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Monster Energy
Kawasaki’s Creamer Claims Top-Five Finish in
Pennsylvania
Irvine, Calif. – Monster Energy Kawasaki’s
Josh Creamer earned his fifth top-five finish of
the season with a 4-7 as the AMA ATV Motocross
Championship Series returned to Pleasure Valley
Raceway. Teammate Chad Wienen went 20-6 for 13th
overall. On the championship front, Kawasaki’s
young gun Cody Gibson clinched the Pro Am
Production class with two races left on the
schedule. Gibson took an outstanding lead in
both motos to earn his sixth win of the season,
while Joel Hetrick and Bobby Ross rounded out
the podium as Kawasaki took the top three spots
in the class.
What Could Have Been
Creamer made a great charge
in the first moto after getting a decent start
and working his way nearly to a podium spot, but
settled for fourth. In the second moto, he got a
similar smart, but worked his way up quicker to
battle with the front-runners. The top four
riders were switching positions and on the last
corner on the way to the checkered flag, Creamer
got tangled with another rider and ended up
finishing seventh.
“I really couldn’t get into the groove right
away,” said Creamer. “In the first moto, I
almost had third and was really motivated to go
out and finish on the overall podium. It looked
like I was in position to do that, but I got
brake checked going up to the finish line and
got stuck in Joe (Byrd)’s bumper. I was able to
get unstuck and finish seventh.
Never Give Up
Wienen made the most of the cards
he was dealt at Pleasure Valley. In the first
moto, a first turn crash resulted in a broken
kill switch and a 20th place finish. In the
second moto, he had the furthest outside gate
pick, but wasn’t going to give up. He charged
hard through the pack after starting next to
last to finish sixth.
“It was a tough weekend to go in ahead in the
points and have a bad moto,” said Wienen. “It’s
not over yet. There are still two important
races left and a bad race or moto can happen to
anyone. I’ve moved on and not going to let it
get me down, but rather it is really motivating.
I almost wish we had a race this coming weekend
because I’m ready to go out and win.”
Still Some Time Left
With the points lead being
relinquished in Pennsylvania, Wienen still
hasn’t given up hope for the championship.
“I’m taking this season one moto at a time,”
said Wienen. “Anything can happen like it did to
me. I am just staying positive and very
motivated for the next two rounds.”
Racking In The Championships
Gibson’s dominance
of the Pro Am Production class can be shown in
his results. The Tennessee native has never
finished lower than second and with a dominating
1-1 finish on Sunday, Gibson clinched his second
Pro Am championship in two years. It’s not over
yet since Gibson has an opportunity to clinch
the Pro Am Unlimited championship at the next
round at Red Bud.
“It feels good to win the championship so
early,” said Gibson. “It hasn’t kicked in yet. I
won the championship last year in the Unlimited
class, but this feels bigger. The race was great
and I was posting pro lap times in both motos.
My Kawasaki KFX®450R has been great.”
1-2-3
While Gibson was on his way to clinching
the Pro Am Production championships, two other
Kawasaki riders were following suit to make the
class podium a Kawasaki sweep. Hetrick earned
his second podium finish in second, while Ross
grabbed his third podium in third.
Red Bud
The next race will take place at Wienen’s favorite track on the schedule. The
historic Red Bud track is technical and rough,
which suits Wienen’s style and abilities.
“I love Red Bud,” said Wienen. “It’s my favorite
track and I did really well there. I need to
step up to the plate. After Red Bud is Loretta
Lynn’s, which I have won the past two years.”
Results
AMA ATV Motocross Championship
Pleasure Valley Raceway – Armagh, Penn.
July 19, 2009
Pro Overall Results (Moto Finishes)
1. Dustin Wimmer, Center Valley, Pa., Suzuki,
1-1
2. Doug Gust, Salem, Wis., Suzuki, 3-2
3. Josh Upperman, Louisville, Ohio, Honda, 9-3
4. John Natalie, Jr., Houtzdale, Pa., Can Am,
7-3
5. JOSH CREAMER, N. STONINGTON, CONN., MONSTER
ENERGY KAWASAKI, 4-7
6. Joe Byrd, Union City, Tenn., Honda, 2-10
7. Thomas Brown, Sanger, Texas, Yamaha, 9-8
8. Cody Miller, Greenville, Texas, Cam Am, 6-11
9. Jeremy Lawson, Live Oak, Fla., Can Am, 13-5
10. Greg Gee, Simcoe, Ontario, Honda, 11-9
11. CHAD WIENEN, GALENA, ILL., MONSTER ENERGY
KAWASAKI, 20-6
Pro Point Standings
1. Dustin Wimmer, Center Valley, Pa., Suzuki,
335
2. CHAD WIENEN, GALENA, ILL., MONSTER ENERGY
KAWASAKI, 306
3. Joe Byrd, Union City, Tenn., Honda, 304
4. Doug Gust, Salem, Wis., Suzuki, 292
5. Josh Upperman, Louisville, Ohio, Honda, 276
6. JOSH CREAMER, N. STONINGTON, CONN., MONSTER
ENERGY KAWASAKI, 256
7. John Natalie, Jr., Houtzdale, Pa., Can Am,
237
8. Jeremy Lawson, Live Oak, Fla., Can Am, 225
9. Cody Miller, Greenville, Texas, Can Am, 194
10. Thomas Brown, Sanger, Texas, Yamaha, 184
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