MotoGP: Top 6 American riders of all time

#5 Kenny Roberts Jr.

Following the footsteps of his legendary father, Kenny Roberts Jr. also made a mark in Motorsport especially MotoGP. 10 years after the retirement of his father, Kenny Roberts Sr., Roberts Jr. made his MotoGP debut in 1993.

He was a member of Team Marlboro Yamaha and raced for the team in the 250cc class until the end of the 1995 season. In 1996, he switched over to the 500cc class and had a disappointing season resulting in Yamaha deciding not to renew his contract.

In 1997, he signed up for for the eponymous Team Roberts founded by his father. A disappointing couple of seasons followed where he was restricted to being a fringe rider in MotoGP. Racing for Team Suzuki in 1999 proved to be the watershed moment in his career.

He challenged multiple world champion Mick Doohan and regularly beat him. He eventually finished runner-up to Doohan's teammate Alex Criville in the title race. The 2000 season saw Roberts Jr battle it out with a young Valentino Rossi. With 4 wins and 5 podium finishes in 16 races, Roberts Jr. won the MotoGP 500cc Championship.

From 2001 onward, Team Suzuki saw a dip in their fortunes much to Robert's dismay. This gave a leg up to their rivals Honda and Yamaha who would go on to dominate the sport. Roberts Jr. returned to Team Roberts in 2005 and would remain with the team until his retirement in 2007.

In his 14-year MotoGP career, Roberts Jr. won 8 races from 185 starts and stood on the podium 22 times.