FLY
ATV Supercross
Daytona International Speedway
Daytona, Florida
March 8, 2016
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2016 Daytona ATV Supercross
Pro Race Report
::Continued::
PEP’s John Natalie Jr made his return to ATV
MX competition this year after suffering a near
career-ending crash last year that resulted rib
fractures and a collapsed lung. In addition, the
man they call “Iron Man” was suffering from a
joint infection just prior to this race, which
has had him down for nearly the past month.
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Maxxis'
John Natalie Jr grabbed the Holeshot by
edging out Chad Wienen into the first turn |
“I still took that Baldwin motor and pulled the
holeshot,” said Natalie Jr. “I’ve been laid up
for almost three weeks with a bad infection in
my left knee and the medication is really taking
its toll on me. Sitting around not doing anything
also took its toll. I just wasn’t in the kind
if shape I needed to be in to go out there and
win. But I don’t like to throw out excuses. I
need to go back, do my homework and come back
stronger.
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Maxxis'
Joel Hetrick challenged John Natalie Jr
early on in the race before he collided
into the rear of Natalie jr & went over
the bars, which took Hetrick out of the
race |
“I’m extremely excited to be back,” added Natalie
Jr. “This is the first race in years that made
me nervous. It felt good to be nervous again.
This is nothing I can’t overcome. This was a championship
finish.”
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John
Natalie Jr secured a point in the SSi Declas
Holeshot Award along with a $100 Bell Holeshot
Award |
Maxxis’ David Haagsma made his first start in
the Daytona ATV Supercross and will be contesting
the entire 2016 ATV MX season. The veteran Pro
WORCS racer said he had trouble with his race
setup, a mistake he won’t make again.
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ELKA's
David Haagsma got off to a mid pack start,
which forced him to work his way up through
the pack |
“I didn’t have the suspension setup for the track;
I thought they were going to groom it before the
main, so that kind of put me at a deficit,” said
Haagsma. “This is good momentum for the season.
I could have been way worse, so I’ll take it.
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Maxxis'
David Haagsma made the pass on Brett Musick
& moved into the top five, which he
held to the finish for a great start to
the season |
“I’m really pumped to do the whole series,” continued
Haagsma. “I have a couple of tracks coming up
that I really like, including the next round in
Texas. We’re going to get home, train and get
ready for it. The whole team is awesome. Everyone
in it and everyone backing us, is superb. This
is going to be a great year.”
The AMA ATV Motorcross National Championship
presented by CST Tires moves next to Underground
MX in Kemp, TX April 9-10th
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