King Of The Baggers Lives On, But Changes And Expansions Are On The Table

It's been a bit of a rough time to be a King of the Baggers series fan for the last little while. No one had it on their bingo card that Harley-Davidson would completely pull out of the domestic series to go do the one-make Bagger World Cup instead. And yet, despite the public disappointments expressed by MotoAmerica and Harley's only real competitor in the domestic series, Indian Motorcycle, that's what happened.

Once you pop the cork out of the bottle, you can keep the liquid in if you cover it, but you'll have a heck of a time keeping the fizz. Right after all this happened, I suggested that MotoAmerica open up the series to new competition, sort of like a bagger version of the Super Hooligan series.

A few weeks later, it seems that's kind of what they've done. Sort of. Ish. Now, I'm sure there've been intense talks going on behind the scenes, trying to sort all this out and keep KotB going somehow, some way. After all, the series generated far too much interest for MotoAmerica to simply let it fade away if there was a possibility of keeping it alive instead.

MotoAmerica issued an official statement on November 4, 2026, stating that three changes would be coming to the KotB paddock in 2027. Those are the following

• Greater Indian Motorcycle presence in the paddock
• New technical regulations (unspecified)
• Opening up the class to "additional manufacturers" (also unspecified)

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It goes on to include quotes from MotoAmerica president Wayne Rainey, talking about how this class was specifically created for American V-twin baggers. While you might think and hope that further details would be given a little further into reading this announcement, I'm here to tell you that no such details are spelled out just yet.

RideApart has reached out to MotoAmerica for clarification on what types of manufacturers will be allowed to compete. Will it remain restricted to American V-twins, like perhaps S&S Cycle or Buell? Or will international manufacturers that meet certain technical requirements be allowed to compete, as well?

At the time of writing, we have not received answers to our questions, but we'll be sure to report back if and when we do. The statement as released is a bit vaguer than I think most people would like, although it does at least allay the fears that the series is going away entirely. Maybe that's why MotoAmerica wanted to get it out there ASAP, just to make sure that people know there will be new racing to look forward to in the class in 2027.

In any case, as further details become available, we'll be sure to talk about them. What would you like to see out of an expanded KotB in 2027? Let us know in the comments.

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