AMA: Points leader Mladin faces his closest competitor, Tommy Hayden, who returns for the first time this year

Tyler Hopper
AllAboutBikes.com Staff Writer

AMA Pro National Guard American Superbike presented by Parts Unlimited and AMA Pro Daytona SportBike presented by AMSOIL will compete at Mazda Raceway Laguna Seca this Independence Day weekend. But it’s a very special weekend for motorcycle racing fans; AMA Pro Racing will share the spotlight with MotoGP, bringing about the most excitement possible for stateside race fans.

Will it be that Number 7 again? The Rockstar/Makita Yoshimura Suzuki GSX-R1000 rider, Mat Mladin, is the current AMA Superbike points leader, and as always, he’s expected to put on one hell of a race. Mladin’s team-mate and closest competitor, Tommy Hayden, will races, for the first time this year, in the same event as his brothers Nicky and Roger Hayden. 

Ben Bostrom, Yamaha Motor Corp. USA R1 rider, sits in third in championship rankings coming into this weekend. Bostrom moved into third place after a strong run of four podium finishes in the last six races. His highlight was a second-place finish in race 2 at Infineon, but this week Bostrom heads to his native state of California with 187 points.

The weekend of the 4th at Laguna Seca is sure to be one great show for fans and riders alike. It’s not everyday that greats like Mat Mladin, Tommy Hayden, Valentino Rossi, Colin Edwards, Casey Stoner and Neil Hodgson grace the same track the same day, in front of the same crowd.