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Yamaha YFZ450R Racer
Dustin Nelson 2009 ITP QuadCross Champion
Yamaha / ITP Quadcross -
Round 9 - Glen Helen - San Bernadino, CA
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Yamaha's
Dustin Nelson with his championship plate,
along with Donnie Luce and Justin Noss |
San Bernadino, CA (11/23/2009) -In
a dramatic come-from-behind season finale, aboard
his Yamaha YFZ450R, Dustin Nelson took the overall
win and his third career ITP QuadCross title at
Glen Helen Raceway in San Bernardino, Calif. on
Sunday, Nov. 22. He did it in fine style too, posting
1-2 moto finishes to claw his way past series points
leader Jeremie Warnia and take the championship.
The impressive Nelson has now earned the ITP QuadCross
Pro title three out of the last four years, proving
emphatically that Yamaha is the ATV brand to beat
in QuadCross competition. Adding to the luster,
Justin Noss finished up the season in third place
on his own YFZ450R, with Jason Dunkleberger in fourth
to make it three Yamahas in the overall top five.
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Nelson
trailed Jeremie Warnia by 3 points going
into the final round, meaning he needed
the overall win to take the title |
The pressure was really on Nelson as race day got
underway. Trailing Warnia by three points coming
into the final round meant Nelson needed to get
the overall win to lock his rival out of the title
hunt. For the first of two 10-lap motos he slotted
his YFZ450R into one of the middle gates and then
rocketed into the first turn side by side with Chase
Snapp, with rival Warnia back in fourth place. However
Nelson soon grabbed the lead and opened up a gap
of several seconds while Warnia battled among the
other frontrunners, eventually finishing the race
in fourth position.
Although Nelson's first-moto win gave him some
breathing room, he still had to beat Warnia in
the second moto to take the title. And it was
clear his rival was going to make this difficult
as Nelson got through the first turn only in fifth,
with Warnia up ahead in third.
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Nelson
stayed right with Warnia, until Warnia had
spun out and stalled midway, which gave
Nelson the lead he needed to take the 2009
ITP QuadCross title |
With the title on the line, both riders charged
toward the front, arriving at the halfway point
in second and third, respectively. Nelson climbed
right up to Warnia's rear bumper before a mistake
cost him several seconds - a potential nightmare
for the title. But he gathered himself together,
advanced once again and then found Warnia had spun
and stalled midway through the last lap, handing
the lead, win and title to Nelson. "I'm really
happy and excited that all of our hard work paid
off in another championship for Yamaha," he
said. "On today's rough high-speed track, the
YFZ450R's handling and power just shone through."
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2009
Yamaha / ITP QuadCross Pro Points (11/22/2009) |
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1 Dustin Nelson - Yamaha
206
2 Jeremie Warnia 196
3 Justin Noss - Yamaha 174
4 Jason Dunkleberger - Yamaha 141
5 Evan Spooner 127 |
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