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NEW MAJOR PLAYER IN THE MONSTER JAM WORLD
Scott Douglass
So, was it a one night wonder or have we just witnessed the arrival of a new major player in the monster jam world?
So, was it a one night wonder or have we just witnessed the arrival of a new major player in the monster jam world? That is the biggest question following the opening event of the new Speed Channel Monster Jam season last month in Montreal. I’m referring to Lindsey Weenk, who stunned an all-star line-up by driving the Iron Outlaw Ford Expedition to the racing win in Olympic Stadium. My best guess is that Weenk will be a top contender throughout the season. He has already shown his ability as a driver and Jimmy and Dawn Creten's 2Xtreme Racing is putting this young talent in first class equipment. In Montreal he proved he knows how to drive top-level machinery. Weenk's monumental night in Montreal did not come easy. He had to beat 2004 World Champion Dennis Anderson and Grave Digger in the semifinals, which he did in an exciting race to set up a showdown with his boss, Creten and Bounty Hunter in the finals. After his disappointing semifinal loss to the newcomer Anderson, always a class act, walked over to the 2Xtreme pit to congratulate Weenk and then warned Creten "don't look so happy - he's got you next." Anderson turned out to be a prophet when Weenk turned in one more stellar run, powering Iron Outlaw to victory in the finale over Bounty Hunter. Even though he was Weenk’s victim in the finals it was proof that Jimmy’s confidence in his budding star is well placed. Before he hired Weenk to join 2Xtreme “I ran against Lindsey and saw his potential” Creten remembered. “He’s awesome. I see a lot of myself in Lindsey. I feel like with some good equipment he has the potential to be one of the best, and I’m able to provide him with that equipment and it’s a great opportunity for him.” Lindsey’s big break is partly due to good timing. When he joined the Creten’s last year “he wanted the opportunity to be the best, to be on TV, to run against the best” Creten said. “But he had to wait last year with Dawn driving Scarlet Bandit in the televised shows and making the World Finals. So he crewed for us last year and waited until his opportunity came, and the timing has been just right. It’s all worked out. I mean Dawn and I knew that we were going to try for another baby, so once she got pregnant Lindsey got his opportunity.” By the way, Jimmy added that his lovely wife is doing great these days. We wish her nothing but the best, but we’ll all miss her and Scarlet Bandit a bunch in the upcoming season. Weenk clearly is handling his ascension into the spotlight quite well already. “He’s always wanted to step up to the top level, but this is all new to him” Creten continued. “I mean when we got to Montreal he had only seen Dennis run on TV. He had never raced him before, actually he had never even met him before. He is a young gun who I think can run with the best of them if given the opportunity. Right now the timing is right and he was under the radar, kind of like some of the guys that were shadowed a little bit in Tom Meents’ camp. Now is the time for him to move up. I want both trucks running at the top.” That’s exactly what Creten got in the season debut. While Creten wanted the racing win badly it was hard for him to be unhappy with a runner-up finish to his new protégé. “I’ve said that Lindsey is a great student, but I guess he did the teaching in Montreal” Creten said with a chuckle. “The thing is, I want both trucks running at the top, so I think we made a great statement in Montreal. It’s gratifying, we did what we went there to do. I couldn’t ask for more than to have both trucks in the (racing) final and then for me to tie for first in freestyle against a field full of the best, and believe me, everybody was on in the Montreal freestyle.” Creten added “if that freestyle show in Montreal was any indication the fans are in for a wonderful treat this year.” From the Bounty Hunter perspective the season opener was almost perfect, finishing second to his teammate in racing and tying for the top freestyle score. Creten admits that it is important for him to be on top of his game every time out when he’d battling the likes of Anderson and Meents. “I’m out there to prove it wasn’t a fluke (his 2005 World Freestyle Championship)” Jimmy continued. “I know we belong at the top. Remember, I only missed the freestyle championship by one point the year before. I want to be right there in racing and freestyle both, and I know how much pressure there is going last in freestyle, following Dennis and Tom. I always want to make sure the night ends on a high note for the fans.” That’s a tough scenario as every truck on the circuit continues to elevate it’s level of performance, as was evidenced in Montreal. “Every truck in Montreal was fantastic in freestyle” Creten related. “When I came onto the track last I was looking for something to set us apart.” He accomplished that mission by coming up with several moves unique to the Bounty Hunter, including a pair of power wheelies from a standing start that he rode nearly the length of the huge Olympic Stadium floor. “Tom has redefined big air and a lot of the others are trying to get on that bandwagon. And sometimes, late in the event, that’s all you have left to go for” Creten explained. “Tom’s got his stuff that no one else does, like those cyclone donuts faster than anyone else, and we’re trying to do stuff the others don’t do too. We like doing some old school things well, like the power wheelies and pogos. And we’ll always go for the big air too. But now I’m working on some new things in reverse that I think will set us apart. Basically we are working on a set up that will allow us to do high-speed moves in reverse. It’s mainly doing some things to make the transmission go forward when the truck is in reverse. Reverse is gear reduction, so if I can get forward gears while I’m in reverse we’ll be able to do things that no one else can.” Starting the new season so successfully has 2Xtreme racing on its way to keeping both trucks, Bounty Hunter and Iron Outlaw, among the sport’s elite. And that is what Creten wants and expects. “I have huge expectations for Lindsey,” Jimmy revealed. “He can take care of himself well. I may have another set of goals for myself, but my goals for him are to have him right here (at the top of the sport) with me.” Well, Jimmy, I think in Montreal Lindsey Week got the point across for you. In the new season the Monster Jam stars will have to deal with Iron Outlaw as well as the Bounty Hunter. It will be extremely interesting to see how Weenk performs in the next event on the Speed Channel calendar, December 3rd in Minneapolis. With most eyes in Montreal focusing on the big guns: Anderson, Creten, Meents in Maximum Destruction, Tony Farrell in Blue Thunder and so on, Weenk kind of flew in under the radar and then responded to opportunity when he got his shot at the power players. In Minny everyone will now be shooting at Iron Outlaw as well and I for one am looking forward to seeing how Weenk handles the spotlight and how he reacts when the top names in the sport zero in on the big bulls eye they are sure to draw on Lindsey Weenk and Iron Outlaw. It will make for a great story, and I’ll bet for some incredible racing next month in the Metrodome.