It’s back, AMA Superbike, or American Superbike, or AMA Pro Road Racing… Whatever the domestic U.S. professional Superbike racing series is called nowadays – it’s back. The racing kicks off this week at the famed Daytona International Speedway, highlighted by the grand daddy of them all, the historic Daytona 200 on March 5th. Here’s a basic look at what to expect for the 2010 AMA Pro Racing season.

AMA Pro National Guard American Superbike

What’s different in the American Superbike series? Well, there’s no Mat Mladin, for one, two, three and, well… basically, we could stop the preview here. The AMA might even consider renaming American Superbike yet again to The Series Formerly Featuring Mat Mladin (and, yes, for now we’re refusing to acknowledge that the AMA might have slightly changed the series title anyway with the funkier SuperBike spelling on its latest press material…)

The “premier” American series (we use air quotes because there seem to be two premier series in AMA Pro Racing: Daytona SportBike, which the DMG ownership has pushed since day 1, and American Superbike, which everyone wants as the premier class and the AMA has begrudgingly obliged) will be without its dominator for the first time in a decade. The Australian claimed his seventh AMA title last season and stomped off the American stage in disgust at the direction the series went under its new DMG ownership. Mladin has since retired to running his business interests in Australia, and taken to Twittering vitriolic posts about former racing colleagues.

The American Superbikes will again not be featured in the Daytona 200, but unlike seasons past the big bikes will run a pair of races, unlike the traditional single race opener. The big question for 2010 in Superbike is who will step in to fill the vacuum created by Mladin, not to mention the absence of Ben Spies a year prior? Josh Hayes casts himself as the leading candidate by virtue of his seven 2009 wins. It’s a fantastic reversal for Hayes, who for years couldn’t even buy himself a factory Superbike ride in spite of dominating support classes. Now the Mississippi native enters the season a presumptive title favorite aboard the Graves Yamaha, in what has to be one of the biggest reversals the series has seen in the past decade.

The second biggest story of ’10, after the Mladin exodus, is the return of John Hopkins. The American’s career has careened in recent years from a factory MotoGP ride, to a World Superbike satellite spot, and now back where it began, in the AMA racing for the M4 Monster Suzuki squad. Hopper brings his immense talent (as well as coveted Monster Energy sponsorship dollars) to the American series in hopes of resurrecting a career that has flagged, primarily from a string of injuries.

Ben Bostrom, winner of the ‘09 Daytona 200, returns to contest the Superbike series aboard a Yamaha R1 once again. Having competed last season for the Yamaha factory squad, Bostrom’s ’10 ride will be under the Pat Clark Motorsports awning, riding a factory R1 leased from Yamaha and sponsored by the Palms Casino. As for the other Bostrom, Eric, he has thus far not returned from his semi-retirement after the ‘08 season. (Anyone know if he’s still framing in Brazil?)

The Yoshimura Rockstar Makita Suzuki team lost Mladin, and will now depend on Tommy Hayden and Blake Young to ensure the Yosh championship dominance continues unabated. Those are mighty big shoes to fill, but Hayden enters the 2010 season after a third-place overall last year. Young was sixth overall in 2009, despite missing several races due to a nasty crash in Alabama.

The leading satellite Suzuki squad, Michael Jordan Motorsports, will return with Aaron Yates and Jake Zemke. Georgian Yates will continue on the Jordan-branded bike on which he managed seventh in the American Superbike class in ‘09, with six podium finishes, and figures to be a regular podium and race-win contender in ‘10. Teaming up with Yates is Zemke, who returns to the liter-bike class aboard the National Guard-sponsored Suzuki, after running an Erion Honda CBR600RR in Daytona SportBike last year. Another satellite GSX-R pilot will be Chris Ulrich aboard the Roadracingworld.com Suzuki.

In the Ducati camp Larry Pegram will campaign his own 1098R under the Foremost Insurance/Pegram Racing banner. Pegram (the subject of many of Mladin’s more salacious tweets) managed fourth in the 2009 championship, taking three wins on the Italian machine.

No big factory names are running for Honda in Superbike, as the factory has pulled all support for 2010. The closest will be Jake Holden, who will ride the #59 CBR for his self-titled Holden Racing Honda. The Washington native will also compete in the Daytona 200 aboard a Ducshop Racing Ducati 848. Similar holds true for Kawasaki, as they too will not support either AMA road racing class this year, and no word of any privateer teams has surfaced at this point.

Daytona 200 – Daytona SportBike

For the second consecutive year, the Daytona 200 will run under the lights as a night race. The 57-lap affair will feature, once again, the Daytona SportBike class. Marred with various controversies in recent years, including disqualifications, botched starts and more than one pace car incident, fans can always expect the unexpected when it comes to the 200.

Defending SportBike champion, Danny Eslick will compete aboard the GEICO Powersports RMR Suzuki. Eslick, of course, claimed the ’09 title aboard the RMR Buell 1125R, itself a controversial bike with its near double displacement advantage. However, the racing controversy was supplanted by yet a bigger one, when Harley-Davidson nuked Buell Motorcycles last fall. Erik Buell has since created Erik Buell Racing to support any 1125Rs running in the AMA series, but now Eslick will ride a Suzuki – with the number 1 plate across the front no less. The oddity of Suzuki running a number-1 plate for a title it didn’t win is further compounded by the news that the Japanese marque will not import any 2010 street models. So to recap: An ’09 Suzuki will defend a title won by a now-non-existent American brand for the 2010 championship.

Oh what a strange state of affairs the motorcycle world is in!

It looks like the SportBike class will be a battle between Suzuki, Yamaha and Ducati. Alongside Eslick, the other major Suzuki GSX-R600 entries include M4 Monster rider Martin Cardenas (who was a consistent front-runner in 2009) and Corey West for the Vesrah Suzuki team, which makes the fulltime switch from WERA Endurance racing to the AMA Series. Geoff May will also ride his own GMR (Geoff May Racing) privateer Suzuki in select rounds.

Leading the Yamaha DSB charge are rising stars Josh Herrin and Tommy Aquino. Herrin in particular figures to be a challenger for the title, finishing second in last year’s championship, ending the season with four-straight wins, and contending for the ’09 Daytona 200 victory (Bostrom just snuck out the win). Meanwhile, Melissa Paris will also compete with Yamaha, looking to improve on her 21st-place result in last year’s Daytona 200 – the best finish for a female rider in the event. She won't be the only girl this year as teen phenom Elena Myers is scheduled to compete on a Team Hammer/M4 Monster supported Suzuki GSX-R600 with help from the RMR squad as well. It will be the professional debut of the 16-year old who has been honing her skills most recently in ASRA Superbike.

Ducati riders at Daytona include SunTrust Moto-GT1 champion Mark Crozier, who will ride a DNA Energy Drink Ducati 848, with the aforementioned Jake Holden competing in a one-off Daytona 200 ride. Yet another Ducati competitor will be former 200 winner Steve Rapp (2007), who will ride the aboard a Team Latus Motors Racing 848 for the entire AMA season.

As for the Buell 1125R. The major competitors aboard the Buell last year, Eslick, Michael Barnes, Corey West, are either riding for different marques this year, or unconfirmed for 2010. However, as our Erik Buell Interview made clear, the American designer wants very much to keep the Buell name alive in racing for 2010, which Shawn Higbee will have to do in the 200 for the privateer James Gang Racing team. The effort came together in the 11th hour and will put the former Buell development rider on a nearly stock 1125R for the 200.

Missing in Action

The other big story for 2010 are the names of those riders who will not be racing in the AMA series. Some left for World Superbike, like American Roger Hayden, with fellow countryman Jason DiSalvo and Welch rider Chaz Davies campaigning in World Supersport. Longtime AMA competitor and two-time Supersport champion Jamie Hacking is without a ride, the 38-year-old’s racing future uncertain (though the AMA Pro Road Racing site optimistically states on Hackings bio page that he “may compete in select rounds of AMA Pro competition.”).