“RAD” CHAD JOHNSON SWEEPS OPENING ROUND
03 November 2005 - AMA Pro Racing

Shawn Clark takes AX Lites class, series moves to Des Moines, Iowa this weekend

Yamaha-backed “Rad” Chad Johnson captured victory in the premier AMA Arenacross class at the opening round of the Toyota AMA National Arenacross Series, putting up convincing wins on both Friday and Saturday night at Albany’s (N.Y.) Pepsi Arena.

This weekend the Toyota AMA National Arenacross Series heads west to Des Moines’ brand new Wells Fargo Arena for round two of the series (Nov. 4-6).

Johnson, who hails from Rhinelander, Wis., was the third place overall placer in last year’s AMA Arenacross class (formerly 250cc class). Both nights in Albany from the podium he credited hard work over the summer with mechanic/race advisor Junior Jackson as the foundation for his dominant performance.

“I did do a bit better than I expected,” said Johnson. “Junior (Jackson) and I worked very hard over the last several months to prepare for the opener here in Albany. I felt great coming in, but had set my goal to just make the podium. Winning both main events was great. Our hard work paid off.”

Johnson’s run away win on Friday would come a bit easier than his win on Saturday. To get to the front, he had to pass race veteran Brock Sellards (Thor/Honda/Tuf Racing) several times in the early going of the race, but was able to pull away at the mid point and keep a comfortable buffer between he and Sellards by handling the whoops and lappers better than Sellards.

“I’m not really used to racing arenacross again, but I did my best,” said Sellards. “I rode consistently, but not on the edge like I’d have liked to. Chad’s pretty fast, fast in the whoops. He’s a notch ahead of me right now.” (Note: Albany was Sellards’ first arenacross in ten years.)

Also putting in an admirable performance – despite a nagging knee injury – was crowd favorite John “Junkyard” Dowd (Moose Racing/Suzuki). The 40-year old Ludlow, Mass., native was on the podium both nights, holding Sellards off for second place on Friday and running hard for a well-earned third place on Saturday.

“I did a little better than I expected,” said Dowd. “With all the rain up here I haven’t had much time to ride. They (Clear Channel’s track builder Rigg Hipps) actually did a great job putting the track together considering how wet the soil was when they got here.” (Note: Dowd ought to know track building; he supplements his racing by developing property with the heavy equipment he owns.)

In AMA Arenacross Lites action, Shawn Clark (Unbound/VRM/Kawasaki) came out on top of a couple early-race battles with Damian Plotts, winning both Lites events going away.

“Track looked good both nights, I rode really smooth and was able to hold on for the win both nights,” said Clark. “Once I got up front and was able to check out I tried to ride every little line out there in order to conserve speed for the 250 (Arenacross) main. Yeah, so overall it was a really good weekend.”

Toyota AMA National Arenacross Series Friday Podium:

AMA Arenacross Class AMA Arenacross Lites Class

1.) Chad Johnson (Yamaha) 1.) Shawn Clark (Kawasaki)

2.) John Dowd (Suzuki) 2.) Damian Plotts (Kawasaki)

3.) Brock Sellards (Honda) 3.) Jim Chester (Suzuki)

Toyota AMA National Arenacross Series Saturday Podium:

AMA Arenacross Class AMA Arenacross Lites Class

1.) Chad Johnson (Yamaha) 1.) Shawn Clark (Kawasaki)

2.) Brock Sellards (Honda) 2.) Damian Plotts (Kawasaki)

3.) John Dowd (Suzuki) 3.) Kevin Markwardt (Suzuki)

Next race: Des Moines (Iowa) Nov. 4-6.

www.amaproracing.com

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