Blake Young

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Born in Madison, Wisconsin, Blake Young was exposed to motorcycles and racing at an early age. His father owned a motorcycle dealership which he used to help support young riders at the local dirt and road racing tracks. Blake and his older brother Ben gradually became better with each passing year, and by the time Blake was 14 he stepped into the shoes of a full-time road racer. Just two years later he officially entered the AMA Pro Road Racing Series as a member of Team KWS riding a Suzuki GSX-R600.
 
Young spent his first years as a pro racer learning the ropes in Superstock and SuperSport, as well as the Formula Xtreme series. In 2005 he finished 15th overall in the Superstock Championship. Over the next two years Young matured as a racer, nabbing the occasional top-10 result in Formula Xtreme and SuperSport. In 2008 Young made his debut in the American SuperBike Championship with M4 Emgo Suzuki where he finished ninth in the opening round at Barber Motorsports Park.

That same year proved a major success for Young in SuperSport as he claimed his first victory on the way to a fourth-place finish in the 2008 SuperSport Championship. In 2009 Young moved to a full-time ride in American SuperBike with Rockstar Makita Suzuki. In his rookie campaign Young seized four podium finishes – three of which were second-place results. He finished sixth overall after missing a round due to a hand injury, but returned strong in 2010. This time Young posted three wins and two more podiums, once again taking sixth overall in the championship. Young then went on to have the best season of his career in 2011 while competing with rival Josh Hayes for the title. After snagging seven wins and another eight podiums, Young came just five points shy of Hayes in the series and finished second overall.
 
In 2012 Young will return with Rockstar Suzuki aboard their Yoshimura-prepared GSX-R1000.