Dustin Nelson Wins Rd.4 of the Yamaha/ITP Quadcross Series

Round four of the 2010 Yamaha/ITP Quadcross series was held at Speedworld MX Park in Surprise, AZ. The first of two visits to the facility for the 2010 season. Speedworld is unique in that they hold the only night races in the Quadcross schedule, mostly to try and overcome the heat of racing in Arizona during the summer months. Temperatures were somewhat mild for this weekends race as the daytime high was about 106 degrees with temps cooling down to the low 90’s when the sun went down. The Speedworld track is fast and smooth with lots of jumps, aggressive passes can be made but the track gets a little one lined so getting a good start is key.

Moto 1: My #94 YFZ 450R rocketed off the concrete start pad and pulled me to a great holeshot. Justin Noss and Jason Dunkleberger followed me through the first turn. Right away I tried to lay down some fast laps but Noss stuck close to me as I figured out my lines over the first couple laps. Once I got comfortable on the track I was able to start opening up a gap. Beau Baron had caught Dunk and they battled for 3rd while Noss and I pulled away. Baron was into 3rd by the halfway mark and started closing on Noss while I had pulled out an 8 second lead. For the remainder of the 20 minute plus one lap moto, I just tried to run clean laps out front while Baron caught Noss and the two started a great battle for second. Noss was able to step up his pace and fight off all challenges, so when the checkers flew it was my #94 YFZ-R taking the win with Noss 2nd, Baron 3rd, Dunk 4th and Jesse Goss 5th.

Moto 2: Noss got a slightly better jump off the gate but when we hit the first turn he had the slippery inside line and I was able to grab 5th gear and motor around the outside to take the GYTR/Yamalube $250 holeshot. I had the same game plan as the first moto, lay down fast laps and build a gap quickly. I felt much better on the track this time and my lines were working great. Baron made an aggressive pass on Noss at the end of the first lap pushing him over a berm and dropping Noss to 4th behind Dunk. While I worked on extending my lead over Baron, Noss worked his way past Dunk to retake the 3rd spot. The rest of the race was pretty uneventful as the top five held their positions. At the finish, I took the win followed by Baron, Noss, Dunk and Goss.

Round four of the Yamaha/ITP Quadcross series was a good one. We took two holeshots and won both motos to take the third win this season. We have a few weeks off before our July race at Glen Helen. I’m sure it will be a hot one and Glen Helen is always tough so we’ll keep working hard and try to keep this little streak going.