San Bernardino, CA (2/19/2014) - DWT/Yamaha’s Dustin Nelson scored a pair of moto victories to take the overall win in the first round of the 2014 Yamaha QuadX Series at Glen Helen Raceway in Southern California on Sunday, Feb. 16. In a truly dominating performance, the YFZ450R rider won the first moto by over 10 seconds and the second moto by over 18 seconds, positioning himself as the rider to beat as the eight-round series ramps up. Also aboard a YFZ450R, fellow Yamaha rider Tanner Gemperle grabbed an overall podium with a hard-fought effort, scoring a fourth-place finish in race one and a third in race two. The effort gave Yamaha first and third overall for the day.
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Dustin Nelson grabbed both the holeshot & the win in both Pro Motos at Glen Helen |
Already a five-time series champion, in the first moto Nelson grabbed the holeshot and built up a modest gap over YFZ-mounted Gemperle on first of 10
laps. The advantage grew to over five seconds by the third lap, and to an incredible 15 seconds on lap seven as Gemperle and rival Robbie Mitchell battled for second. Unfortunately on the eight lap Gemperle had issues, allowing Mitchell to move into second. But by then Nelson’s lead was insurmountable, and while still enjoying a healthy gap of over 13 seconds with two laps remaining, he backed off the pace for a solid 10.7-second margin of victory at the checkers.
The second moto gave Dustin another holeshot over Gemperle and Mitchell. While the pair dueled behind him, Nelson used the clear track to build a comfortable lead of over 3.5 seconds by only the second lap. Gemperle held off his rival to make it a 1-2 Yamaha show for more than half the race until Mitchell edged past on the sixth lap. Their long battle allowed Nelson to really escape this time, and he enjoyed an 18-second lead at the finish. “I was really happy with my Yamaha’s ability to put the power down and get both holeshots,” he said. “The handling was good on the slick track – I could ride any line I wanted and the bike was stable sliding across the bumps. It made for an easy day.”
2014
Yamaha Quad-X ATV MX Pro Points |
| Position |
Name |
Points |
| 1 |
Dustin Nelson – Yamaha |
25 |
| 2 |
Robbie Mitchell |
22 |
| 3 |
Tanner Gemperle – Yamaha |
20 |
| 4 |
Colt Brinkerhoff |
16 |
