Freddie Spencer’s AMA Superbike Comeback (1990)

• Larry Lawrence
Spencer talking with his bike builder Mike Velasco on his return to AMA Superbike racing in 1990. Freddie showed up with much fanfare to the Miami Street Race in the middle of the 1990 season. He’d left GP racing the year before and from all reports seemed to be retired from the sport. But then he showed up to Miami racing for Two Brothers Honda. It marked his first appearance in an AMA Superbike race in five years. (Not counting his 1987 Daytona returned that ended early with a crash, injury and a DNS). The return it seems, was prompted by a lucrative offer of show money for Spencer to race by the Miami promoter. Freddie qualified ninth in his Heat race and was running 15th when the transmission on his Honda RC30 reportedly went out. I’m not sure what prompted Freddie to keep racing the rest of that season. Maybe he didn’t want to go out with such a unimpressive return. He came back and raced a few more rounds that year and earned a decent result of 6th at Topeka. Freddie had the last laugh though. He came back and won the Miami Street Race the very next year. (Colin Fraser photo) 
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