Consistency is Key in the AMA Arenacross Series

AURORA, Ill. (February 11, 2011) –
As the 2011 AMA Arenacross Series championship heads back to Louisville
and the Freedom Hall for the first time since 2009, the battle for the
top of the Arenacross class standings is heating up. Through five
rounds, just three points separates TUF Honda’s Jeff Gibson and
Babbitt’s Monster Energy/TiLUBE Kawasaki’s presented by Maxxis’ Tyler
Bowers.

Statistically,
Gibson holds the advantage with three victories and six podium efforts
through seven races. He kicked off the season with an impressive
three-race winning streak and after falling off the podium for the
first time this season the following race. He’s rebounded strongly,
currently boasting his second three-race podium streak of the young
season.

Meanwhile,
Bowers has started to turn things around after a slow start by his
standards. Still working back to full health after breaking his leg
last season, the winningest rider from 2010 only garnered one podium
through the first three rounds. However, once he grabbed his first win
of the season, Bowers has yet to finish worse than second in the three
races since and in that span, has also managed to keep Gibson behind
him in the results.

As
a result, the two fastest riders in the series are neck and neck and
with two riders in such close proximity in both speed and results,
consistency will be the key to grabbing the advantage. To this point,
neither rider has experienced a bad evening. In fact, while both riders
boast a worst result of fourth, it hasn’t been without some drama.
Despite the adversity they’ve faced, it’s impressive to see the amount
of resiliency both Gibson and Bowers have shown. The AMA Arenacross
Series is a tough and tenacious series full of fast and highly
competitive riders that aren’t afraid to be physical and both riders
strong results is a testament to their will to win.

While
three points separates the top two, 12 additional points separate the
duo from Babbitt’s Monster Energy/TiLUBE Kawasaki rider Chad Johnson,
who sits lonely in the third spot. Through the first three rounds,
Johnson’s relied on back-to-back-to-back third-place finishes to sit
within striking distance of Gibson. He followed those efforts up with
consecutive season-best finishes, grabbing a runner-up finish before
breaking through for his first win of the season. However, after
experiencing the elation of victory, Johnson faltered just one race
later, finishing sixth and effectively falling out of the early-season
title fight.

While
Johnson has posted some of the best results in the series and should be
proud of his results to this point, it’s a testament to the level of
competition that the AMA Arenacross Series has reached in 2011 while
also placing further emphasis of the well-known logic that consistency
can make or break a season in this discipline.

With
strong rides throughout the season from several other riders in the
series including third Babbitt’s rider Gray Davenport, Foremost
Insurance/Spinechillers/HondaofFairfield.com’s Zach Ames and the
series’ most recent winner Cole Siebler, of TUF Honda, neither Gibson,
Bowers, or Johnson are in the clear despite a comfortable margin in the
championship standings. In just one race, the entire complexion of the
season could change dramatically should any one of the top three riders
encounter trouble. No rider knows that more than Bowers who despite
capturing nine victories in 2010, still missed out on the championship
after suffering his season-ending injury with only three rounds
remaining.

When
the gates drop on the Arenacross class main event Saturday night inside
the Freedom Hall, it will not only be a battle to win, but a battle to
stay in the fight for the coveted championship, putting oneself in
position to capitalize on opportunities, while also avoiding impending
misfortune.

Louisville’s
Freedom Hall is a near-20,000 capacity arena on the grounds of the
Kentucky Exposition Center. The venue is best known as the former home
of the University of Louisville Cardinals basketball program, but is
now the site of various entertainment events and athletic competitions.

Freedom
Hall was opened in 1956 and sits just outside downtown Louisville. It
helped the Cardinals’ basketball franchise reach nationally-ranked
attendance figures, including 16 years of attendance above 100 percent.
On Saturday night, the sounds of dirt bikes will fill the halls while
the avid arenacross fans in the state of Kentucky embrace the return of
this one-of-a-kind competition.

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

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

New
for 2011! Live timing and scoring from each round of the AMA Arenacross
Series. To follow the intense racing action live, log onto www.Arenacross.com.  For all media requests, please contact Brandon Short at brandon@nextlevelsportsinc.com or 949-365-5750.

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