Arenacross

Second Overall Victory of AMSOIL Arenacross Season for Matt Goerke in Kansas City

Posted:

Monday, March 2nd, 2015

5:32 AM

The seventh round of the 2015 season of AMSOIL Arenacross, featuring Ricky Carmichael's Road to Supercross, featured the championship's return to Sprint Center on Saturday night.

After highly competitive night of competition across a pair of Arenacross Class Main Events, Team Babbitt's Monster Energy/AMSOIL Kawasaki's Matt Goerke earned his second overall victory of the season via tiebreaker over Husqvarna TiLUBE TUF Racing's Gavin Faith.

In the second round of the Western Regional Arenacross Lites Class Championship, Slaka Wear KTM's Steven Mages took his second Main Event win of the season with a wire-to-wire effort.

ThermoTec/FMC Racing Yamaha's Bobby Kiniry grabbed the holeshot in the first Arenacross Class Main Event, leading a freight train of past winners including Husqvarna TiLUBE TUF Racing's Kyle Regal, Faith, Goerke and Team Babbitt's Kawasaki's Jacob Hayes, the current points leader..On Lap 2, Regal and Kiniry made contact in the track's sand section, causing Kiniry to crash. This allowed Faith to take over the lead by taking advantage of opportunity that presented itself, while Regal continued in second. Hayes moved into third, while Kiniry remounted in sixth place.

The lead group paced one another for the bulk of the Main Event, until Goerke made his move onto the podium with a pass on Hayes on Lap 10 before the rhythm section. When the checkered flag flew, Regal and Goerke followed Faith in second and third, respectively, while Hayes and Team Babbitt's Kawasaki's Chris Blose rounded out the top five.

Faith had the opportunity to select the inversion for the second Main Event, and with the help of the crowd he chose the case with the number zero, meaning no riders would be inverted.

Goerke's (36) win in the second Main Event was his key to victory. - Credit: Josh Rud / ShiftOne Photography

As the second Main Event got underway, Goerke made the initial move by grabbing the holeshot and sprinting out to an early lead ahead of Regal, Kiniry, and Faith. Just a few laps into the Main, Hayes encountered some issues while running seventh and pulled off into the mechanics area with what appeared to be a problem with his bike. He re-entered the race to ultimately finish the Main Event with a 12th-place result.

Goerke maintained control of the lead throughout the entirety of the Main Event, but the Husqvarna teammates were not far behind. After taking control of third early in the race, Faith applied consistent pressure on Regal for several laps. On Lap 12, Faith took the inside line on his teammate just after the finish line and secured second. He tried to put a charge on Goerke, but in the end it wasn't enough. Goerke raced to the second Main Event win, with Faith second and Regal third.

Earlier in the evening Goerke took the win in the RMATV/MC Head 2 Head Challenge, which awarded him an additional championship bonus point that ultimately put him into a tie with Faith for the overall win. With a tiebreaker needed to determine the winner, Goerke's second Main Event victory was the edge he needed to surpass Faith in the overall classification.

Goerke (3-1), Faith (1-2) and Regal (2-3) completed the overall podium, with Kiniry fourth (6-4) and Mages fifth (9-5).

Goerke's success, combined with Hayes' misfortune, brings him to within a single point of his teammate in the championship standings. Regal maintains control of third, nine points out of the lead.

Mages was dominant in the Arenacross Lites Class Main Event - Credit: Josh Rud / ShiftOne Photography

The start of the MetroPCS Blazing Fast Western Regional Arenacross Lites Class Main Event saw Mages seize control out of the gate ahead of TZR Woodstock KTM's Scott Zont and Motosport.com/Haeseker Racing KTM's Daniel Blair, the championship points leader.

Mages secured a solid lead up front, but the battle for the remaining spots on the podium was intense. On Lap 4, College Hunks Moving Junk/Spinecillers Racing KTM's Dave Ginolfi made the pass on Blair for third, from which Blair eventually dropped to sixth. Ginolfi then proceeded to pressure Zont in second for several laps before making the pass on Lap 8.

From there the top three remained unchanged, with Mages first, Ginolfi second and Zont third. TZR Woodstock KTM's Cody VanBuskirk narrowly missed out on the podium in fourth, overcoming a 10th-place start, while Team DirtBikeMike KTM's Brandon Glenn was fifth.

Mages' victory gives him an exclusive distinction. He is the only rider in AMSOIL Arenacross to earn a Main Event win in every class of competition - Arenacross Class, Eastern Regional Arenacross Lites Class and Western Regional Arenacross Lites Class.

Blair, who entered the night with a six-point lead and finished sixth in the Main Event, holds a five-point advantage over Glenn with VanBuskirk third, 15 points behind.

The 2015 AMSOIL Arenacross season will continue next weekend with the eighth round of the championship on Friday, March 6, and Saturday, March 7, from Council Bluffs, Iowa, and Mid-America Center

Faith narrowly missed out on his second overall win - Credit: Josh Rud / ShiftOne Photography

Arenacross Class Results - Overall (Main Event Finishes):
1. Matt Goerke, Temecula, Calif., Kawasaki (3-1)
2. Gavin Faith, Fort Dodge, Iowa, Husqvarna (1-2)
3. Kyle Regal, Grand Prairie, Texas, Husqvarna (2-3)
4. Bobby Kiniry, Holland Patent, N.Y., Yamaha (6-4)
5. Steven Mages, Sardinia, Ohio, KTM (9-5)
6. Travis Sewell, Westville, Ind., KTM (7-6)
7. Gared Steinke, Temecula, Calif., KTM (8-7)
8. Jacob Hayes, Liberty, N.C., Kawasaki (4-12)
9. Dave Ginolfi, Boston, N.J., KTM (10-9)
10. Chris Blose, Phoenix, Ariz., Kawasaki (5-15)

Arenacross Class Points (Race 10 of 20):
1. Jacob Hayes, Liberty, N.C., Kawasaki - 259 Pts
2. Matt Goerke, Temecula, Calif., Kawasaki - 258 Pts
3. Kyle Regal, Grand Prairie, Texas, Husqvarna - 250 Pts
4. Bobby Kiniry, Holland Patent, N.Y., Yamaha - 212 Pts
5. Steven Mages, Sardinia, Ohio, KTM - 199 Pts
6. Travis Sewell, Westville, Ind., KTM - 198 Pts
7. Chris Blose, Phoenix, Ariz., Kawasaki - 190 Pts
8. Gavin Faith, Fort Dodge, Iowa, Husqvarna - 163 Pts
9. Gared Steinke, Temecula, Calif., KTM - 158 Pts
10. Willy Browning, Pleasantville, Ohio, KTM - 156 Pts

Western Regional Arenacross Lites Class Results:
1. Steven Mages, Sardinia, Ohio, KTM
2. Dave Ginolfi, Boston, N.J., KTM
3. Scott Zont, Algonquin, Ill., KTM
4. Cody VanBuskirk, Harvard, Ill., KTM
5. Brandon Glenn, Mesquite, Texas, KTM
6. Daniel Blair, Lodi, Calif., KTM
7. Jake Locks, Dixon, Calif., KTM
8. Benjamin Nelko, Aliquippa, Pa., KTM
9. Tanner Moore, Auburn, Kan., KTM
10. Clay Elliott, Buford, Ga., KTM

Western Regional Arenacross Lites Class Points (After Race 3 of 9):
1. Daniel Blair, Lodi, Calif., KTM - 41 Pts
2. Brandon Glenn, Mesquite, Texas, KTM - 36 Pts
3. Cody VanBuskirk, Harvard, Ill., KTM - 26 Pts
4. Mason Wharton, Brush Prairie, Wash., Kawasaki - 17 Pts
5. Chase Marquier, Newcastle, Okla., Honda - 13 Pts
6. Jake Locks, Dixon, Calif., KTM - 13 Pts
7. Travis Bannister, Calhan, Colo., Honda - 12 Pts
8. Josh Struebig, Crown Point, Ind., KTM - 12 Pts
9. Dalton Oxborrow, Lehi, Utah, Kawasaki - 11 Pts
10. Clay Elliott, Buford, Ga., KTM - 11 Pts

Top Image: Goerke now has two overall wins in 2015

Credit: Josh Rud / ShiftOne Photography