Motoworks/Can-Am DS450 ATV
Racer John Natalie Wins High Point
AMA
ATV MX Championship - Round 6 - High Point Raceway
- June 16, 2012
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John
Natalie took the overall win at AMA ATV
MX High Point Raceway Round 6 |
Valcourt, Québec (6/19/2012)
- Motoworks / Can-Am® DS 450™ racer and
Pennsylvania native John Natalie won the ATV Pro
class overall at round six of the 2012 AMA ATV Motocross
National Championship Series at High Point Raceway
in Mt. Morris, Pa. Despite feeling sick, Natalie,
the defending AMA ATV MX Champion, notched 1-2 moto
finishes on his way to his second consecutive series
victory. Motoworks / Can-Am teammate Joel Hetrick
finished fifth overall to retain his third place
spot in the Pro class rankings. “I can’t
say enough about the effort put in by defending
national champion John Natalie. He put his Motoworks
/ Can-Am DS 450 out front in both motos and pushed
through fatigue and sickness to post another big
victory for both himself and our team,”
said Jimmie O’Dell, Race Manager, Can-Am.
“John could have easily coasted out there,
but he proved he’s determined to repeat
as the AMA ATV MX Champion and that nothing’s
going to stand in his way. Joel Hetrick had a
good weekend, too, earning the fastest qualifier
award, yet again, leading both motos, and earning
another top-five finish despite a few issues in
each moto.”
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John
Natalie grabbed Moto 1 Holeshot on his Can-Am
DS450 ATV |
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#88
Joel Hetrick was awarded the ATVriders.com
Fastest Qualifier Award |
In the first moto, Natalie grabbed the holeshot
and jumped out to early lead, as his teammate
Hetrick was right behind him. By lap three, Hetrick
had passed Natalie for the lead. He held that
spot for two full laps before dropping to seventh
at one point due to a broken throttle housing
after a hard landing on a downhill triple jump.
Hetrick’s misfortune allowed Natalie to
regain the moto-one lead and the defending champion
held it to the end to notch his third straight
moto victory and put himself in contention for
the race overall. Hetrick pitted to have the throttle
assembly repaired and he came back strong to pick
off three racers for an impressive fourth-place
finish in the first Pro moto.
The second Pro class moto Natalie and Hetrick
were both in the top five after the first lap.
After the race leader went off the track, Hetrick
moved into second behind Natalie. One lap later,
Hetrick posted the fastest lap of the race and
took over the lead as Natalie dropped to third.
However, during lap six, Hetrick fell to third
due to a mechanical issue and that allowed Natalie
to regain second place. Natalie chose to ride
smart and remain in second place, knowing he had
the overall wrapped up. His 1-2 moto scores were
good for race overall and his second consecutive
Pro class victory. He’s now just 13 points
out of first place with four rounds remaining
on the season.
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John
Natalie stayed on the gas until the finish
despite not feeling that well |
“I haven't been feeling too hot the past
few days and I'm not going to lie, there were
times out there when I felt like giving up,”
said Natalie. “The biggest thing that kept
me going was hearing the fans cheering as we went
by. That was amazing and couldn't have made it
through without them."
Hetrick battled the rest of the race to remain
in the top five. His machine suffered from a damaged
ignition coil connector wire, which resulted in
a loss of power. However, his two moto finishes
were good for fifth place overall on the weekend
and maintained his current third-place position
in the Pro class point standings.
Can-Am X-Team racer Cole Henry earned third place
overall in the Pro-Am Unlimited class, while his
younger brother Chase took the overall win in
the Production A. Other Amateur Can-Am racers
who posted class wins during the weekend were
Travis Spader (Open A, 4-Stroke A, Junior 25+),
Merrill Crose (Vet 30+) and C.J. Dollarhide (Open
B).
The 2012 AMA ATV MX series resumes with round
seven June 29 to July 1 at Sunday Creek in Millfield,
Ohio. For more information on Can-Am racing, the
entire 2012 schedule, the ’12 contingency
program and DS 450 amateur racer support program,
please visit www.can-amxteam.com.
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