Nate Adams, Mark Burkhart and Scott Murray Win Gold at the Navy Moto X World Championships
The Inaugural Event Kicks Off with Speed, Style & the Return of the Double Backflip
The inaugural Navy Moto X World Championships began today with live competition in Best Trick, SuperMoto and Speed & Style where some of the world's best motocross stars competed at Qualcomm Stadium at day one of the two-day event. This marks the first time that a weekend is dedicated to a single X Games sport where six motocross disciplines are celebrated. ESPN and ESPN2 will air eight hours of live coverage of the Moto X World Championships April 12 and 13 - all available in high definition on ESPN HD and ESPN2 HD. Extensive additional coverage will be provided via ESPN360.com and EXPN.com.
Best Trick
The day belonged to Scott Murray as he stuck a near flawless double backflip, redeeming himself after his failed attempt at last summer's X Games - his first professional competition. Despite all the buzz and two unsuccessful attempts from Kyle Loza with his new trick, "Electric Death," it was Murray - only the second rider to successfully land a double backflip on dirt - who won gold with the high score of 95.08. "Everybody was bringing such big tricks," said Murray. "The double backflip is two years old now, so I wanted to show everyone that I could do it. I first landed it on dirt in November 2007 and today was the second. I'm happy to have it over with."
Thomas Pages of Biarritz, France took home the silver with a score of 92.60, while Todd Potter of Temecula, Calif. finished third with a 91.80.
SuperMoto
The reigning X Games 13 gold medalist and 2007 AMA SuperMoto champion, Mark Burkhart, continued his domination of the SuperMoto discipline as he charged through the field from a ninth place start to win gold. After a less than ideal start, Burkhart began to pick riders off, making up ground with triples and focusing on the asphalt. Burkhart eventually surpassed Troy Herfoss who ended up with silver and Jeff Ward with bronze.
"I tried concentrating on the asphalt, because I felt I could make up time there," said Burkhart. "The triples also helped me gain a lot and I made sure to make good passes."
Speed & Style
With a field loaded with top freestyle and racing talent, it was anybody's game. At the end of the day, it was seven-time X Games medalist Nate Adams who stood on top of the podium. Beating out Ronnie Renner with a final score of 94.50, Adams a dominant freestyle rider, surprised even himself with his racing ability. "I can't believe it. I had no expectations going in and got lucky a bit," said Adams. "It's so important for us to use racing and freestyle together and we should continue to make it one big industry. It was an awesome event."
Jeremy "Twitch" Stenberg beat out Kevin Johnson, predominantly known as a racer, to round out the podium with a bronze.
Step Up Final (Part 1)
Defending X Games 13 Moto X Racing gold medalist and 10-time AMA Motocross Champion, Ricky Carmichael, showcased his versatility by excelling in the Step Up competition clearing the bar with a height of 29 feet. Carmichael once again demonstrated why he is one of the greatest riders, as he and Jeremy "Twitch" Stenberg advanced to the Step Up Final (Part 2) competition scheduled for tomorrow, April 13, where winner will take all.
ESPN and ESPN2 will continue its live coverage of the Moto X World Championships, tomorrow, April 13 - all available in high definition on ESPN HD and ESPN2 HD.
Day two tickets, featuring Moto X Freestyle, Step Up Final (Part 2) and Moto X Racing are available for $10, $20 and $25, with free pit access included in the $20 and $25 tickets. A military discount will be offered - $5 discount from a $25 ticket and $3 discount from a $20 ticket.
For Moto X World Championships media information, including press releases, logos and additional images, log on to
http://www.espneventmedia.com/.
