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National ArEnacross SEriES
Brock Sellards eats into Chad
Johnson's points lead with a win.
By PAT SCHUTTE
B
rock
Sellards
relieved some of the
pressure from Chad johnson's Toyota AMA National Arenacross
Series podium stranglehold - winning
Friday's round and taking an eightpoint bite out of johnson's overall
series lead, which now stands at 2S
points (180-155).
The Team Thor/HondaITUF Racingsponsored Sellards did benefit on Friday
from a johnson crash early in the race
(which took out the Yamaha rider's front
brake). But those in attendance all
believed that the Ohioan was the fastest
on the track, surviving a virtual "battle
royal" on Friday that spilled from the
track into the pits with numerous racers
upset at one another.
"Friday night was like a pinball game
and Brock was easily the fastest guy out
there," said Toyota AMA Arenacross
race announcer Tim Cotter. "The action
was so intense, even I got hit and I
haven't been this excited in 28 years of
doing this!"
johnson added, about Friday's main
event: "On the second lap, I stalled my
bike, got back going and made it up to
fifth by about the fourth lap when jeff
[Northrop] came up short on a that double after the triple and we came together," johnson said. "He [Northrop] was
able to ride away, but I came down on his
rear fender and "whiskey'd" out of it.
Next thing I know is I'm chasing my bike
across two lanes. I broke the front brake
lever and I had to ride the next 16 laps
with
no front
brake."
Also running
well on Friday, and all
weekend for that matter, was
RockstarlSuzuki's Greg Schnell. Schnell
went 2-2 on the weekend in the AMA
Arenacross class and looks to be up to his
on-paper speed that many predicted early
in the season.
Cooler heads prevailed on Saturday,
but the racing was no less exciting.
johnson opened with a heat-race battle
with the series' other johnson - Kevin and parlayed that momentum into a dominant performance in the 20-lap
Arenacross-c1ass final.
"It seemed on Friday that everything
was happening to everybody else and not
me," Sellards said. "Guys are hitting each
other, Chad stalled, Schnell had a huge
lead and I finally chased him down by lap
140rI5."
But then on Saturday, Sellards' luck
would run out, the end result being a
crash that ended his pursuit of the
leaders.
"I tell ya, I'd be leading this thing
if it wasn't for all the crashes I've
had," Sellards said.
On Saturday, it was johnson
who turned the tables on Sellards,
taking advantage of a poor start by
Sellards (he hung up on the starting gate this time), and staying with
race-leader Schnell before getting
by him on lap five, and eventually
pulling away to a half-track lead by the
checkers. joining johnson and Schnell on
the podium on Saturday was Kevin
78 JANUARY 4,2006 • CYCLE NEWS
johnson, in third.
"I regrouped for Saturday
and told myself I was not going to
get into a situation like I got myself
into on Friday," Chad johnson said.
"Kevin johnson and'l had a great heat
race, which fired me up for the main. I
got like a fifth- or sixth-place start and
was able to get up to Schnell with no real
aggressive passes. I battled past Greg on
lap five and he stayed right there with me
for like three laps, then I was able to pull
away for the win."
Taking top spots in the AMA
Arenacross Utes class were Iowan hot-shot
Cocly Gilmore on Friday and the ageless
wonder jim Chester on Saturday.
CN
METROCENTRE
ROCKFORD, IWNOIS
RESULTS: DECEMIER
(ROUND 4 Of
2-4, 2005
10)
Friday
ARENACROSS, I. 8,oc!< SelIanJs (Hon): 2. G,eg
Schnell (Suz): 3. Jim Neese (Suz): 1. Kevin Johnson