For Immediate Release - April 4, 2008
(N. Kingsville, OH) When the gate dropped for the pro riders in moto one it was Josh Upperman aboard his new ride, the Honda TRX450R, who grabbed the holeshot followed by Dustin Wimmer (Suzuki) and Harold Goodman (Honda). The track was slick due to a rainstorm the night before and Josh locked up the brakes rounding a curve and ended up over the berm. This gave several riders the chance to make the pass and Josh found himself in 11th place in the freight train. After numerous laps and not many passing opportunities, due to a one-line track, Josh would take a respectable 9th place and receive the $200.00 “ATVriders.com Holeshot Award”. Josh stated; “I’m very comfortable on the Honda, I’ve been training a lot and this being my first race of the season I was ecstatic to be out front of the pack. Now that my nerves have settled down moto two is going to be a lot better.”
Moto two’s holeshot was somewhat of a deja-vu for the Honda rider, Josh Upperman. He and John Natalie (Can-Am) were banging wheel to wheel for the top spot. Josh never gave up, held his ground, and took the lead. In the chase behind Josh would be John Natalie (Can-Am), and Joe Byrd (Honda). Josh would go on to lead the first five laps. Taking the outside lane, John Natalie would tuck the inside lane and take over the top spot. Now trailing him would be Joe Byrd, Dustin Wimmer (Suzuki) and his teammate Chad Wienen. Josh now was in fifth place but would soon make it back into third due to the DNF by John Natalie and motor problems with Chad Wienen’s bike, which sent him to seventeenth place. Josh finished 4th and would take a very honorable 4th place overall for the weekend. Josh proved that he can run with the veteran pro riders and expects nothing less. “My bike ran great and performed well with the conditions”, said Josh, “I need to thank all the support behind me. As the year progresses and with more races and training I can only improve.”
Next Race: April 12 & 13 at Balance Moto X in Bowling Green, KY
Special thanks to the 2008 sponsors: - American Honda, Baldwin Motorsports, PEP, JB Racing, Fly Racing, Maxxis, DWT, Rath Racing, RPM, Precision Racing Products, Faast Co., Pro-Design, Hinson Clutch Components, Honda Pro Oil & Chemicals, State 8, PowerMadd, DID, Sidi, Updog, VP Race Fuels, Wiseco, Merge Racing Technologies, Quad Tech, Scott Goggle, Moto Pro Training and Works Connection.
AMA National Pro MX Round 2 Results
