RC Hard Charger Award - Hangtown

MORGANTOWN, W.V. (June 4, 2009) - Canidae/Motosport Kawasaki's Tommy Hahn earned the Ricky Carmichael Hard Charger award last Saturday for his come-from-behind performance in the Hangtown Motocross ClassicTM, round two of the Lucas Oil AMA Motocross Championship.

Hahn found himself buried in the pack at the end of the first lap of the second 450 Class moto at Hangtown and immediately put his head down and went to work. The Decatur, Texas rider did not slow down until he had passed 19 of his competitors, climbing from a lowly 27th position on the score sheets to a solid eighth-place finish.

For his efforts, Hahn earned this week's Ricky Carmichael Hard-Charger Award, which is handed out at each round of the series. The award goes to the rider who passes the most riders in any given championship moto, from completion of the first lap through the checkered flag. It is named in honor of Ricky Carmichael, the 10-time AMA Motocross Champion and winner of a record 102 AMA Motocross races, not to mention five AMA Supercross crowns and 48 main event wins.

Hahn, who finished the day ninth overall based on his 11-8 moto finish, is now ranked a career-best fifth in the Lucas Oil AMA Pro Motocross Championship standings as the series heads to the Lone Star State, where he will no doubt have a lot of friends and family on hand to watch himself and his younger brother Wil of the Muscle Milk/MDK KTM team.

Coincidentally, Tommy Hahn passed 18 riders in his first moto, climbing from 29th at the end of the first lap to eleventh at the finish.

Other fine come-from-behind rides at Hangtown included 250 Class series points leader Ryan Dungey, who crashed in the second turn of his first moto and was nearly last to get going. By the end of the first lap Dungey was up to 24th place, according to the AMA Pro Racing electronic scoring. From there the Rockstar/Makita Suzuki rider made it past 17 of his competitors to finish the moto in seventh.

Monster Energy Kawasaki's Ryan Villopoto also deserves mention for the heroic effort he put in during the first 450 Class moto. The series points leader going into Hangtown, Villopoto was riding with what a knee injury he suffered some 48 hours before the race. After crashing in the same corner as Dungey did in his race, Villopoto went from 33rd place to 16th by the end of the moto, passing 17 riders along the way. However, after consulting with his team, Villopoto decided to not participate in the second moto and will have to drop out of the series in order to undergo major knee surgery.

Live streaming video of the first motos of Saturday's Freestone National from Wortham, Texas, can be found on www.allisports.com, beginning at 2 p.m. ET, which is 7 p.m. GMT (Greenwich Mean Time) for international fans. There will also be a same-day Saturday evening telecast of the 450 class on SPEED TV beginning at 9 p.m. ET. Check your local listings for the time and channel.

For more information about the Lucas Oil AMA Pro Motocross Championship, please contact media coordinator Brandon Short via email at brandon@mxsports.com or by telephone at (949) 365-5752.

For fan and racing information on the 2009 Lucas Oil AMA Pro Motocross Championship, log onto www.allisports.com.

MX Sports Pro Racing

MX Sports Pro Racing manages and produces the world's most prestigious motocross series - the Lucas Oil AMA Pro Motocross Championship. An industry leader in off road powersport production and management, its mission is to raise awareness of motocross racing through the production of professional championship racing events nationwide. Through its various racing properties, partnerships and affiliates, MX Sports Pro Racing fields more than 60,000 action sports athletes each year and attracts millions of active fans, spectators and enthusiasts. For more information, please visit www.mxsportsproracing.com.

Alli, the Alliance of Action Sports

Alli, the Alliance of Action Sports, is a global business that encompasses national and international action sports tours and events, multimedia production, and a consumer facing lifestyle brand. The Alliance includes: the Dew Tour, Winter Dew Tour, China Invitational, Maloof Money Cup, Lucas Oil AMA Pro Motocross Championship, King of Wake series, and the Gatorade Free Flow Tour; Alli TV Productions, which creates original content, produces and presents content with partners, and distributes Alli content through a variety of channels. Alli is owned by NBC Sports and MTV Networks and represents a network of athletes, fans, brands and properties. Its mission is to facilitate the momentous growth of action sports, through competition and lifestyle, for a new generation of fans and athletes. The Alli properties are home to more than 550,000 spectators each year and broadcasts more than 150 hours of original content in 100 countries and 280 million homes worldwide. More information can be found at www.allisports.com.

Lucas Oil Products

Lucas Oil is a worldwide leader in the production of oils, greases, and additives. Based in Corona, Calif., Lucas Oil Products is one of the fastest-growing additive lines in the consumer automotive industry, featuring a premium line of oils, greases, and problem-solving additives. Through innovative product research and development, along with aggressive marketing programs, Lucas Oil Products has established itself as the top-selling additive line in the American truck-stop industry.

Forrest Lucas and his wife, Charlotte, founded Lucas Oil Products in 1989 after he spent 20 years as a truck driver and owner of a nationwide long-haul trucking fleet. They experienced firsthand the need for better lubricants and fuel treatments to maintain their equipment.

Lucas Oil is involved in an array of motorsports sponsorships, including the "Official Motor Oil of the AMA Pro Motocross Championship." For more information on Lucas Oil, please visit www.LucasOil.com.

AMA Pro Racing

AMA Pro Racing is the premier professional motorcycle racing organization in North America, operating a full schedule of events and championships for a variety of motorcycle disciplines. From its Daytona Beach headquarters, the organization operates and manages AMA Pro Road Racing, which includes AMA Pro American Superbike, AMA Pro Daytona SportBike, AMA Pro SuperSport and AMA Pro SunTrust Moto-GT. AMA Pro Racing also manages and works closely with the day-to-day operational organizations of the AMA Pro Flat Track Championship and the AMA Pro Supermoto Championship Series in addition to other two-wheel and ATV series. Learn more about AMA Pro Racing at www.amaproracing.com.