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NBL Grand Nationals Louisville, KY
Bennett and Stumpfhauser take home the #1 Pro titles
The 2004 NBL Grand Nationals will go down as the most exciting and
unpredictable #1 Pro title chase in NBL History. At the start of the
weekend, there were 6 riders (Warwick Stevenson, Jason Richardson,
Robert De Wilde, Randy Stumpfhauser, Kyle Bennett, and Matt Pohlkamp)
who had a chance to win the NBL title and all but 1 (Warwick Stevenson)
had made it to the main event. The one main format in the NBL also
added to the excitement, but as well as the confusion with trying to
guess who would become the new #1 Pro. Any of the riders who were now
in the points chase who could win the main event would become the new
NBL #1 Pro and 2 of the Double A Marketing riders had a shot fro the
title, as well as a total of 4 of the riders in the main were Double
A Marketing riders. Here is how each finished up-
Kyle Bennett has had a few changes in 2004. First his new ride with
Free Agent back in January and then getting married just a few months
ago. The one thing that was a constant with Kyle was his ability to
win races and be consistent in the NBL. Going into the NBL Grands,
Kyle was just in 5th in the points chase, but with Double Points awarded
in the Elite main event, it opened the door up for Kyle. When the gate
dropped it was a dead even race until just before the first turn where
Kyle powered his way out front and never looked back, taking the biggest
win of the season, and clinching the 2004 NBL Elite Men's Pro Title.
Kyle was so happy with the win and the title, and was mobbed by his
fans at the finish, that he wore himself out in celebration and decided
to sit out the Pro Open main event that he qualified to race. Who could
blame him! Congratulations on winning your 2nd NBL #1 Pro title Kyle!
Kyle's sponsors include Free Agent, KHS, Answer, Sun Ringle, UGP, Truvativ,
Velo, Vans, Maxxis, S&M bars, ATI, Shimano, Profile, Powerbar,
Smith, Cyto Sport, and BMXpros.com.
Randy
Stumpfhauser , the 2003 NBL #1 Pro had a great season as well in
the NBL with making al but 2 main events
this season and having
won almost every Cruiser race he was in. Going into the main event,
Randy was looking to hold onto his Elite Pro Men's #1 title, but as
he was trying to get to the front of the pack in the main event, he
instead went down and crashed, ending his chance to retain his title.
When the Cruiser main event lined up thought, Randy planned on going
round the first turn in the lead and having no trouble with his incredible
gate start, he did just that. Randy lead the entire race but did have
some stiff competition from Jarrett Kolich. Randy crossed the line
in 1st with Jarrett just behind him and Randy clinched the 2004 NBL
#1 Pro Cruiser title. Adding that to his 2004 UCI and ABA World Championship
titles, Randy is the best Cruiser rider in the world! Randy's sponsors
include GT Bicycles, Hyundai, ODI, IRC Tires, Shimano, Fox Racing,
Smith, Sun Ringle, Bombshell Forks, AC, Thomson, Powerbar, CTI Knee
Braces, Tool Shed, Marwi, FSA Headsets, S & M, Cyto Sport, and
BMXpros.com
Cristian
Becerine has been one of the fastest guys on the BMX track
this year but just hasn't had enough wins to put him in a shot for
the NBL title. Just behind the guys with a mathematical shot, Cristian
was one of the favorites to win the main, as he had been laying down
the power since the fist gate dropped in Louisville. In the Elite main,
Cristian was up in the front and just was edged out in the first turn
to have to settle back into the 3rd spot. Cristian laid down some serious
pull and stayed in the 3rd place spot for the rest of the main event.
In Pro Open, Cristian was looking for another great results, but a
crash held him back to 6th for the day, but overall it has been a great
season for Cristian. Cristian's sponsors include Crupi, O'Neal, Answer,
UGP, ODI, Sun Ringle, Marwi, Shimano, Tool Shed, Powerbar, BMXpros.com,
Cyto Sport, and Thomson Seat Posts.
Dale Holmes considers himself an NBL Grands specialist and by watching
him ride in Louisville, he was able to back up that statement. Dale
started off the season strong in the NBL with a handful of podium
finishes and had sat in the top 5 of the Pro standings for most of
the season. As summer hit, Dale was off racing Mountain bikes, so
he missed 3 of the NBL Nationals, keeping him out of the top 5 and
just a bit behind and unable to be mathematically able to win the
NBL #1 title. That didn't stop Dale from going the NBL Grands and
giving his fans a real show as he powered his way into the Toughest
main event of the NBL season. Dale finished up 5th for the day. Dale's
sponsors include Free Agent, KHS, Troy Lee Designs, Kenda, Bolle
Eyewear, Sun Ringle, Powerbar, Tangent, BMXpros.com, DALEHOLMES.COM,
Cyto Sport, and Shimano.
Elite Pro Men Results NBL Grands
1st Kyle Bennett 2nd Jonathan Suarez 3rd
Cristian Becerine 4th Robert
De Wilde 5th Dale Holmes 6th Jason Richardson 7th Matt Pohlkamp 8th Randy Stumpfhauser
NBL Elite Men's Pro Year End Overall
1st Kyle Bennett
2nd Robert De Wilde
3rd Jason Richardson
4th Warwick Stevenson
5th Randy Stumpfhauser
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