Motorsports Hall of Fame. Watch the video below.
Ricky Orlando brings over 25 years of motorcycle competition with him to the RMK/Fier Racing Team. He began in 1975 doing local races in Florida before he moved to Colorado in 1976. From 1976 to 1982 he campaigned the local Mountain Roadracing Association circuit, gaining the #1 Championship in 1982 From 1983 to 1988 Ricky not only raced locally, but also traveled the national and international race circuits In that time he had numerous top ten finishes at the prestigious Daytona 200 and earned the honor of being voted the “Top Privateer”(non-factory sponsored) rider in the country His racing also took him to the Suzuka 8-hour World Championship in Japan several times and to the Trans-Atlantic Match Races in England. As a racer with the MRA, he earned at least one class championship every year from 1986-1998.
The 1994 through 1997 seasons were a continuation of Ricky’s success During this time span, Ricky accumulated five more class championships with the MRA, a number of top fifteen finishes at the Daytona 200 and Macau Grand Prix and three top ten finishes in AMA 750 Supersport. He finished the 1997 MRA season with a number 3 plate and dominated the Heavyweight Supersport class, winning seven of ten races.
In 1998, Ricky campaigned a new Muzzy Raptor Superbike. The season began with an impressive 15th place finish at the Daytona 200. During the season, Ricky attended a number of AMA Superbike Series national events, Formula USA and World Superbike at Laguna Seca. With Formula USA, Ricky had 5th and 8th place finishes. In World Superbike, he brought home a respectable 13th place finish. With the MRA, Ricky ended up in 2nd place in Heavyweight Superbike winning five of ten races and was again among the top five in “Race of the Rockies”. Ricky is the only racer in the country to finish the season with championship points in 4 different series: MRA, Formula USA, AMA Superbike, and World Superbike In 1999, aboard a Team Green ZX-9, Ricky rode to a 9th place finish in the Formula Xtreme class at Pikes Peak International Raceway. Locally he ended the season in 2nd place in Open Superbike and 5th place in the premier class, “Race of the Rockies”.
He had a very successful 2000 race season, finishing 2nd in Open Superbike and 3rd in the “Race of the Rockies”, the premier class of Colorado roadracing. At the AMA national level a 13th place finish in the Daytona 200, 12th place at Laguna Seca in the Formula Xtreme event At Pikes Peak National, Ricky finished 11th He also competed at Daytona during the Formula USA in March, finishing 12th and 13th.
2001 was a fantasy year for Ricky as the wins were plentiful, earning him the #1 plate in Colorado. He also earned class championships in Race of the Rockies, Open Superbike and Open Supersport. He took the Open Supersport Championship with 10 of 10 wins a new track record topped off the 2001 MRA race season. He also finished in the top 15 at Daytona and Pikes Peak in the AMA Superbike and Formula Extreme Classes. Ricky kicked off the 2002 race season with an outstanding tenth place finish at the Daytona 200. At home, he impressed the local fans with an eighth place finish during the AMA Superbike round at Pikes Peak. The local MRA series saw Ricky on the podium at every round of the Race of the Rockies, breaking the track record at Second Creek Raceway and ending the year with a second place in the series.
In 2003, the AMA changed rules to allow 1000cc superbikes and Ricky results at Daytona suffered with him riding a 750. A fifteenth place was the outcome. He also competed in the BMW Boxer Cup opening round and finished fourteenth. Back on a 1000 for the Pikes Peak AMA Superbike round, the results were much better with Ricky being the first privateer across the finish line in eleventh place. At Laguna Seca, during the World Superbike weekend, he finished nineteenth in the AMA Superbike race. In Colorado, the highlights of the year included a new track record at Pikes Peak Raceway, a podium finish at every race and recapturing the number one plate.
Ricky kicked off the 2004 season with a career best, a 6th place finish in the Daytona 200. Competing in the BMW Boxer Cup, he placed 12th. Other Superbike results included a 9th place aboard a Kawasaki ZX-10 in Pikes Peak, CO. At the local level in Colorado, he was consistently finishing on the podium in the Open Superbike and the Race of the Rockies classes, resulting in a 3rd place in both championships.
New rules for the 2005 Daytona 200 saw 600cc bikes take to the banking. With Ricky aboard a Fier/RMK Kawasaki ZX-6, the team fought through teething problems in qualifying to run into the top ten during the closing laps, although a gasket failure prevented the team from finishing the race anyway. The team also entered AMA Formula Extreme and Supersport events at Fontana, Pikes Peak and Laguna Seca. A 12th place at the home track was a welcome highlight for the team. Running select MRA rounds in Colorado saw Ricky winning two races and consistently standing on the box for the Race of the Rockies and 600 Superbike. Competing in half of the local races resulted in a top ten finishes in both classes.