
AUT
4
JPN JPN FRA FRA ITA
Ret
ITA
5
MAL MAL AUS AUS NZL NZL 6th 197
1991 Honda GBR
Ret
GBR
Ret
SPA
Ret
SPA
Ret
CAN CAN USA
6
USA
4
AUT
8
AUT
8
SMR
9
SMR
7
SWE
8
SWE
6
JPN
12
JPN
9
MAL
12
MAL
9
GER
Ret
GER
Ret
FRA
3
FRA
10
ITA
8
ITA
Ret
AUS AUS 8th 124
1992 Yamaha SPA SPA GBR GBR GER GER BEL BEL SPA
17
SPA
Ret
AUT
9
AUT
10
ITA
Ret
ITA
Ret
MAL
11
MAL
5
JPN
26
JPN
13
NED
13
NED
Ret
ITA
Ret
ITA
Ret
AUS
10
AUS
12
NZL
6
NZL
6
13th 65
1993 Yamaha IRL
7
IRL
7
GER
Ret
GER
12
SPA
9
SPA
12
11th 91,5
Ducati SMR
10
SMR
27
AUT
11
AUT
2
CZE
Ret
CZE
5
SWE
12
SWE
Ret
MAL
9
MAL
Ret
JPN
Ret
JPN
Ret
NED
11
NED
Ret
ITA ITA GBR GBR POR
11
POR
9

Races by year

(key) (Races in bold indicate pole position, races in italics indicate fastest lap)

Year Class Bike 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 Pos Pts
1989 500cc Honda JPN AUS USA SPA NAT
Ret
GER AUT YUG NED BEL FRA
Ret
GBR
11
SWE CZE BRA 36th 5

References

Preceded by
Wayne Rainey
AMA Superbike Champion
1984–1986
Succeeded by
Wayne Rainey
None World Superbike Champion
1988–1989
Succeeded by
Raymond Roche
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