Dodge Motorsports/Sycuan/Hart & Huntington Kawasaki Team Manager Kenny Watson stated that Ivan Tedesco is going to go back on the mend after giving the New Orleans SX a shot, but failing to qualify for the main event.

 

"Bottom line is, Ivan was off the bike for 10 weeks and only rode five days before New Orleans," says Watson. "He thought he was ready, but he wasn't. He stalled in the sand in his heat race because his arms were so pumped, he couldn't even pull the clutch in. And he wasn't even trying to pass Millsaps in the LCQ, he just got wrist lock and made a mistake. He doesn't think it's safe for him or for other riders to do that again. We're going to let him heal up and he can come back whenever he feels ready. If he rides this week and feels good, he could still even ride Seattle, but if not we will se what happens for Salt Lake and Las Vegas."

 

In the meantime, H&H will pick up Lites East rider (and 2011 and 2012 AMA Arenacross Champ) Tyler Bowers to ride the SX Class at the last three races alongside Kyle Regal. All four original 2012 H&H riders, Tedesco, Josh Hill, Josh Hansen and Kyle Partridge, are out at the moment. It has been that kind of year!

 

Irvine, Calif. (February 27, 2012) – An exciting AMA Arenacross series came to a close on Saturday night at Target Center in Minneapolis, Minn., where Babbitt’s Monster Energy Amsoil Kawasaki’s Tyler Bowers was crowned 2012 AMA Arenacross Champion. Although Bowers only needed to make the main event to earn his second-consecutive title, he wanted to go out on top. He was fastest in qualifying aboard his KX™250F, won his heat race, won the dash for cash, and finished second in the main. Kawasaki privateer Zach Ames rode to his best performance of the season taking the main event win. Rounding out the podium was Babbitt’s Monster Energy Amsoil Kawasaki’s Chad Johnson completing a Kawasaki sweep to finish off the series third in the points.

 

Monster Energy Under the Tent

 

Avoiding Disaster

 

Coming into the final round, Bowers had stacked up an astonishing 12 main event wins, four times as many as his closest competitor. In order to be crowned champion, Bowers needed to simply qualify for the main event. He started off the night by being fastest in qualifying and took control of his heat race. Shortly after taking over the lead, Bowers noticed he had punctured his rear tire. Knowing he couldn’t risk not transferring to the main, he soldiered on to take the win. In the Dash for Cash, he was sitting third until the last corner when the leaders collided and allowed Bowers to sneak by for the win.

 

“I was really excited about being fastest in practice and getting into a good heat race,” said Bowers. “I came off the start about third and made a quick pass to get in behind Johnson, who was leading. He made a mistake in the whoops and I was able to get by. The track was really rocky and next lap I nailed a big rock in the whoop section and got a flat rear tire. I couldn’t believe it and started worrying about having to go to the LCQ. I couldn’t risk not qualifying and throwing away the title so I just rode a wide bike and was able to stay out front.”

 

Back-to-Back Championships

 

Knowing the championship was almost in the bag, Bowers still wanted to grab one last podium to cap off the season. Anxious to get the main underway, Bowers ended up coming out of the first turn in third and began hounding the leaders. The track didn’t offer many passing spots so Bowers was forced to wait for a mistake, but the opportunity never arose. He would take second on the night to claim his second-consecutive AMA Arenacross Championship.

 

“Before the gate dropped for the main, the rider beside me jumped the gate and when he took off, I took off,” said Bowers. “Luckily, the gate dropped just as I got on the gas and I came around third. It was hard to make a move so I got into second and waited for Zach (Ames) to make a mistake, but he rode a great race. It’s so awesome to take the title. I thought last year was tough coming back from two broken legs, but this season has been so hectic, it really means a lot to really earn the title. Everybody over at Babbitt’s Monster Energy Amsoil Kawasaki has been extraordinary. It’s been a great year.”

 

End on a High Note

 

Johnson had third place in the championship on lock coming into the last round, but wanted to finish off strong. His night started off with a holeshot in his heat race and he was the only rider tripling into one of the rhythm sections. A small mistake would drop him to second where he stayed close on the heels of his teammate. In the main event, Johnson ripped another holeshot on his KX250F and battled for the lead for the first few laps. He made a small mistake and dropped back, but finished strong with a close third.

 

“It was a great way to finish the series,” said Johnson. “I holeshotted the main event, but slid out coming into the whoops and lost my drive which dropped me to third. After five or six laps I started catching back up, but couldn’t find a spot to make a move. I had great season and couldn’t have done it without the support of the Babbitt’s Monster Energy Amsoil Kawasaki team.”

 

Kawasaki Proof

 

Kawasaki dominated the 2012 AMA Arenacross series not only in the Arenacross class, where Kawasaki won 15 out of 19 main events, but Kawasaki privateers Michael McDade and Chad Cook also won the Arenacross Lites East and Lites West, respectively. This marks Babbitt’s Monster Energy Amsoil Kawaski’s third consecutive arenacross championship. In the Arenacross class, Ames has continued to improve and show impressive speed on his privateer Kawasaki. This season he has been riding and training with Bowers in California and his hard work finally paid off, taking the win at Target Center. Ames, Bowers, and Johnson finished 1-2-3 making for an all-Kawasaki podium to end a successful Arenacross series.

 

Results

 

AMA Arenacross Series

Target Center – Minneapolis, Minn.

February 25, 2012

 

Arenacross Class Results

1. ZACH AMES, PROSPECT, OHIO, KAWASAKI

2. TYLER BOWERS, DANVILLE, KY., BABBITT’S MONSTER ENERGY AMSOIL KAWASAKI

3. CHAD JOHNSON, RHINELANDER, WIS., BABBITT’S MONSTER ENERGY AMSOIL KAWASAKI

4. Travis Sewell, Westville, IN, KTM

5. Jeff Gibson, Blacklick, Ohio, Honda

6. Michael Willard, Newark, Ohio, KTM

7. Nathan Skaggs, Chillicothe, Ohio, Honda

8. Cory Green, Nowata, Okla., Suzuki

9. Cole Siebler, Emmett, Idaho, Honda

10. Michael McDade, Edinburg, Pa., KTM

 

Arenacross Class Points

1. TYLER BOWERS, DANVILLE, KY., BABBITT’S MONSTER ENERGY AMSOIL KAWASAKI, 424

2. Jeff Gibson, Blacklick, Ohio, Honda, 394

3. CHAD JOHNSON, RHINELANDER, WIS., BABBITT’S MONSTER ENERGY AMSOIL KAWASAKI, 338

4. ZACH AMES, PROSPECT, OHIO, KAWASAKI, 297

5. Kelly Smith, Ludington, Mich., KTM, 285

6. Nathan Skaggs, Chillicothe, Ohio, Honda, 259

7. Willy Browning, Pleasantville, Ohio, KTM, 206

8. Travis Sewell, Westville, Ind., KTM, 191

9. Michael Willard, Newark, Ohio, KT, 176

10. Cory Green, Nowata, Okla., Suzuki, 152

MINNEAPOLIS (February 25, 2012) – The 12^th and final round of the 2012 AMA Arenacross Series was a night of champions on Saturday as both Arenacross Class and Western Regional Arenacross Lites Class title winners were crowned inside the Target Center. After claiming 12 main event wins this season, Babbitt’s Monster Energy/AMSOIL Kawasaki presented by Maxxis’ Tyler Bowers, of Danville, Ky., secured back-to-back premier class titles after a strong runner-up effort. For the second straight season, HOK Kawasaki’s Chad Cook, of Oklahoma City, Okla., took home the Western Regional Arenacross Lites Class crown following a podium finish of his own.

 

Babbitt’s Monster Energy/AMSOIL Kawasaki’s Chad Johnson, of Rhinelander, Wis., grabbed the holeshot in the 25-lap Arenacross Class Main Event, with Bella’s Cupcakes/Club MX Kawasaki’s Zach Ames, of Prospect, Ohio, and Bowers in tow. Not long after, Ames slipped past Johnson for the lead, which would prove to be the winning pass.

 

Johnson looked to keep Ames in his sights, but Bowers took over the runner-up spot in the whoops shortly thereafter. Once in second, Bowers pursued Ames relentlessly, maintaining a gap of less than a second throughout the entire main event. In the end, the eventual champion wasn’t able to make the pass, but still secured the title with his second-place finish.

 

Ames’ victory was his first of 2012 and also made him the fifth different winner in the Arenacross Class this season. Johnson followed Ames and Bowers across the finish to give Kawasaki a 1-2-3 sweep of the podium.

 

FMF Power/Poynt TUF Honda’s Jeff Gibson, of Blacklick, Ohio, entered the evening with a chance at stealing the Arenacross Class title from Bowers, but ultimately settled for a fifth-place finish.

 

For the third straight main event, BNTQ.Net/Tuf Honda Racing’s Kevin Markwardt, of Freeport, Ill., grabbed the early lead in the 18-lap Arenacoss Lites Class. He was followed by Reed and Reese KTM’s Michael McDade, of Edinburg, Pa., and Team Faith KTM’s Kevin Johnson, of Spring, Texas.

 

Coming into the evening, Markwardt sat just one point out of the championship lead, but it wouldn’t be long before Cook began his charge through the field. By Lap 5, Cook had moved into third and proceeded to move his way into second on the following lap.

 

With Markwardt in his sights, Cook pushed to close in on his rival, while McDade followed in third. At the halfway point, Markward experienced misfortune and dropped out of podium contention, ultimately losing the championship in the process. From there, Cook, Johnson, and McDade engaged in a heated battle for the win.

 

By the conclusion of the 18 laps, both Johnson and McDade had overcome Cook, who ultimately fell to third. Johnson held on to take his fifth Arenacross Lites Class win of the 2012 season.

 

With Markwardt falling to eighth by the end of the race, Cook secured the title by eight points.

 

In the final Dash for Cash of the season, Bowers helped cap off his championship-winning season with a victory in the four-lap sprint race, but it wasnt without some luck. On the final lap, Ames and Gibson came together while battling for the win, allowing Bowers to assume the lead after both riders wenr down.

Arenacross Class Results (Minneapolis)

1.       Zach Ames, Prospect, Ohio, Kawasaki

2.       Tyler Bowers, Danville, Ky., Kawasaki

3.       Chad Johnson, Rhinelander, Wis., Kawasaki

4.       Travis Sewell, Westville, Ind., KTM

5.       Jeff Gibson, Blacklick, Ohio, Honda

6.       Michael Willard, Newark, Ohio, KTM

7.       Nathan Skaggs, Chillicothe, Ohio, Honda

8.       Cory Green, Nowata, Okla., Suzuki

9.       Cole Siebler, Emmett, Idaho, Honda

10.    Michael McDade, Edinburg, Pa., KTM

 

Arenacross Lites Class Results (Minneapolis)

1.       Kevin Johnson, Spring, Texas, KTM

2.       Michael McDade, Edinburg, Pa, KTM

3.       Chad Cook, Oklahoma City, Okla., Kawasaki

4.       Scott Zont, Algonquin, Ill., Honda

5.       Steven Mages, Sardinia, Ohio, Kawasaki

6.       Maxx Malatia, Itasca, Ill., Honda

7.       Tanner Moore, Auburn, Kan., KTM

8.       Kevin Markwardt, Freeport, Ill., Honda

9.       Kyle White, Freeport, Ill., Honda

10.    Dave Ginolfi, Lake Hopatcong, N.J., KTM

 

Arenacross Class Points (After Race 19 of 19)

1.       Tyler Bowers, Danville, Ky., Kawasaki (12 wins) – 424

2.       Jeff Gibson, Blacklick, Ohio, Honda (3 wins) – 394

3.       Chad Johnson, Rhinelander, Wis., Kawasaki (2 wins) – 338

4.       Zach Ames, Prospect, Ohio, Kawasaki (1 win) – 297

5.       Kelly Smith, Ludington, Mich., KTM (1 win) – 285

6.       Nathan Skaggs, Chillicothe, Ohio, Honda – 259

7.       Willy Browning, Pleasantville, Ohio, KTM – 206

8.       Travis Sewell, Westville, Ind., KTM – 191

9.       Michael Willard, Newark, Ohio, KTM – 176

10.    Cory Green, Nowata, Okla., Suzuki – 152

 

Western Regional Arenacross Lites Class Points (After Race 9 of 9)

1.       Chad Cook, Oklahoma City, Okla., Kawasaki – 131

2.       Kevin Markwardt, Freeport, Ill., Honda – 123

3.       Tanner Moore, Auburn, Kan., KTM – 96

4.       Cody Church, Grand Junction, Colo., Kawasaki – 57

5.       Jake Locks, Dixon, Calif., KTM – 47

6.       Tiger Lacy, Beaverton, Ore., Kawasaki – 37

7.       Chris Proscelle, Dulzura, Calif., Honda – 36

8.       Patrick Massie, Washington Court House, Ohio, Honda – 35

9.       Brandon Marley, McEwen, Tenn., KTM – 31

10.    Nick Myers, Collinsville, Texas, Kawasaki – 22

 

For more information on the AMA Arenacross Series, log on to www.Arenacross.com. For all media requests, please contact Brandon Short brandon@nextlevelsportsinc.com or 949-365-5750.

 

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