Ben Bostrom

Ben Bostrom raced for the official Ducati team for three years between 2000 and 2002, but he definitely left a mark in the hearts of all Ducatisti all over the world, thanks to his all-American 'easy' character and his good looks as well as his spectacular riding style.
The American, born in 1974, made a name for himself in American national racing, winning first on dirt tracks and then moving to circuit racing in 1995, and three years later he captured the AMA Superbike national championship.

In 1999, Bostrom, aboard a Ducati and still riding in the AMA, won as a wild-card one WSBK race in the American round of the World Superbike Championship and finished second in another, earning him the attention of Ducati's top management in Bologna.

Racing full-time in World Superbike on an official Ducati, he had a learning year in 2000 while becoming familiar with new circuits, rivals, bikes and challenges. Then, in 2001, he unexpectedly won six races, including five in a row on an official L&M Ducati, becoming a serious title contender as the championship approached the break in midsummer. However, he was unable to maintain that spectacular form during the final part and eventually finished third overall.

With Bayliss and Edwards dominating in 2002, Bostrom did not manage o win a single race, ending the season in fifth place overall and abandoning the production-derivative motorcycle championship to return to the U.S.

Another year in WSBK on a private Ducati in 2005 did not prove to be very satisfactory, and Bostrom's last stint with Ducati was as Neil Hodgson's teammate for the 2006 AMA Superbike, in which he finished ninth overall, before Ducati withdrew from the AMA at the end of the year.
His brother, Eric Bostrom, was also a professional motorcycle racer and raced in the AMA for Ducati in 2004 and 2005.