Paul Whibley’s chances of a third straight championship in the Parts Unlimited Off-road Motorcycle and ATV Nationals took a huge leap forward after the Maxxis Hoosier Cross-country National near Bedford, Indiana, on August 29. On a hilly, wooded course made much more difficult by copious amounts of dust along with temperatures in the mid to high 90s, the AmPro/FMF Yamaha racer dominated to triumph for the fifth round in a row while his closest series rival, Scott Watkins, fell off the podium for the first time this season with his sixth-place finish. The points gap between them thus ballooned from seven to 22, Whibley (pictured right) now leading Watkins 204-182 with two rounds remaining.
“It’s definitely good to be back getting some wins under the belt and buffering the points lead now,” the man who won all 10 rounds last year observed.
With no rain in the area for a long time and high temperatures, the terrain in the woods deteriorated into a fine powder as treacherous as any silt bed in Baja. Thus, all knew the start would be crucial, and Whibley fought for first with Jordan Ashburn as they rounded the first turn banging bars. The Monster Energy Kawasaki Team Green racer held firm to the inside, however, and emerged with the $200 K&N Filters Holeshot Award.
But that was about the only time anyone gave Whibley a fight, as he blasted into the lead on the first hill, remaining in front the rest of the way.
His AmPro/FMF Yamaha teammate Thad Duvall, however, had his work cut out for him after a decidedly poorer start. “The first three or four laps, I couldn’t see at all! It was like first, second gear the whole way around,” he said.
But Duvall proved to be one of the very few to make progress through the walls of dust, and he pulled himself up to second place less than an hour into the two-hour event. By then, however, Whibley had enough of a gap that it’d be impossible for Duvall to entertain thoughts of going for the win so he was more than satisfied to claim second, his second consecutive podium finish and his best result since winning round three. Duvall is third in series points at 154, making him the only other rider besides Watkins to have a mathematical shot at the championship.
Ashburn hung on for third with consistent laps that kept him about 30 seconds in front of Watkins’ JG Off-road/GEICO Powersports/Monster Energy Kawasaki teammate Jimmy Jarrett. Remarkably, Jarrett’s fourth place marked his best result since round four when he was runner-up (and where Whibley started his current win streak).
Husaberg’s Nick Fahringer rode to a solitary fifth over Watkins, with Open A winner Zach Klamfoth and Lite A winner Michael Williams next. Pros Cooper Bailey and Shane Klimek rounded out the top 10 overall.
After a busy August with three rounds run during the month, the OMAs now have a short break before round nine in Missouri on September 18-19.
