The opening night of the 2013 season was a historic one for AMSOIL Arenacross, Featuring Ricky Carmichael‰Ûªs Road to Supercross inside the DCU Center in Worcester, United States.
The innovative and exciting new racing format was unveiled to the New England crowd on Friday, as precious championship points were on the line throughout the evening in the premier Arenacross Class, highlighted by a pair of Main Events.
In the end, reigning back-to-back champion Tyler Bowers and Michael McDade, grabbed the checkered flags in each respective Main Event, but it was Zach Ames, of Prospect, Ohio, who stood atop the podium as the first overall winner of the new era of AMSOIL Arenacross. Additionally, McDade capped off an impressive and memorable evening for himself by capturing the Arenacross Lites Class victory.
As the gate dropped on the first 12-lap Main Event, Bowers quickly asserted himself at the front of the field aboard his Babbitt‰Ûªs Monster Energy/AMSOIL Kawasaki presented by Maxxis machine. Behind him, Advocare Suzuki‰Ûªs Daniel Blair, and Ames, Bowers‰Ûª teammate, began their battle for second.
As the pair jockeyed for position early, Bowers took advantage by pulling away to a substantial lead. Just a few laps into the Main Event, Ames made his way past Blair and set a consistent pace to keep his rival at bay. Out front, Bowers made quick work of the field, kicking off his title defense with a convincing win in Main Event 1, with Ames and Blair hanging on for podium results.
After Bowers celebrated his first step towards defending his title, the field was subjected to an inversion for Main Event 2, where zero, eight, or the entire 16-rider field‰Ûªs gate selection would be reversed based on how they finished in the first Main Event. On Friday night, the inaugural inversion changed the position of the first eight riders, placing Bowers, Ames and Blair with less than ideal gate picks.
In the second Main Event, Ames overcame his gate position and took control of the field off the start, looking to give his new Babbitt‰Ûªs Kawasaki team a clean sweep of the evening.
However, after capturing the Arenacross Lites Class win earlier in the evening, McDade was on his game in search of his first premier class victory aboard his Mosites Motorsports Kawasaki and stayed close to Ames‰Ûª rear fender. While the lead duo set the early pace, Bowers was forced to overcome a 15th-place start after stalling his bike on the opening lap, but immediately capitalized on his aggressive riding style to move forward quickly.
Ames and McDade were never separated by much more than a bike length throughout the entire Main Event, setting the stage for a dramatic finish. After patiently waiting for his opportunity to make a move, McDade utilized a last-lap pass on Ames to steal the victory and reap the benefits of the historic triumph.
Massachusetts local Robbie Marshall, rounded out the podium in third, while Bowers battled his way to a fifth-place result. By virtue of Ames‰Ûª consistency across each Main Event, he garnered the most points on the evening to secure the overall with his pair of runner-up efforts.
In the Arenacross Lites Class Main Event, McDade, the defending Eastern Regional Champion, was forced to fend off a formidable challenge from Luevanos Racing Kawasaki‰Ûªs Gared Steinke, in an intense 18-lap race between the two.
The duo was so fast that they lapped up to third place, which was secured by BWRengines.com Honda‰Ûªs Kyle White, of Freeport, Ill. McDade withstood Steinke‰Ûªs advances to take the win and set a successful tone for the rest of his evening.
Night two
Night two also proved to be a showcase for defending champion Bowers as the Babbitt‰Ûªs Monster Energy/AMSOIL Kawasaki presented by Maxxis rider swept the pair of Main Events for the overall win and also assumed control of the points lead in the process.
With a pair of Main Events and Head-to-Head Bracket Racing all awarding points toward the championship, winning and racing well is at a premium as the season heads towards the Race to the Championship, which begins at the seventh round of the season.
In the first Main Event of the evening, opening night winner Ames, jumped into the early lead with the holeshot aboard his Babbitt‰Ûªs Monster Energy/AMSOIL Kawasaki. Bowers asserted himself into second behind his teammate and began to position himself for a late race pass.
After maintaining a gap of about one second, Bowers made a textbook inside pass on Lap 8 of 12 and carried it through to the finish. Ames held on for second, while Mosites Motorsports Kawasaki‰Ûªs Michael McDade, of Edinburg, Pa., finished third.
With his second Main Event win in three attempts, Bowers awaited the outcome of the inversion for the second Main Event, where zero, eight, or the entire 16-rider field will have their gate selection reversed from their finishing order in the first Main Event.
On Saturday night, the inversion changed the position of all 16 riders, meaning Bowers needed to come from the worst gate pick in order to win. To make matters even more challenging, the Babbitt‰Ûªs team discovered following the first Main Event that Bowers‰Ûª engine blew, forcing them to replace it in a matter of 21 minutes between Main Events to make sure Bowers was on the line.
In the overall classification for the evening, Bowers secured maximum points from the Main Events for first overall, with McDade second, and Ames third.
In the Arenacross Lites Class Main Event, TZR Woodstock KTM‰Ûªs Scott Zont, captured the holeshot and led the first six laps of competition. On Lap 7, Patrick Massie moved into the lead and then engaged in battle with Lang through the remainder of the Main Event.
On the final lap, Massie went down in the last corner, allowing Lang to take the win. Massie rebounded to finish second with BWRengines.com Honda‰Ûªs Maxx Malatia in third.
AMA Areancross Results for Rounds 1 and 2
Arenacross Class Results ‰ÛÒ Rd1 Main Event 1
1. Tyler Bowers, Danville, Ky., Kawasaki
2. Zach Ames, Prospect, Ohio, Kawasaki
3. Daniel Blair, Lodi, Calif., Suzuki
4. Robby Marshall, Stow, Mass., KTM
5. Michael McDade, Edinburg, Pa., Kawasaki
6. Gared Steinke, Woodland, Calif., Kawasaki
7. Jeff Gibson, Pataskala, Ohio, KTM
8. Steven Mages, Sardinia, Ohio, KTM
9. Kyle White, Freeport, Ill., Honda
10.Kelly Smith, Ludington, Mich., KTM
Arenacross Class Results ‰ÛÒ Rd1 Main Event 2
1. Michael McDade, Edinburg, Pa., Kawasaki
2. Zach Ames, Prospect, Ohio, Kawasaki
3. Robby Marshall, Stow, Mass., KTM
4. Gared Steinke, Woodland, Calif., Kawasaki
5. Tyler Bowers, Danville, Ky., Kawasaki
6. Dave Ginolfi, Budd Lake, N.J., KTM
7. Michael Lang, Saugerties, N.Y., Honda
8. Willy Browning, Pleasantville, Ohio, KTM
9. Nathan Skaggs, Chillicothe, Ohio, KTM
10. Kyle White, Freeport, Ill., Honda
Arenacross Class Results ‰ÛÒ Rd 2 Main Event 1
1.Tyler Bowers, Danville, Ky., Kawasaki
2.Zach Ames, Prospect, Ohio, Kawasaki
3.Michael McDade, Edinburg, Pa., Kawasaki
4.Jeff Gibson, Pataskala, Ohio, KTM
5.Kelly Smith, Ludington, Mich., KTM
6.Daniel Blair, Lodi, Calif., Suzuki
7.Dave Ginolfi, Budd Lake, N.J., KTM
8.Chris Canning, Coventry, Conn., Honda
9.Robby Marshall, Stow, Mass., KTM
10.Steven Mages, Sardinia, Ohio, KTM
Arenacross Class Results ‰ÛÒ Rd 2 Main Event 2
1. Tyler Bowers, Danville, Ky., Kawasaki
2. Michael McDade, Edinburg, Pa., Kawasaki
3. Gared Steinke, Woodland, Calif., Kawasaki
4. Patrick Massie, Washington Court House, Ohio, Kawasaki
5. Michael Lang, Saugerties, N.Y., Honda
6. Willy Browning, Pleasantville, Ohio, KTM
7. Zach Ames, Prospect, Ohio, Kawasaki
8. Jeff Gibson, Pataskala, Ohio, KTM
9. Fredrik Noren, Perris, Calif., KTM
10 .Robby Marshall, Stow, Mass., KTM
Arenacross Class Points (After Race 2 of 16)
1. Tyler Bowers, Danville, Ky., Kawasaki ‰ÛÒ 61 Pts
2. Michael McDade, Edinburg, Pa., Kawasaki ‰ÛÒ 57 Pts
3. Zach Ames, Prospect, Ohio, Kawasaki ‰ÛÒ 55 Pts
4. Robby Marshall, Stow, Mass., KTM ‰ÛÒ 42 Pts
5. Gared Steinke, Woodland, Calif., Kawasaki ‰ÛÒ 39 Pts
6. Jeff Gibson, Pataskala, Ohio, KTM ‰ÛÒ 36 Pts
7. Daniel Blair, Lodi, Calif., Suzuki ‰ÛÒ 35 Pts
8. Michael Lang, Saugerties, N.Y., Honda ‰ÛÒ 29 Pts
9. Willy Browning, Pleasantville, Ohio, KTM ‰ÛÒ 29 Pts
10. Kelly Smith, Ludington, Mich., KTM ‰ÛÒ 29 Pts
Arenacross Lites Class Results Round 1
1. Michael McDade, Edinburg, Pa., Kawasaki
2. Gared Steinke, Woodland, Calif., Kawasaki
3. Kyle White, Freeport, Ill., Honda
4. Derrick Barnaby, Sterling, Conn., Honda
5. Michael Lang, Saugerties, N.Y., Honda
6. Patrick Massie, Washington Court House, Ohio, Kawasaki
7. Scott Zont, Algonquin, Ill., KTM
8. Travis Delnicki, Woodstock Valle, Conn., Suzuki
9. Maxx Malatia, Itasca, Ill., Honda
10. Brian Alquist, Lagrange, Calif., Kawasaki
Arenacross Lites Class Results Round 2
1. Michael Lang, Saugerties, N.Y., Honda
2. Patrick Massie, Washington Court House, Ohio, Kawasaki
3. Maxx Malatia, Itasca, Ill., Honda
4. Fredrik Noren, Perris, Calif., KTM
5. Scott Zont, Algonquin, Ill., KTM
6. Zachary Newberry, Fincastle, Va., Suzuki
7. Brice Klippel, Bradford, Tenn., KTM
8. Travis Delnicki, Woodstock Valle, Conn., Suzuki
9. Konnor Buffis, Pittsfield, Mass., Honda
10. Vaughn Mays, Genoa City, Wis., KTM
Eastern Regional Arenacross Lites Class Points (After Race 2 of 8)
1. Michael McDade, Edinburg, Pa., Kawasaki ‰ÛÒ 16 Pts
2. Derrick Barnaby, Sterling, Conn., Honda ‰ÛÒ 13 Pts
3. Scott Zont, Algonquin, Ill., KTM ‰ÛÒ 10 Pts
4. Travis Delnicki, Woodstock Valle, Conn., Suzuki ‰ÛÒ 9 Pts
5. Jeremy Pronovost, St. Philippe, Canada, KTM ‰ÛÒ 5 Pts
6. Vaughn Mays, Genoa City, Wis., KTM ‰ÛÒ 4 Pts
7. Nick Hardacre, Dayton, Ohio, Kawasaki ‰ÛÒ 2 Pts
8. Dave Ginolfi, Budd Lake, N.J., KTM ‰ÛÒ 1 Pts
