Eric Bostrom has signed to ride with Kawasaki once again in the 2002 season in the AMA Superbike series. He will not race in 600 Supersport — the series in which he is now current champion.
Clearly, there was intense interest at the World championship level in Bostrom. Why would Bostrom stay in the United States, and stay with Kawasaki to race one of the less competitive superbikes? Kawasaki has apparently decided not to replace the ZX-7R, which is now the oldest machine in the pits. Bostrom’s riding ability has made the bike competitive, but just barely.
Bostrom’s decision may very well relate to a commitment by Kawasaki to take Bostrom to the GP championship in 2004 — the year Kawasaki will debut its four-stroke GP machine. After all, Kawasaki and many other manufacturers are far less interested in World superbike racing at this point. Content to put all of its four-stroke eggs in one basket (the GP basket), Kawasaki is scaling back its effort in WSB, and may completely leave the series before too long (like Yamaha did). Kawasaki loves Bostrom’s talent and his representation of the company, and he would be the perfect candidate to race the exotic four-stroke in 2004.
