Weekend Race Recap
SATURDAY 2 P.M.
(London, ON) The legendary London Knights Junior ‘A’ hockey team skated out of the John Labatt Centre making way for the return of the 2008 Partsource Monster Jam. And although the weather outside JLC was very unforgiving, the fans turned out in record numbers nonetheless. They were treated to a talented lineup of ten thousand pound Monster Trucks including Rap Attack (Dave Rappach), Predator (Allen Pezo), Prowler (Lenny Kuilder), El Toro Loco (Nathan Weenk), and Grave Digger, driven by charismatic Randy Brown of Kill Devil Hills, North Carolina.
Following an activity-filled Pit Party, Monster Jam Technical Officials Denny and Loretta Climes, Ken Sargeant, and Brian Braunschweig had a large amount of work to do. Due to a harsh winter in London this year, the dirt arrived at JLC in a mostly frozen state. As it thawed, the moisture rose to the surface making for a very tricky course. After working with the track construction crews for more than an hour, however, the course was deemed safe and ready to race. It was time for another edition of the greatest motor sports show on the planet.
The day began with the Monster Jam Wheelie Competition. The top spot was held by both Grave Digger and Rap Attack at 28 points each. Monster Jam Officials determined that Rap Attack held the wheelie higher and longer and was awarded the win as a result. Third place went to El Toro Loco with 27 points, fourth was Predator with a score of 25, and Prowler rounded out the finishing order with a 24 point effort.
The Quad Wars Final was a classic battle between Team London and Team Kitchener. The riders chased each other around the tacky oval course for several laps, exchanging the lead on several occasions. Team London’s Rachel Zimmerman emerged as the big winner in a remarkably close finish.
Freestyle Motocross action gave young Mike “Big Air” Adair, Jaymo Verschuuren, and Joe Robertson the opportunity to show the fans what high-flying FMX action is all about. The coolest trick of the night was a stunning Heart Attack by Ontario’s Mike Adair which earned him the FMX victory. Due to the loud volume of the crowd throughout their competition, the riders decided to finish their wild display with a Double-Train.
Hot Wheels Monster Jam Racing started with the Bracket Draw. Nathan Weenk in El Toro Loco drew number one which gave him the bye run in Round One. Results of the pairings in Round One included Prowler over Predator and Grave Digger over Rap Attack.
Semi Final action gave Fast Loser Allen Pezo in Predator a second chance for a trip to the Hot Wheels Final as he took on El Toro Loco. Pezo took full advantage of the opportunity and stole the win away from Canadian driver Nathan Weenk. The other semi was a great race which saw Grave Digger defeat Prowler.
The Hot Wheels Monster Jam Racing Final paired veterans Allen Pezo in Predator against Randy Brown in Grave Digger. After taking second place in the Wheelie Competition, London Monster Jam fans knew that Grave Digger would be determined to take a win in racing. And in typical Grave Digger fashion, Brown did not disappoint. He launched his Grave Digger machine hard off the starting line and arrived at the Pizza Pizza Finish Line first.
Just like the Wheelie Competition, Partsource Monster Jam Freestyle Competition resulted a tie for top spot. This time, it was El Toro Loco and Grave Digger in a deadlock. Monster Jam Officials were once again consulted on the ruling and it was determined that because Grave Digger rolled over on the roof short of the full sixty second time limit, the win would be awarded to Nathan Weenk in the big bull. Predator earned third place with a great donut and a score of 28, while Rap Attack finished fourth with 23 points. The final Partsource Freestyle score of the night was given to Lenny Kuilder in Prowler. The Seven Hills, Ohio native earned 22 points for his efforts.
Drivers and crews are now busily preparing for the 7:30 P.M. show here tonight at John Labatt Centre. Much of the work is being concentrated on the suspension systems as they try to get things perfectly dialed in for this super-tacky racing surface.
We’ll see you at 7:30 P.M. tonight for another great edition of Partsource Monster Jam!
(Darren Pallen, Monster Jam Announcer)
SATURDAY 7 P.M.
(London, ON) Saturday night Partsource Monster Jam action enjoyed a great crowd and an unbelievable performance by Randy Brown in Grave Digger. Brown managed to fight through an early loss in Hot Wheels Monster Jam Racing to take the overall win. He returned less than an hour later to destroy the crush cars and the competition in Partsource Freestyle action. Needless to say, the fans were wild all night long.
Dave Rappach in Rap Attack appeared to be the guy to make things go bad early for Grave Digger driver Randy Brown. Rappach had a great start in Hot Wheels Monster Jam Racing and disposed of Grave Digger at the finish line. In other Round One action, Predator defeated El Toro Loco and Prowler got the bye run.
Fortunately for Randy Brown, the stopwatches dictated that Grave Digger was Fast Loser in Round One. Brown returned to action against Prowler and took the win in a great race. In the other Semi, Rap Attack driver Dave Rappach returned to his winning ways as he destroyed Alan Pezo in Predator.
The Hot Wheels Monster Jam Racing Final would be a pressure-cooker for Grave Digger driver Randy Brown. His competitor was Rap Attack, the very same truck that knocked out the legend from Kill Devil Hills in Round One. But this time, Brown would make no mistake. He launched Grave Digger off the starting line in a big way and took the win. With his confidence level back at one hundred percent, Brown knew he was ready to continue his assault on the rest of the Monster Jam competitors.
After some impressive Partsource Freestyle Competition runs from Prowler (21 points), Rap Attack (25 points), Predator (25 points), and El Toro Loco (26 points), it was time for Randy Brown to cinch down the safety belts and go to work. And work he did; when his run was completed there was simply nothing left of the van stack. Brown left no stone unturned on his sixty second run and earned a winning score of 29 points from the Pizza Pizza judges. It was a truly excellent performance.
In other motor sports action, Team London took the victory over Team Kitchener in Quad Wars while Mike “Big Air” Adair was the man to beat in FMX. Adair’s wild Sideways Grab earned him the admiration of the crowd and the overall win.
The third and final Partsource Monster Jam of the weekend is slated for 2 P.M. on Sunday. Don’t miss even a second of the action as the stars of Monster Jam return for the big car crushing party.
We’ll see you on Sunday!
(Darren Pallen, Monster Jam Announcer)
SUNDAY 2 P.M.
(London, ON) The third and final Partsource Monster Jam of the weekend fired up at 2 P.M. sharp on Sunday afternoon. Returning for action were Monster Jam Monster Trucks including Rap Attack (Dave Rappach), Predator (Allen Pezo), Prowler (Lenny Kuilder), El Toro Loco (Nathan Weenk), and Grave Digger (Randy Brown).
The Wheelie Competition was won by Allen Pezo in Predator with a score of 24 points. Grave Digger placed second with 22 points, while El Toro Loco captured third spot with a 20 point tally. Rounding out the scoring was Prowler at 17 points and Rap Attack at 16. Unfortunately for Allen Pezo, the Wheelie Competition win would be costly. Upon landing his truck he broke his ring and pinion gear and was out for the balance of the night.
Hot Wheels Monster Jam Racing once again found Randy Brown in Grave Digger on the top of the podium. Grave Digger charged through Round One as he defeated Prowler. The other head-to-head battle saw El Toro Loco dispose of Rap Attack.
The third–place race went to Prowler who defeated Rap Attack in an awesome finish. And without Predator in the field due to breakage, Monster Jam Officials determined that the competition would move directly to the final. In that race, El Toro Loco put up a good fight but was unable to defeat a hard-charging Grave Digger.
Partsource Freestyle Competition had the Pizza Pizza Judges in place and ready to evaluate the stars of Monster Jam. With a Pizza Pizza “11” scorecard in their arsenal, the judges knew it would take an extra special effort to earn the competition’s highest score. Lenny Kuilder in Prowler started off with a nice run and earned 19 points for his efforts. Rap Attack raised the bar with a 23 point score. Nathan Weenk in El Toro Loco posted a 24 point run to set the new high score, but his end result left simply too much room for the legend from Kill Devil Hills, North Carolina. Brown powered out on the course and got to work in typical Grave Digger fashion. He was simply Solid Gold from beginning to end as he took the Freestyle win with a score of 28 points.
After witnessing three high-energy shows here in London this weekend, there is no doubt that the drivers and crews are ready for the NGK World Finals in Las Vegas on March 29. If you have not yet purchased your tickets for this great event, be sure to get them sooner than later. And as always, stay tuned to www.monsterjamonline.com for up-to-the-minute information.
We’ll see you down the road!
(Darren Pallen, Monster Jam Announcer)
