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.

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

In , 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. He successfully defended the crown in , with 3 wins, 7 other podiums, and 4 poles. He took three more wins en route to sixth overall in , 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.

Merkel was inducted into the AMA Motorcycle Hall of Fame in 2001.

Merkel was inducted into the Motorsports Hall of Fame of America in 2018.

Career statistics Superbike World Championship Races by year Year Make 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 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 GBR4 GBR2 HUN1 HUN5 GER17 GERRet AUTRet AUT8 JPN2 JPN11 FRA6 FRAC POR4 POR5 AUS4 AUS3 NZL1 NZL5 1st 99 1989 Honda GBR4 GBR6 HUN1 HUN1 CAN1 CAN3 USA4 USA3 AUT11 AUT3 FRA8 FRA4 JPN16 JPN12 GER8 GER4 ITA2 ITA2 AUS11 AUS5 NZL3 NZL3 1st 272 1990 Honda SPA2 SPA3 GBR1 GBR3 HUN1 HUN6 GER1 GER3 CAN5 CAN10 USA7 USA10 AUT7 AUT4 JPN JPN FRA FRA ITARet ITA5 MAL MAL AUS AUS NZL NZL 6th 197 1991 Honda GBRRet GBRRet SPARet SPARet CAN CAN USA6 USA4 AUT8 AUT8 SMR9 SMR7 SWE8 SWE6 JPN12 JPN9 MAL12 MAL9 GERRet GERRet FRA3 FRA10 ITA8 ITARet AUS AUS 8th 124 1992 Yamaha SPA SPA GBR GBR GER GER BEL BEL SPA17 SPARet AUT9 AUT10 ITARet ITARet MAL11 MAL5 JPN26 JPN13 NED13 NEDRet ITARet ITARet AUS10 AUS12 NZL6 NZL6 13th 65 1993 Yamaha IRL7 IRL7 GERRet GER12 SPA9 SPA12 11th 91,5 Ducati SMR10 SMR27 AUT11 AUT2 CZERet CZE5 SWE12 SWERet MAL9 MALRet JPNRet JPNRet NED11 NEDRet ITA ITA GBR GBR POR11 POR9

Grand Prix motorcycle racing 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 1989 500cc Honda JPN AUS USA SPA NATRet GER AUT YUG NED BEL FRARet GBR11 SWE CZE BRA 36th 5

Suzuka 8 Hours results Year Team Co-Rider Bike Pos 1984 Honda America Fred Merkel Mike Baldwin Honda RVF750 RC45 1st