DWT WHEELS SWEEPS TOP THREE SPOT ON THE PODIUM!
05.18.20101st – Josh Uppermann on DWT WHEELS, GOLDSPEED TIRES
2nd – Dustin Wimmer DWT WHEELS
3rd – Josh Creamer on DWT WHEELS
Walnut, IL – After some intense racing action and fierce battles, Baldwin Motorsports’ Josh Upperman would take his first ever overall Pro victory. Joining Upperman on the podium was the Rockstar Makita Suzuki team of Dustin Wimmer in second and Josh Creamer in third.
The weather at Sunset Ridge was perfect for racing and racers seemed to like the track changes that were new for this year, but a few remained sketchy about the Pro rhythm section that could either be done as a six pack or two triples and it became a section that would separate the field.
Legendary racer, Doug Gust was in attendance for round four, but the former champ did not race. Instead he was there to support his protégé, Nick DeNoble, and to sign a few autographs. It was very apparent that Gust misses racing this season, and we can only hope that he may decide to make a comeback next year.
Baldwin Motorsports’ Josh Upperman grabbed the moto one holeshot and lead from start to finish despite intense pressure from John Natalie early in the moto. Upperman would catch a break when teammates Wienen and Natalie would end up taking each other out at the half way point, allowing Upperman to take his first ever Pro moto win.
“It feels really great to take that win. I have been working hard and it has finally paid off. I was under a lot of pressure up there, but I just tried to ride smart and stay focused, and it all worked out for me,” stated Upperman.
- Josh Upperman settled for 2nd in Moto 2, which was more than enough to secure his 1st Overall Pro Win
In moto two, Upperman again grabbed the holeshot, but he was followed closely by Dustin Wimmer. Upperman would hold off Wimmer for most of moto two, but Wimmer would make a clean pass to take over the lead just over halfway through the moto. Upperman would stay close to Wimmer and claim second in moto two, giving him first ever Pro Overall win.
“It felt good to take the win. We’ve got the bike working great and we’ve been working really hard. This was an awesome weekend and I hope to be up here more often,” said an excited Upperman.
Rockstar Makita Suzuki’s Dustin Wimmer was in sixth off the line and made quick work of Can-Am’s Jeremie Warnia to take over the number five position right behind teammate Josh Creamer. Wimmer, like Creamer, hung back as all the drama unfolded between the number 44 and 13 Can-Am riders. Wimmer would stay behind Creamer and finish in a respectable third place in moto one.
Moto two, Wimmer was off to a better start, in second behind Upperman. Wimmer held back for several laps, waiting for an opportunity to make a clean pass. Wimmer got the opportunity and took over the lead and held it all the way to the checkered flag to take second overall for the day. “I wanted to get a better start in moto two, and I just stayed focused. I’m glad that Josh and I got our Suzuki’s on the podium,” said Wimmer.
Rockstar Makita Suzuki’s Josh Creamer was holding a strong fourth off the start and was right behind Chad Wienen. Creamer looked as if he were holding back a bit and stayed right behind Wienen to wait and see how things would unfold. Creamer’s patients paid off as he would move into the number two position when Wienen and Natalie would crash. Creamer would hold down the number two spot all the way to the checkered flag.
“I’m just happy to be on the podium every round. My Rockstar Makita Suzuki was running great and the track was good so we had a good race out there,” stated Creamer.
In moto two, Creamer got off to a decent start, and had worked his way to the number three spot, but just as soon as he got there, he accidentally pulled his kill cord going over a jump and went off the track when his quad quit. Creamer was able to get back on track and went on to finish fifth, which would give him the final spot on the podium.
Can-Am/ Motoworks’ John Natalie flew off the line in second place right behind Josh Upperman and was putting up quite a fight for the lead. Natalie was right on Upperman as teammate Chad Wienen began to challenge the Ironman for his spot. The teammates would battle for a lap, and just as Wienen was going for the inside pass, he would hit a kicker and the pair would connect, sending both Can-Am riders tumbling.
Natalie would come back quickly in seventh place and hang on for a sixth place finish. Despite getting pretty banged up, Natalie came back strong in moto two, coming off the line in the top five. Natalie would work his way up and take a solid third place finish in moto two to claim fourth overall.
Can-Am/Motoworks’ Jeremie Warnia would get off to a top five start, but he would fall back to finish in ninth place in moto one after casing the pro whoops section that would blow out his rear shock. Warnia came back strong in moto two to take a sixth place finish and round out the top five overall.
Greg Gee would finish moto one in eighth place after battling with Nick DeNoble. In moto two, he and DeNoble would again go tire to tire, with Gee coming out ahead in seventh place to put him in sixth overall.
Nick DeNoble would hold his own for moto one, taking a seventh place finish and in moto two, he would claim a solid seventh to take seventh overall, his best finish so far this season, which could perhaps be due to his mentor, Doug Gust being there to coach and support DeNoble for this round.
Chad Wienen was in a strong third place off the start and soon began to challenge teammate John Natalie for second, but unfortunately for Wienen, he would take an inside line that had a nasty kicker that would send him into Natalie. The resulting crash would take Wienen out for the rest of the moto. Wienen was looking good in moto two, despite his earlier wreck and charged off the line quickly. Wienen would hang on to finish fourth in moto two right behind teammate, Natalie.
Cody Gibson would come on strong at the start of moto one, but fall back and do battle with Harold Goodman for most of the first moto before finishing in eleventh. In moto two the battle between Gibson and Goodman would pick up right where it left off in the first moto with Goodman coming out ahead. Goodman would end his day with a 10-11 finish while Gibson would hang on with 11-12 finishes.
Clay Holmes would take home a 12-20 finish, while Keith Little would settle for 13-13, and Josh Grant would claim 14-9 finishes for round four.
Thomas Brown got off to a slower start in moto one, but the Yamaha rider was determined to get into the top five and that is exactly what he did. Brown charged his way through traffic and after a heated battle with Pat Brown in the final lap, Thomas Brown would take the number four spot before crossing the finish line.
Unfortunately, Brown would run into trouble right off the start in the second moto, when his axle nut came loose, which sent him tumbling as his wheel rolled down the hill. Brown attempted to fix the wheel, but he was disqualified for receiving mechanical help beyond the mechanics area.
Pat Brown put on a strong effort as he came from a mid-pack start in moto one, and after a tough battle with Thomas Brown, Pat Brown would hang on to round out the top five in moto one. Unfortunately, moto two did not go as planned for Brown when his fuel line came off, leaving him stranded on the side of the track for a lap before he discovered the problem and returned to the race.
Jeremy Lawson was off to a mid-pack start and was gaining ground, but ran into issues just a few laps in to the first moto when his clutch went out, and was forced to call it a day after just five laps. Lawson would again encounter problems in moto two, causing him to DNF.
Shane Cochran would not finish moto one after a nasty crash on the finish line jump would take him out of action mid moto.
Joe Byrd sat out this round as injuries he sustained in a wreck just before round three were worse than he anticipated and at this point he is still not sure when he will return. “I don’t want to just go out there and putt around the track, I want to go out there and win, so it will depend on how strong I feel,” he said.
Round number five of the 2010 AMA ATV Motocross Championship series will head to Steel City Raceway in Delmont, PA on May 29th – 30th where teammates Dustin Wimmer and Josh Creamer will battle it out for the points lead.
Courtesy of ATVRIDERS.COM
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