AMA AX Notebook: Dayton

Courtesy of Feld Motorsports
AURORA, Ill. – As the penultimate round of the 2010 AMA Arenacross Series looms just a couple days away from Dayton, Ohio’s Nutter Center, the world’s best arenacross competitors prepare for the 11th round of bar-banging action before one of the most devoted crowds in the U.S.

The 2010 season has been a true test of resiliency as all 12 rounds of the season are being run consecutively without a single weekend off. While some riders have succumbed to the challenge of such an action-packed season and the intense nature of arenacross competition, one team has stood above the rest, putting together what is likely the most dominating season in the history of the AMA Arenacross Series.

Babbitt’s Monster Energy/TiLUBE Kawasaki, featuring Tyler Bowers, Josh Demuth and Chad Johnson have put together a remarkable season both as a team and individually. Bowers is the AMA Arenacross class points leader, boasting a series-leading nine victories. Demuth follows him from the runner-up spot in the standings, showcasing five wins of his own. Johnson rounds out the top three in the championship, holding a single win to his credit in 2010. As a team, at least one member of the Babbitt’s team has captured a spot on the podium in every race this season and a Babbitt’s rider has stood atop the podium at all but one race, giving them a winning percentage of 93% with two rounds and three races remaining. It is often said that consistency wins championships and they have proved that better than ever in 2010, effectively solidifying the top three positions in the championship with a 44-point advantage over fourth place.

Luck plays a significant factor throughout the course of an AMA Arenacross Series season where bad luck appears to find every rider in the field at some point. While the Babbitt’s squad has managed to stay relatively unscathed, the 2010 season will come to an unfortunate close for Bowers as an injury suffered in training has sidelined him for the rest of the year. Control of the championship now sits in the hands of Demuth, 19 points behind Bowers. Despite the inopportune injury to him, Bowers has still established an incredible points margin and will finish no worse than third in the championship, further strengthening just how dominant the Babbitt’s team has been this season.

While a bit of a let-down will loom over the final three races of the season thanks to Bowers’ absence, the Babbitt’s AMA Arenacross class team has risen to the occasion each and every week and the success the program has achieved doesn’t stop at the premier class. The Babbitt’s-backed GPF Kawasaki team in the AMA Arenacross Lites class has also set the standard throughout the season. While the challenge presented to the pair of GPF riders A.J. Catanzaro and Daniel Aulsaybrook throughout 2010 has been stronger, two of the youngest riders on the circuit, each of whom are racing the entire season for the first time, have answered the call and each sits in position to claim the respective AMA Arenacross Lites Regional Championships.

The AMA Arenacross Lites Eastern Regional Championship concludes on Saturday night and fresh off his first career victory last weekend, Aulsaybrook sits just four points out of the lead. With the amount of momentum he garnered from his latest outing, it would be hard to doubt his ability and determination to overcome that deficit.

In the AMA Arenacross Lites Western Regional Championship, Catanzaro has four overall wins to his credit in 2010 and leads the standings by 20 points with just one round and two races to go next weekend from Denver. Over the last few weeks, Catanzaro has been the hottest rider in the series and at just 16 years of age, the rookie is amassing one of the most impressive inaugural seasons ever.

With at least one member from the Babbitt’s Monster Energy/TiLUBE Kawasaki team guaranteed to win the premier class championship and a great opportunity for each GPF/Babbitt’s Kawasaki rider to take home the Lites Regional titles, Babbitt’s-backed Kawasaki’s are in prime position to make 2010 a clean sweep of arenacross prestige, a feat that has never been accomplished.

This weekend, the intimate and exciting action of the AMA Arenacross Series will be showcased at the Ervin J. Nutter Center on the campus of Wright State University. Serving as southwest Ohio’s premier sports and entertainment complex, the Nutter Center is home to NCAA Division I Wright State Raiders athletics and the ECHL’s Dayton Bombers hockey team.

Opened in 1990 and named for famous Ohioan Ervin J. Nutter, the main arena of the center seats a maximum of 12,000, but the facility also houses four basketball courts, a recreation running track, a fitness center, classrooms, and 60,000 square feet of exhibit space.

The action commences for the Dayton Arenacross Saturday at 7:00 p.m. Amateur Day concludes an exciting weekend of action on Sunday, beginning at 10 a.m.

Advance tickets are available for this weekend’s race at the Nutter Center Box Office, Ticketmaster charge by phone and ticketmaster.com. Tickets cost $2 more the day of the race.

Tickets are available online at www.arenacross.com and www.ticketmaster.com. For more information on the AMA Arenacross Series log on to www.arenacross.com.

About Feld Motor Sports?
Feld Motor Sports, Inc. is the world leader in specialized arena and stadium-based motor sports entertainment.  Feld Motor Sports, Inc. productions include Monster Jam®, SuperBull?, Monster Energy Supercross, AMA Arenacross Series, Nuclear Cowboyz?, Gravity Slashers?, and IHRA® Nitro Jam®.  Feld Motor Sports, Inc. is a division of Feld Entertainment, the world’s largest producer of live family entertainment.  For more information on Feld Entertainment, visit www.feldentertainment.com.Was this post helpful? Add yours to our service or subscribe to our feed above.