AMSOIL Arenacross, featuring Ricky Carmichael‰Ûªs Road to Supercross, returned to Milwaukee, for the first time in over a decade on Friday to kick off two nights of action inside U.S. Cellular Arena for the fifth round of the 2014 season.
Just a few days after revealing he‰Ûªs been racing with a broken tibia, reigning three-time champion Tyler Bowers raced to his championship-leading third overall victory of the season aboard his Babbitt‰Ûªs Monster Energy/AMSOIL Kawasaki presented by Maxxis machine.
Farmers Insurance/Reynard Mods Suzuki‰Ûªs Cory Green grabbed the holeshot and early lead in the first Arenacross Class Main Event of the night and went on to hold of Bowers and his teammate Zach Ames for the first couple laps of the 12-lap race. However, Bowers‰Ûª patience paid off on Lap 3 when he slipped past Green and never looked back.
While Bowers comfortably paced the field, Ames made the pass for second on Lap 9 to secure a Babbitt‰Ûªs 1-2 finish. Green held on for third.
Bowers had the opportunity to select the inversion for the second Main Event, picking the number 16 and a full-field inversion for the second time this season.
With Bowers, Ames, and Green forced to overcome the final gate selections, Gateway Cycles Kawasaki‰Ûªs Steven Mages took advantage of having the first gate pick for the second Main Event to grab the early lead with KMS KTM‰Ûªs Dave Ginolfi and Motorsport Hillsboro Kawasaki‰Ûªs Gared Steinke in tow.
Bowers crossed the line in 13th on the opening lap, with Ames just a couple positions ahead in 11th. Bowers began a charge through the field immediately, breaking into the top 10 by Lap 2 and chipping away for the rest of the Main Event.
The defending champion moved into podium position on Lap 10 in third, but couldn‰Ûªt overcome the deficit. Mages, who finished last in the first Main Event, rebounded to lead all 15 laps en route to the Main Event win with Ginolfi in second and Bowers in third.
While he missed out on a clean sweep of the Main Events, Bowers‰Ûª 1-3 finishes were enough to give him the overall win and move him to within two points of Arenacross Class points lead. Ames, the championship leader, finished second overall after 2-6 results. TUF Honda‰Ûªs Jeff Gibson rounded out the overall podium in third (9-4).
In Head-to-Head Bracket Racing, Bowers outdueled Steinke to take the win and earn the second championship bonus point.
In the Eastern Regional Arenacross Lite Class, Frontier Lubricants KTM‰Ûªs Daniel Blair captured his second Main Event win in three races.
BWRengines.com Honda‰Ûªs Maxx Malatia began the Eastern Regional Arenacross Lites Class Main Event with the holeshot with Blair close behind. Malatia did all he could to keep Blair at bay, but the veteran made his move prior to the conclusion of the opening lap and assumed control of the race.
Shortly thereafter, Mages worked his way past Malatia for second and closed in on the lead at the halfway point, but ultimately wasn‰Ûªt able to keep pace with Blair. The California native maintained his lead throughout the 18-lap Main Event and won comfortably. Mages followed in second, with Malatia in third.
Traders Racing Kawasaki‰Ûªs Tony Archer, who finished sixth, maintained possession of the Eastern Regional Arenacross Lites Class Championship points lead. He currently holds a 28-point lead over Team DirtBikeMike KTM‰Ûªs Brandon Glenn.
Arenacross Class Results ‰ÛÒ Main Event 1
1. Tyler Bowers, Danville, Ky., Kawasaki
2. Zach Ames, Prospect, Ohio, Kawasaki
3. Cory Green, Nowata, Okla., Suzuki
4. Jacob Hayes, Greensboro, N.C., Kawasaki
5. Travis Sewell, Westville, Ind., KTM
6. Michael McDade, McDonald, Ohio, Kawasaki
7. Nathan Skaggs, Chillicothe, Ohio, Kawasaki
8. Kyle Regal, Grand Prairie, Texas, Honda
9. Jeff Gibson, Pataskala, Ohio, Honda
10. Willy Browning, Pleasantville, Ohio, KTM
Arenacross Class Results ‰ÛÒ Main Event 2
1. Steven Mages, Sardinia, Ohio, Kawasaki
2. Dave Ginolfi, Boston, N.J., KTM
3. Tyler Bowers, Danville, Ky., Kawasaki
4. Jeff Gibson, Pataskala, Ohio, Honda
5. Zach Ames, Prospect, Ohio, Kawasaki
6. Kelly Smith, Ludington, Mich., KTM
7. Gared Steinke, Woodland, Calif., Kawasaki
8. Kyle White, Freeport, Ill., Honda
9. Kyle Regal, Grand Prairie, Texas, Honda
10. Jacob Hayes, Greensboro, N.C., Kawasaki
Arenacross Class Points (After Race 7 of 19)
1. Zach Ames, Prospect, Ohio, Kawasaki ‰ÛÒ 179 Pts
2. Tyler Bowers, Danville, Ky., Kawasaki ‰ÛÒ 177 Pts
3. Michael McDade, McDonald, Ohio, Kawasaki ‰ÛÒ 161 Pts
4. Jacob Hayes, Greensboro, N.C., Kawasaki ‰ÛÒ 159 Pts
5. Willy Browning, Pleasantville, Ohio, KTM ‰ÛÒ 131 Pts
6. Cory Green, Nowata, Okla., Suzuki ‰ÛÒ 111 Pts
7. Colt Nichols, S. Muskogee, Okla., Kawasaki ‰ÛÒ 102 Pts
8. Kelly Smith, Ludington, Mich., KTM ‰ÛÒ 102 Pts
9. Travis Sewell, Westville, Ind., KTM ‰ÛÒ 100 Pts
10. Kyle Regal, Grand Prairie, Texas, Honda ‰ÛÒ 96 Pts
Eastern Regional Arenacross Lites Class Results
1. Daniel Blair, Lodi, Calif., KTM
2. Steven Mages, Sardinia, Ohio, Kawasaki
3. Maxx Malatia, Itasca, Ill., Honda
4. Kyle White, Freeport, Ill., Honda
5. Dave Ginolfi, Boston, N.J., KTM
6. Tony Archer, Waldorf, Md., Kawasaki
7. Brandon Glenn, Mesquite, Texas, KTM
8. Tanner Moore, Auburn, Kan., KTM
9. Josh Struebig, Crown Point, Ind., KTM
10. Justin Kelly, Lamoille, Ill., Honda
Eastern Regional Arenacross Lites Class Points (After Race 7 of 9)
1. Tony Archer, Waldorf, Md., Kawasaki ‰ÛÒ 89 Pts
2. Brandon Glenn, Mesquite, Texas, KTM ‰ÛÒ 61 Pts
3. Steve Roman, Apollo, Pa., Suzuki ‰ÛÒ 56 Pts
4. Jacob Williamson, Swartz Creek, Mich., Yamaha ‰ÛÒ 55 Pts
5. Michael Lang, Saugerties, N.Y., Honda ‰ÛÒ 41 Pts
6. Scott Zont, Algonquin, Ill., KTM ‰ÛÒ 36 Pts
7. Keith Tucker, Furgacy-Varina, N.C., Yamaha ‰ÛÒ 33 Pts
8. Fredrik Noren, Sweden, KTM ‰ÛÒ 28 Pts
9. Chad Wages, Frederick, Md., KTM ‰ÛÒ 24 Pts
10. Dylan Rouse, Verona, Ky., Honda ‰ÛÒ 23 Pts
