Kawasaki's Joe Haavisto started off the 2009 NEATV season with 2 wins

Irvine, CA (4/29/2009) - Kawasaki’s Joe Haavisto earned both the Open Pro and Open Pro-Am overall wins as he started his defense of both No. 1 plates in the New England ATV series. The wins didn’t come without competition as the opening round at Walden MX in Wallkill, N.Y. featured over 25 entries in the Open Pro-Am class, while the Open Pro gate was stacked nearly full with talent.

Competition
The competition has stepped it up for 2009, but Haavisto was able to overcome and win both classes. In the Open Pro, Haavisto battled back and forth for the lead and eventually had to settle for second in the first moto. He came out in the second moto and was able to remain out front and take the overall.

The Open Pro-Am motos were a little different with the first moto running as a qualifier. Haavisto didn’t hesitate and led every lap in the qualifier. In the second moto, Haavisto showed his experience, taking over the lead while the front two riders battled for position.

Joe Haavisto is the 2008 Open Pro and Open Pro-Am class champion

“In the second Pro-Am moto, I didn’t get a great start, but was able to pass pretty quickly,” said Haavisto. “I saw the first and second place riders were bumping and grinding in a corner, so I was able to tuck under them and pass for the lead.”

Great Start
Haavisto’s dominating season in 2008 earned him championships in both the Open Pro and Open Pro-Am classes. With the No. 1 plate on his Kawasaki KFX™450R quad, the target was on Haavisto, but he overcame the pressure from some big names in ATV racing to pull out both wins.

"The first round was great since we had beautiful weather and a big turnout"

“I am thrilled to take both overalls,” said Haavisto. “I hope to keep this going and continue defending my championships in both classes. The competition will be harder this season, but I am looking forward to the challenge. My Kawasaki was really dialed in this weekend and everything seems to be working well together.”

Entries
The opening round in New York saw high entry numbers for the young series. The Open-Pro had to run qualifiers since the entries exceeded 20 riders.

“The first round was great since we had beautiful weather and a big turnout,” said Haavisto. “It really made for an awesome race weekend.”