When Indian announced its return to National-level flat track racing and then demonstrated it commitment by hiring away the top three finishers in the 2016 American Flat Track Series to become part of its factory Indian Wrecking Crew, no serious flat track fan doubted that the revitalized, Polaris-owned company would be a serious contender in its first year with a factory race team.
But it’s probably safe to say that none of those same pundits would ever have thought the that even in the hands of the talented trio, which represents the last five AMA Grand National Championships, would come out and win the first four races of the 2017 American Flat Track Series. None of the interlopers to threaten dominance to the mighty Harley-Davidson brand in a sport that it practically invented were ever able to do that in their first season. Not Triumph. Not BSA. Not Yamaha. And not Yamaha. Oh sure, all of them got in their licks, and championship titles were won on brands other than Harley-Davidson, but only after proverbial “dues were paid.”
Then along comes Indian with its new FTR750, and the Swissauto-designed engine is laying waste to the competition. Already, Indian has a race win in all four of the disciplines that make up the American Flat Track Series, TT, Short Track, Half Mile and Mile. Indian rider Bryan Smith capped off Indian’s “cycle” by winning the Phoenix Mile last weekend.
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