AMA ATV Motocross Nationals Round #2 - Muddy Creek MX Blountville, TN April 5, 2014

The “Ironman” John Natalie Jr, came out swinging in moto one by grabbing the holeshot with his RAGE ATV engine, and despite some serious pressure from Chad Wienen, Natalie held onto the lead from start to finish to secure his second straight moto win.

John Natalie grabbed the Moto One holeshot & lead from start to finish for the win

Natalie came out third in moto two, which is where he stayed for the entire moto. Natalie’s third place finish in moto two secured Natalie the second spot on the podium once again with a 3-1 finish. Natalie’s two second place finishes to start the season behind Wienen is exactly how the season started in both 2011 and 2012, and in 2011, Natalie went on to win his second championship with Wienen winning the championship in 2012, so it will be real interesting to see how things play out for Natalie in his home state of Pennsylvania for round three at Highpoint.

John Natalie held off Chad Wienen in moto one despite some really tight racing

Josh Upperman got off to a less than stellar start to the season with seventh overall finish at Aonia Pass, but he obviously put in some work training and dialing in his Honda over the past two weeks in Florida as he charged his way from a mid-pack start to moto one to finish in the fourth spot.

Josh Upperman finished 4th in Moto One

In Moto two, Upperman grabbed the SSi Decals Holeshot, but he dropped back to second before the end of the first lap, which is where he stayed for the remainder of the moto for a 4-2 finish, which earned Upperman the final spot on the Pro ATV Motocross Podium.

Josh Upperman grabbed the Moto 2 Holeshot & held on for a 2nd place finish

Can-Am’s Joel Hetrick charged his way to a third place finish in Moto One, and he appeared to be in the running for another podium finish until Hetrick and Brown got together with Hetrick dropping back to tenth after running in fourth in the first half of the race. Hetrick was able to move back up to seventh place by the checkered flag, which earned him fourth overall on the weekend, which has him third in the championship points race.

Joel Hetrick salvaged a fourth overall finish after a wreck in moto two

JB Racing’s Jeffrey Rastrelli matched his best overall finish at Aonia Pass with sixth place, and he raised the bar a notch at Muddy Creek with his career first top five overall finish after finishing fifth in both pro motos, which also has him fifth in points for a great start to the 2014 season.

Jeffrey Rastrelli finished a career best 5th place overall at Muddy Creek