Another big change to the Pro class William
Yokley making the switch from Kawasaki to Honda
for 2008, and now he is running the stars and
stripes for the Army National Guard along with
his Pro-Am Teammate Mark Notman. Yokley is another
rider who has slimmed down during the off season
and looked to be ready to get back in the thick
of things.
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William Yokley makes the switch to red
for 2008 and brings on Mark Notman to
race in he Pro Am Class for Army National
Guard |
The Yamaha team is of course led by 8 time
GNCC Champion Bill Ballance and is joined this
year by Brandon Sommers. Ballance needs no introduction
as his accomplishments are forever ingrained
in ATV racing history. Sommers has been charging
his way through the ranks of XC racing for the
past few years and now sits poised to learn
from the master as he fine tunes his skills
to one day sit on the Pro championship throne.
Even with the increase in factory support for
Pro ATV racers for 2008, there are still a handful
of racers in the top 10 that remain privateers
with #4 Matt Smiley remaining on the TRX 450R,
but without any Honda support. Also, #8 Bryan
Cook & #19 Santo Derisi remain teamamates
on Honda's as well, and they will also be depending
on the support of aftermarket companies for
their support.
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Matt Smiley was on a mission in 2007 and
he finished out the season with the #4,
but it wasn't enough for a factory deal
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#19
Santo Derisi plans to focus more on his
racing program in 2008 with his sights
set on a top 10 year end number |
Absorbing all the new information about all
the new teams and machines was both exciting
and overwhelming. Even for some of the racers,
the new routines were unfamiliar and it may
take a round or two for everyone to settle in.
For many pro teams, it was a basic continuation
of 2007 as tested and proven machines and set
up’s would win out over the new machines.
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Bryan Baker is back with Polaris for 2008,
but he has made the switch to the straight
axle Outlaw |
#14
Jarrod McClure is back on the Honda, and
he has been riding every day all winter
preparing for he 2008 race season |
