by: Brandon Short
Sunday, May 17, 2015 | 4:50 PM
Joel Hetrick Takes Over Mtn. Dew ATV Motocross National Championship Lead with Second Straight Win at High Point
Chad Wienen and Thomas Brown Return to Podium
The fourth round of the Mtn. Dew ATV Motocross National Championship, sanctioned by AMA Pro Racing (ATVMX) was filled with intense race action as the world’s fastest riders on four wheels made their annual visit to High Point Raceway for the ATV Stampede on Saturday afternoon. After a spirited showdown between three-time AMA Pro ATV Champion Chad Wienen and Pennsylvania native Joel Hetrick, the defending race winner at High Point, the hometown rider made the fans proud with 1-1 moto sweep aboard his Hetrick Racing/Corrosion Specialties/Honda. Hetrick’s back-to-back wins over the last two rounds also vaulted him past Wienen in the championship standings.
Hetrick opened the day in the same manner as the past three rounds, earning the ATVRiders.com Top Qualifier Award. When the gate dropped for the opening moto Hetrick scored the SSi Decals Holeshot Award, but Wienen quickly got around him on his Wienen Motorsports/Maxxis/SSi Decals/Walsh Race Craft Yamaha to lead the riders around the first lap. The two battled back and forth for several more laps until Hetrick capitalized on a mistake by Wienen. Hetrick was able to hold off the advances of the champ and captured the moto win by 10 seconds.
Following Wienen across the line for the final podium spot in Moto 1 was Maxxis Yamaha, powered by Moto-Xperts, rider Thomas Brown. Josh Upperman finished fourth aboard his Root River Racing machine, while JB Racing Can-Am’s Jeffrey Rastrelli rounded out the top-five.
Entering the second moto, Wienen still held a one-point lead over Hetrick in the AMA Pro ATV point standings and needed to hold him off in order to maintain the top spot. Wienen’s good start off the line shot him out to the early lead, but Hetrick was in hot pursuit. Hetrick stalked Wienen for several laps before picking the right moment to make the winning pass on Lap 5. Once out front Hetrick didn’t look back, eventually taking a season-high sixth moto win by 5.2 seconds over Wienen.
The Moto 2 podium mirrored that of Moto 1, with Wienen second and third. The battle for the top five came down to the wire as Nicholas Gennusa and Ronnie Higgerson both made it by Upperman on the final lap to score fourth and fifth, respectively.
The overall podium was a repeat of the previous round with Hetrick (1-1), Wienen (2-2) and Brown (3-3) all scoring the same moto finishes. Despite giving up two spots in the final moto, Upperman’s 4-6 scores secured fourth overall, while Gennusa’s 7-4 results rounded out the top-five.
Hetrick will be sporting a new red background on his number plate as the series makes its first-ever stop to the grounds of Ironman Raceway in Crawfordsville, Indiana. He sits two points ahead of Wienen, who is no stranger to fighting for championships as a veteran of the sport.
AMA Pro ATV Overall Results (Moto Results)
- Joel Hetrick, Seneca, Pa., Honda (1-1)
- Chad Wienen, Galena, Ill., Yamaha (2-2)
- Thomas Brown, Sanger, Texas, Yamaha (3-3)
- Josh Upperman, Louisville, Ohio, Honda, (4-6)
- Nicholas Gennusa, Wall Township, N.J., Yamaha (7-4)
- Ronnie Higgerson, Cutler, Ill., Can-Am (6-5)
- Joe Byrd, Union City, Tenn., Honda (9-7)
- Casey Martin, Frenchburg, Ky., Honda (10-8)
- Jeffrey Rastrelli, Palm City, Fla., Can-Am (5-14)
- Tyler Hamrick, Cortland, Ohio, Honda (8-12)
AMA Pro ATV Championship Standings
- Joel Hetrick, Seneca, Pa., Honda – 202
- Chad Wienen, Galena, Ill., Yamaha – 200
- Thomas Brown, Sanger, Texas, Yamaha – 175
- Jeffrey Rastrelli, Palm City, Fla., Can-Am – 138
- Josh Upperman, Louisville, Ohio, Honda – 130
- Ronnie Higgerson, Cutler, Ill., Can-Am – 128
- Nick Gennusa, Wall, N.J., Yamaha – 127
- John Natalie, Houtzdale, Pa., Honda – 103
- Vital Cazenave, Union City, Tenn., Honda – 94
- Tyler Hamrick, Cortland, Ohio, Honda – 93
Specialty Awards
ATVRiders.com Top Qualifier Award
- Joel Hetrick – 4 point
- John Natalie – 1 point
SSi Decals Holeshot Championship
- Joel Hetrick – 8 points
- John Natalie – 6 point
- Chad Wienen – 1 point
The 2015 Mtn. Dew ATV Motocross National Championship will get a weekend off before returning to action on Saturday, May 30, at Ironman Raceway in Crawfordsville, Indiana.
For more information on the 2015 Mtn. Dew ATV Motocross National Championship, visit www.atvmotocross.com. Join the conversation on the series Facebook page, follow on Twitter @ATVMXdotcom and Instagram @ATVMotocross, and be sure to always hashtag #ATVMX.