TEAM FMF MAKITA SUZUKI’S JOSH STRANG OVERCOMES BROKEN FOOTPEG TO FINISH FOURTH AT IRONMAN GNCC

CRAWFORDSVILLE, IN (October 24,
2011) – FMF Makita Suzuki’s Josh Strang continues to put in
heroic rides despite a recent spate of bad luck. At the latest round
of the 2011 Grand National Cross Country Series in Crawfordsville,
IN, Strang suffered a broken footpeg but still raced his FMF Makita
Suzuki RM-Z450 to a hard-fought fourth place. After Sunday’s
Ironman GNCC, Strang remains in second place in the overall
championship points.

Unfortunately
for the reigning GNCC Champion, Strang broke a footpeg on the opening
lap of the race. As a result, he had to return to the pits for
repairs. Despite this, the FMF Makita Suzuki rider charged hard and
worked his way from the back of the pack to finish up in fourth
place.

“When it rains it pours,” admitted
Strang. “There must have been something I hit that sheared off the
bolt. It was just a freak thing. The FMF Makita Suzuki RM-Z450 worked
great and I was riding good, but I’m just having this terrible luck
the past few races. It’s been a difficult second half of the
series, for sure.”

With two races
remaining, Strang is more determined than ever to get the wins at the
next two rounds. Both races will take place at the same upcoming
event, which was rescheduled due to weather.

“It’s technically still not over,”
said Strang, who’s still in contention for the title. “I wish I
could have caught third place there at the end, that would have
helped. But we’ll just have to work real hard and get ready for
those last two races and see what happens.”

The 2011 FMF Makita Suzuki team’s
next event is in Hurricane Mills, TN, the weekend of Nov. 4-6, for
the rescheduled Loretta Lynn’s GNCC. Follow team updates on
SuzukiScoopFans on facebook and SuzukiScoop on twitter.

Ironman GNCC XC1 Class Results:

1. Charles Mullins

2. Thaddeus Duvall

3. Paul Whibley

4. Josh Strang

5. Jimmy Jarrett

6. Russell Bobbitt

7. Scott Watkins

8. Cory Buttrick

9. Eric Bailey

10. Nathan Kanney

2011 GNCC XC-1 Class Standings:

1. Charles Mullins – 275

2. Josh Strang – 237

3. Paul Whibley – 234

4. Kailub Russell – 190

5. Nathan Kanney– 171

6. Cory Buttrick – 133

7. Thaddeus Duvall – 121

8. Jimmy Jarrett – 114

9. Mike Lafferty – 105

10. Christopher Bach – 96

About Suzuki: Suzuki Motor
Corporation (SMC) founded The Motorcycle and ATV Division of American
Suzuki Motor Corporation (ASMC), Brea, CA, in 1963. ASMC markets
motorcycles and ATVs via an extensive dealer network throughout 49
states. ASMC's parent company, Suzuki Motor Corporation, based in
Hamamatsu, Japan, is a diversified worldwide manufacturer of
motorcycles, ATVs, scooters, automobiles and marine engines. Founded
in 1909 and incorporated in 1920, it has 120 distributors in 191
countries. For more information, visit www.suzukicycles.com.
Follow Suzuki Scoop on facebook for exclusive team content
www.facebook.com/suzukiscoopfans.

About FMF: Owner and founder Don
Emler started FMF Racing in 1973. Don’s vision was to provide the
top level US racing equipment at the grass roots level. FMF was
formed in Don’s garage and is now located in Rancho Dominguez in a
90,000 sq ft state of the art manufacturing facility. FMF’s goal is
simple; design and manufacture the world’s best performance exhaust
100% in the USA under one roof. For more information visit
http://www.fmfracing.com.

About Makita: Makita is a
worldwide manufacturer of industrial quality power tools and offers a
wide range of industrial accessories. Makita applies leading-edge
technology and innovation to engineer tools that are more compact
with less weight yet deliver industrial strength power and results.
Makita innovation includes Makita LXT®, the industry’s first 18V
lithium-ion cordless lineup. The Makita Teal color is the trade
dress of Makita Corporation and is protected under common law and
registered with the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office. Makita is Best
in Class Engineering. For more information visit www.makitatools.com.

Team FMF Makita Suzuki is grateful
for the support of their sponsors: FMF, Makita Industrial Power
Tools, Dunlop, Maxima, Renthal, Motion Pro, DP Brakes, Acerbis,
ProFilter, Trek, Hinson Clutch Components, RG3, Zip Ty, CTI, IMS, La
Piparosa, DID Dirt Star, Works Connection, Pro X, Tokyo Mods, T.M.
Designworks, TCR Hubs, Matrix Concepts, CV4, GPR Stabilizers, Posey,
N-Style and GoPro.