Cypress, CA (11/3/2014)
- Yamaha capped a record breaking, championship winning
season this year with the new 2014 Yamaha YFZ450R filling podium spots and taking top honors in motocross and cross
country racing. Among the year’s highlights for team blue, Yamaha’s Dustin Nelson celebrated a record sixth
QuadX Series championship, Chad Wienen took his third straight AMA Racing title, and Yamaha received the
AMA Pro ATV Manufacturer’s title for the third year in a row.
“I’m proud to cap off this racing season with my sixth QuadX championship,” Nelson said. “The 2014 YFZ450R
ran flawlessly at every event carrying me all the way to the #1 plate!”
|
Dustin Nelson earned his sixth Quad X Championship aboard his Yamaha YFZ450R
|
Yamaha’s YFZ450R – the highest performance, most technologically advanced sport ATV – received some
significant power and handling updates in 2014. The YFZ450R is assembled in the U.S.A. at Yamaha’s factory in
Newnan, Georgia.
"This year was one of my best yet – the team worked so well together,” Wienen said. “Not only did we win seven
of the nine AMA rounds, we also were able to grab some holeshots and lead from start to finish. This new
Yamaha YFZ450R has helped elevated my game to a whole new level. As for 2015, we are working to keep the
same program that has won three straight championships and ultimately make it four."
|
Chad Wienen won his third AMA ATV Motocross Championship on his Yamaha YFZ450R in 2014
|
Leading Yamaha’s ATV racing efforts in the Grand National Cross Country (GNCC) series, Yamaha’s Walker
Fowler doubled his first-place podiums this year to six and pushed hard to the final race taking second overall and
just missing the top spot by the thinnest of margins in this year’s XC1 class. Cole Richardson captured the XC-2
class Championship aboard his YFZ450R with eight wins on the season.
|
Cole Richardson claimed the 2014 GNCC Racing XC2 Pro-Am Championship on his Yamaha YFZ450R
|
“The amount of times we were rubbing and bouncing off each other was insane,” Fowler said of the season finale
as he battled for the championship. “It was controlled chaos and it was just so cool.”
|
Walker Fowler earned six wins in the 2014 GNCC Racing Season and just missed the GNCC Racing Pro Championship by .203 of a second
|
Yamaha’s Thomas Brown grabbed five podiums in the AMAATV Motocross Racing Series with a first and second place finish at
Amsoil ATV Showdown at Sunset Ridge and NYCM Insurance National at Unadilla, respectively. Just missing
second place overall by two points, Brown took third place overall for 2014.
|
Thomas Brown finished the 2014 AMA ATV Motocross Racing Season with five podium finishes on his Yamaha YFZ450R
|
“I had a great program – awesome team members and a bullet proof quad – and we were pumped to be on the
podium so many times this year,” Brown said. “I'm already getting excited for next year and look forward to
building on our momentum and grabbing more wins!”
Yamaha continues to lead the sport ATV market in sales, championships and support. This year has seen
extended trackside support for all ATV racers at each stop of the AMA ATV nationals. Layne Barnes and Pro
Motorsports from Mt. Pleasant, Iowa, supported all of the events on behalf of Yamaha stocking replacement parts
and providing technical assistance to riders on race days. Yamaha, the number one brand in sport ATVs, also
supports racers in the Grand National Cross Country series, World Off-Road Championship Series and Yamaha
Quad-X Series.
Follow more Yamaha racing at www.facebook.com/yamahamotorusa and
www.twitter.com/yamahaatvracing