Bobby Kiniry sails to his career-first Arenacross victory on Friday night. Photography by Josh Rud/ShiftOne Photography
AMSOIL Arenacross, featuring Ricky Carmichael’s Road to Supercross, visited the Mohegan Sun Arena in Wilkes-Barre, Pennsylvania, for the fifth stop of the championship, where Bobby Kiniry and Matt Goerke each celebrated career-first wins.
Kiniry got thing started in the Arenacross class with the first main event win on Friday night. The ThermoTec/FMC Racing Yamaha rider grabbed the holeshot and never looked back on his way to the win ahead of Steven Mages and Matt Goerke. In the second main event Kiniry didn’t have it so easy – he selected the full inversion, which reversed the starting order and placed the top riders on the second row of the start. Kiniry battled his way forward after getting out to a 12th-place start, and was only able to move up to sixth at the end of the race. But his 1-6 finish proved to be good enough for the overall win. TiLUBE Husqvarna’s Kyle Regal took the second main event win ahead of Jacob Hayes and Kyle Bitterman, who led the first half of the charge. Regal’s 10th-place finish in the opening main event, however, only allowed him to collect fourth on Friday night. Hayes carded second on the night with his 7-2 score, edging out Husqvarna’s Gavin Faith, who was back in action after an injury at the previous round. Faith’s 4-4 tally tied him in points with Hayes for second overall, but Hayes’ second-place finish in the second main gave him the official runner-up honors.
Saturday night winner Matt Goerke (36) battles his way to victory on Saturday night. Photography by Josh Rud/ShiftOne Photography
On Saturday night it was Goerke’s turn to get things started. After getting out to a second-place start in the first main event, Goerke got to work reeling in Regal for the lead. Goerke closed the gap, and made a move on Regal, only to have Regal immediately counter and take back the lead. Goerke finally made a pass that stuck in a move that caused the two to make contact and pause their momentum. Goerke and Regal both kept it on two wheels, but the hesitation caused Hayes, who had pulled in on the battling duo, to hit the ground. Hayes ended up losing several positions as a result, going from 3rd to a disappointing 8th late in the race.
Goerke went on to take his first main event win of the season followed by Regal and Blose, who rounded out the podium.
In the second main event, it was Regal who grabbed the early lead. This time it was Hayes who moved in to pressure him. Hayes soon made a forceful move to overtake the lead, punting Regal off the track in the process. Hayes held on to the lead and cruised to the main event win ahead of Faith, Blose and Goerke.
Despite his main event win, Hayes had to settle for fifth on the night with his 8-1 finish. Goerke’s 1-4 granted him the win, and allowed him to take a chunk out of Hayes’ lead in the Arenacross championship. Hayes still retains a healthy lead with a 15-point advantage in the championship over Goerke, while Regal sits another 8 points behind in third.
In the Lites Class, riders continue to battle for Eastern Regional supremacy. On Friday night, Steven Mages took his Slaka Wear KTM to his first win of the season. After getting out to a third-place start, Mages quickly worked his way into the lead and stayed there by skillfully negotiating lapped traffic. KTM’s Dave Ginolfi finished second while Suzuki’s Steve Roman collected third.
On Saturday night, Ginolfi continued to stretch his lead in the East, taking the big win and extending his advantage in the championship. Ginolfi finished ahead of Bitterman and Roman, who rounded out Saturday night’s Lites podium.
Arenacross Class Results – Overall (Main Event Finishes) – Friday
1. Bobby Kiniry, Holland Patent, N.Y., Yamaha (1-6)
2. Jacob Hayes, Liberty, N.C., Kawasaki (7-2)
3. Gavin Faith, Fort Dodge, Iowa, Husqvarna (4-4)
4. Kyle Regal, Grand Prairie, Texas, Husqvarna (10-1)
5. Steven Mages, Sardinia, Ohio, KTM (2-10)
6. Travis Sewell, Westville, Ind., KTM (6-7)
7. Kyle Bitterman, West Pelzer, S.C., Honda (13-3)
8. Chris Blose, Phoenix, Ariz., Kawasaki (5-12)
9. Dave Ginolfi, Boston, N.J., KTM (12-5)
10. Matt Goerke, Temecula, Calif., Kawasaki (3-14)
Eastern Regional Arenacross Lites Class Results – Friday
1. Steven Mages, Sardinia, Ohio, KTM
2. Dave Ginolfi, Boston, N.J., KTM
3. Steve Roman, Apollo, Pa., Suzuki
4. Kyle Bitterman, West Pelzer, S.C., Honda
5. Jacob Williamson, Swartz Creek, Mich., Kawasaki
6. Scott Zont, Algonquin, Ill., KTM
7. Cody VanBuskirk, Harvard, Ill., KTM
8. Chase Marquier, Newcastle, Okla., Honda
9. Robert Piazza, Easton, Pa., Honda
10. Brandon Glenn, Mesquite, Texas, KTM
Arenacross Class Results – Overall (Main Event Finishes) – Saturday
1. Matt Goerke, Temecula, Calif., Kawasaki (1-4)
2. Chris Blose, Phoenix, Ariz., Kawasaki (3-3)
3. Gavin Faith, Fort Dodge, Iowa, Husqvarna (5-2)
4. Kyle Regal, Grand Prairie, Texas, Husqvarna (2-6)
5. Jacob Hayes, Liberty, N.C., Kawasaki (8-1)
6. Bobby Kiniry, Holland Patent, N.Y., Yamaha (7-5)
7. Steven Mages, Sardinia, Ohio, KTM (4-9)
8. Travis Sewell, Westville, Ind., KTM (6-8)
9. Willy Browning, Pleasantville, Ohio, KTM (9-7)
10. Cory Green, Nowata, Okla., Suzuki (10-10)
Eastern Regional Arenacross Lites Class Results – Saturday
1. Dave Ginolfi, Boston, N.J., KTM
2. Kyle Bitterman, West Pelzer, S.C., Honda
3. Steve Roman, Apollo, Pa., Suzuki
4. Cody VanBuskirk, Harvard, Ill., KTM
5. Jacob Williamson, Swartz Creek, Mich., Kawasaki
6. Daniel Blair, Lodi, Calif., KTM
7. Brandon Glenn, Mesquite, Texas, KTM
8. Jeremy Hand, Mantua, Ohio, Kawasaki
9. Dave Blanchet, Quebec, Canada, Kawasaki
10. Dylan Rouse, Florence, Ky., KTM
Arenacross Class Points (Race 8 of 20)
1. Jacob Hayes, Liberty, N.C., Kawasaki – 211 (4 Main Event wins)
2. Matt Goerke, Temecula, Calif., Kawasaki – 197 (1 win)
3. Kyle Regal, Grand Prairie, Texas, Husqvarna – 189 (3 wins)
4. Chris Blose, Phoenix, Ariz., Kawasaki – 166 (4 wins)
5. Steven Mages, Sardinia, Ohio, KTM – 163 (1 win)
6. Bobby Kiniry, Holland Patent, N.Y., Yamaha – 159 (1 win)
7. Travis Sewell, Westville, Ind., KTM – 153
8. Willy Browning, Pleasantville, Ohio, KTM – 132
9. Gavin Faith, Fort Dodge, Iowa, Husqvarna – 126 (2 wins)
10. Gared Steinke, Temecula, Calif., KTM – 115
Eastern Regional Arenacross Lites Class Points (After Race 6 of 10)
1. Dave Ginolfi, Boston, N.J., KTM – 88 (2 wins)
2. Steve Roman, Apollo, Pa., Suzuki – 65
3. Daniel Herrlein, Bethesda, Ohio, Honda – 56
4. Scott Zont, Algonquin, Ill., KTM – 48
5. Steven Mages, Sardinia, Ohio, Kawasak – 46 (1 win)
6. Darian Sanayei, Orting, Wash., Kawasaki – 35 (2 wins)
7. Mitchell Harrison, Cairo, Georgia, Kawasaki – 33 (1 win)
8. Dave Blanchet, Quebec, Canada, Kawasaki – 32
9. Jacob Williamson, Swartz Creek, Mich., Kawasaki – 30
10. Dylan Rouse, Florence, Ky., KTM – 30
