Team Babbitt’s Matt Goerke Emerges from the Fray as AMSOIL Arenacross Points Leader Heading into Colorado Springs - Speedway Digest

Through three nights of action, the 2015 AMSOIL Arenacross, featuring Ricky Carmichael’s Road to Supercross, has been as unpredictable as ever. Three different riders have walked away with an overall victory, and attrition has already claimed some of the biggest title hopefuls in the Arenacross Class. Through it all, Team Babbitt’s Monster Energy Kawasaki’s Matt Goerke has stayed consistent and kept himself out of trouble to emerge as the championship leader heading into this weekend’s third round of action from Colorado Springs, Colorado, at Broadmoor World Arena.

AMSOIL Arenacross’ first ever visit to “The Springs” will feature the second straight weekend with back-to-back nights of competition on Friday, January 23, and Saturday, January 24. As evidenced this past weekend, that means anything can happen and the points could once again experience a major shift. The action gets underway for both nights at 6 p.m. PT / 7 p.m. MT / 9 p.m. ET.

This past weekend in Grand Rapids, Michigan, the hometown Babbitt’s squad carried the momentum following an impressive opening round in which it swept the overall podium. However, both Chris Blose, who entered the weekend as the points leader, and Zach Ames, who sat just two points behind Blose in second, were both forced out of competition following some misfortune. That left the door open for another rider to take control of the Arenacross Class standings and while fellow Team Babbitt’s rider Jacob Hayes made the first statement on Friday night by taking the win, it was Goerke who’s incredible consistency over the course of two nights allowed him to open a significant advantage in the points heading into Colorado Springs.

Goerke was a picture of consistency in Grand Rapids, posting three podium finishes out of the four Main Events. Despite coming away with considerably more fortune than his teammates and a large portion of the Arenacross Class field, Goerke still wasn’t void of some hard luck of his own. The Florida native was in full control of the first Main Event on Saturday when the Husqvarna TiLUBE TUF Racing machine of Kyle Regal flew into his path following an incident between Regal and Hayes, who were battling for fourth at the time. While Goerke was able to avoid catastrophe by not making contact with the bike, his evasive actions still forced him into the wall and onto the ground, facing in the wrong direction. Fortunately for Goerke, he was able to remount and get going in the right direction quickly, but not before Husqvarna TiLUBE TUF Racing’s Gavin Faith took over the lead. Faith went on to win the first Main Event, with Goerke recovering to finish second.

Faith’s strong performance continued in the second Main Event in which he capitalized on the momentum from his victory to finish second and secure the first overall win of his career. As for Goerke, he showed his resiliency and battled through the field from an 11^th-place start to just miss out on the podium in fourth. That come-from-behind effort proved to be the key to Goerke’s ability to take over sole possession of the points lead and bring a 16-point lead into Colorado Springs.

Despite some misfortune of his own on Saturday night, in which he followed up his Friday night win with an 11^th-place effort on Saturday, Hayes remains second in the championship standings. A strong weekend by Slaka Wear KTM’s Steven Mages, highlighted by a win in the final Main Event on Saturday, has moved him into a tie for third place with TZR Woodstock KTM’s Travis Sewell.

The two riders who sat atop the Arenacross Class points coming into Grand Rapids – Blose and Ames – are now eighth and 14^th, respectively. Blose was able to soldier his way to a an eighth-place finish on Friday in Michigan, but the effects of some big crashes through the first two weeks of the season left him getting treatment at a local hospital for severe bruising and general trauma to his back and side. Blose fully expects to be back on the gate this weekend. As for Ames, his status remains undetermined after a crash in practice on Friday afternoon left him sidelined for the entirety of the weekend. The title contender is hopeful he can get back into action and will be on track if he gets even the slightest green light to ride.

After such an up-and-down weekend for a large portion of the Arenacross Class field, it’s anyone’s guess as to what will take place in Colorado Springs. Faith’s big win on Saturday surely added to the complexity of this wide open championship battle and it is likely that the parity AMSOIL Arenacross has enjoyed thus far in 2015 will continue this weekend.

The debut inside Broadmoor World Arena will also kick off the opening round of the Western Regional Arenacross Lites Class Championship. In the first three nights of Eastern Regional competition the rising stars of the Road to Supercross grabbed the spotlight, winning all three Main Events thus far. The Monster Energy Kawasaki Team Green tandem of Darian Sanayei and Mitchell Harrison have both proven they have the speed to be successful in the pro ranks and the Western Regional opener in Colorado Springs provides another opportunity for another Road to Supercross star to step into the forefront and make his presence felt.

The third round of AMSOIL Arenacross kicks off in Colorado Springs this Friday night, January 23^rd, and continues on Saturday, January 24^th, inside Broadmoor World Arena. Racing begins at 6 p.m. PT / 9 p.m. ET.

Tickets for each round of AMSOIL Arenacross are on sale now!

The entire AMSOIL Arenacross season will air on FOX Sports 1, including re-airs on Fox Sports 2.

Live timing and scoring from each round of the AMSOIL Arenacross season returns for the 2014 season! To follow the intense racing action live, log onto www.Arenacross.com.

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Adam Sinclair

NHRA, IHRA, Motocross and other forms of motorsports Staff writer
About Me: Adam has been a race fan since the first time he went through the tunnel under the Daytona International Speedway almost 30 years ago. He has had the privilege of travelling to races all across the state of Florida (as well as one race in Ohio), watching nearly everything with a motor compete for fame and glory, as well as participating in various racing schools to get the feel of what racecar drivers go through every week. Adam has spent the last three years covering motorsports for Examiner.com., where he had the opportunity to see the racing world from behind the scenes as well as the grandstands. He invites everyone to follow him on Twitter, Facebook, and Google Plus, and looks forward to sharing his enthusiasm for all things racing with the readers of SpeedwayDigest.com.Be sure to tune in for his weekly sports talk program, Thursday Night Thunder, where he discusses the latest in motorsports news with drivers, crew members, and fans. The show takes place every Thursday at 8:00 pm EST on the Speedway Digest Radio Network.