#ThomasBrown

Chad Wienen and Thomas Brown celebrate a successful ATV Motocross Season.

Yamaha Racing’s Chad Wienen captured his third straight AMA Pro ATV MX Series Championship last weekend, and his Yamaha and Wienen Motorsports teammate Thomas Brown took third overall for the season.

The pair have been riding their YFZ450Rs to the top of the podium all season capping 2014 with first and third place finishes at the finale at Loretta Lynn’s Ranch in Hurricane Mills, Tenn., on Saturday, August 9. Wienen scored 1-2 on the day for an overall win, while Brown grabbed 2-3 giving him third overall at Loretta’s.

Following a banner season in 2013, the Yamaha ATV Racing team is off to a strong start in 2014 topping podiums and leading three major series across the country.

Reigning back-to-back AMA ATV champion Chad Wienen won the season opener at Aonia Pass MX atop his YFZ450R, while teammate Thomas Brown, who placed second overall in the 2013, finished fifth.

“We had good starts in both moto’s last weekend, and that was key — the track didn’t allow for much passing,” says Wienen. “My new Wienen Motorsports YFZ450R was working great. We’re very happy to come out with the win and start the season off with the red plate.”

In conjunction with its annual Feed the Children food drop, Yamaha announced its 2014 ATV race team.

As part of the seven-hour celebration at Yamaha’s Southern California headquarters, employees enjoyed meeting past and present Yamaha racers including two-time AMA ATV National Champion Chad Wienen. Wienen was one of a number of 2013 Yamaha champions on hand including motorcycle racing champions Josh Herrin, Cameron Beaubier, Jessica Patterson and Tomas Puerta. Past Yamaha champions and racing legends Gary Jones and Kenny Roberts were honored for all of their success and contributions to the motorsports industry and specifically to Yamaha.

The world’s top ATV motocross racers head to Walnut, Ill. for the Sunset Ridge ATVMX National this weekend, round five of the 2013 Mtn. Dew ATV Motocross National Championship, sanctioned by AMA

Defending champion and current points leader Chad Wienen (Wienen Motorsports SSi Walsh Yamaha presented by Maxxis Tires & Team Vollmer) is looking for his third straight overall victory in front of his hometown crowd this weekend in Illinois. Wienen has historically performed well in front of friends, family and fans at his local track, winning in 2011 and 2012.

Two-time National Champion Joe Byrd has proven to be a contender every weekend after finishing second overall with a 5-2 score last round. The Joe Byrd Quad Riding School Dasa rider sits inside the top ten overall in series points and the 40-year-old Tennessee native is always a threat to the race wins.

After celebrating Chad Wienen’s AMA Pro ATV Motocross championship, Wienen Motorsports is aggressively expanding its race team for the 2013 season.

“I’m excited for the 2013 season, not only am I looking forward to defending my 2012 AMA ATV Pro MX National Championship but I am excited about bringing fellow Pro rider Thomas Brown underneath the Wienen Motorsports team,” says Wienen. “This season Wienen Motorsports will also be sponsoring Pro-Am rider Bryan Vollmer and Pro-Am/A Class rider Jordan Dummett.”

Thomas Brown is entering his fifth year as a Pro in the AMA Pro ATV Motocross Champion. He has been racing for thirteen years and was a very accomplished amateur rider. He has finished in the top five overall the past two years in the AMA Pro class and has several podiums to his name. In 2012 Brown only finished out of the top five once and claimed second place at the Montreal Supercross behind Wienen.

Yamaha riders Chad Wienen and Thomas Brown headed north of the border with their YFZ450Rs to compete in the 2012 Montreal Supermotocross in Quebec this past weekend. Wienen took home the victory, while Brown finished second in front of 40,000 race fans.

Four of the top five U.S. national ATV motocross racers competed along with top Canadians. Wienen, who won his first Montreal Supermotocross back in 2009, capped a dream season after winning the AMA Pro ATV championship this year following a severe injury in 2011.

“The competition was definitely stacked this year,” says Wienen. “This is the final big race of the year. It’s always good to win there, and it can set the tone for next season. We went up there and showed them we were on the gas.”

Brown, who finished fifth in the AMA series this year, had the fastest qualifying time in Quebec and chased Wienen throughout the 12-lap main to take second.

Round 5 of the AMA ATV Motocross National Championship Series heads to Oakland, Ky. this weekend for the first-ever race under the lights at the Ballance Moto X facility. This year’s championship battle in the ATV Pro class has been one of the ages, literally. The top five contenders in this year’s title run range from ages 19 all the way to 36.

Defending champ and ATVMX veteran John Natalie holds the coveted number one plate this season after proving to be the most dominant racer of 2011. The elder statesman of the group, Natalie is quickly realizing that the ever-evolving sport of ATV racing is now piloted by a youthful generation. Especially Natalie’s newest Motoworks/Can-Am teammate Joel Hetrick, who has shown bursts of speed with two overall wins in his 2011 rookie season, in addition to his overall victory in Round 3 this year. Nineteen-year-old Hetrick is the only rider – besides points leader Chad Wienen – to take home an overall win this season.

Yamaha’s ATV Race Teams have been claiming podiums this season at the nation’s top racing series from East to West. With returning champions and strong challengers on blue, Yamaha riders have seen success in Grand National Cross Country (GNCC), QuadX and AMA ATV Motocross Championship racing and are poised to capture titles in motocross and cross country action.

“We have a great group of racers who are doing spectacular things on the tracks and trails aboard their YFZ450Rs and YFZ450Xs,” says Donnie Luce, Yamaha ATV/Off-Road racing coordinator. “While there are fewer factory programs this year, the competition is still extremely tough – our racers are showing their talents and stamina pushing harder and faster. Yamaha is deeply ingrained in ATV racing, and we’re excited to see how the rest of the 2011 season plays out.”

Here’s a look at Yamaha’s 2011 ATV team through mid-August:

Thomas Brown battled with some of the world’s top motocross racers in the AMA ATV Motocross Championship series finishing a personal best fourth place overall for the year. After a rough start, Brown rose in the ranks capturing three second place podium finishes.

“Thomas has risen through the AMA ATV ranks, and he’s proved he is a rider to be reckoned with in this series,” Luce said.

The 4th Annual Heartland Challenge presented by GBC Motorsports took Carlisle, Iowa by storm this year. Great weather and great track conditions made this year’s event a fun and exciting weekend full of racing for all in attendance.

Andy Kyner and his IATVHSS (Iowa ATV Hare Scramble Series) team did a fantastic job with all aspects of the event, receiving rave reviews from riders and spectators alike. The course itself offered up a variety of terrain, including tight technical sections with frequent elevation changes, long and fast straight-aways through the heartland’s farm fields, and motocross-style whoops and jumps. The “Heartland Challenge” section is of course the defining feature of this event, in which competitors must negotiate a variety of obstacles.

GBC Motorsports was out in full force for the event, with its full line of ATV and UTV products on display. GBC showcased its new Kanati truck tire throughout the weekend. There was an impressive roster on vendor’s row, including PIAA lighting, which provided an array of products to help with the nighttime portion of the event, as well as C&D ATV.

The first event of the weekend was Friday night’s UTV challenge. The four-hour endurance race saw Team Elias narrowly beat out Team Coastal/Yokely Racing, with Team Extreme rounding out the podium. The Open UTV class podium was comprised of Team Coastal/Yokely Racing, Team Extreme and Team Donkey. The 850 Mod class saw overall winners Team Elias on top, followed by Team Galloping Zebra and Team LM1. Team I Love Hooters, Team D&S Racing and Team A-Team were the top three finishers in the 850 limited class.

Proving once again that endurance racing is not just for adults, Saturday morning’s three-hour youth challenge gave teams of young riders the opportunity to compete on much of the same terrain as their older and more experienced counterparts. When the checkered flag flew it was Team Dirtworks taking the overall win, with Team NA in second and Team Extreme in third.

Later on Saturday, 54 teams finished their preparations and lined up for a Le Mans style start, in which riders dashed 20 yards before firing up their quads and heading out on the course. After 10 hours of racing, defending champions Team Ballance Racing Yamaha (Kiser, Fowler and Brown) once again claimed the $6,000 top prize, putting on an impressive display of riding in the process. Team Woodhead (Wolf, Ockerman and Henthorn) finished second overall for the second consecutive year while Team Sweet Home Alabama (Pickens, Gallagher and Cecco) rounded out the podium in third.