PVR - Pro ATV Moto 1

Natalie fights off Wimmer for win 

John Natalie, Jr., ripped the holeshot on his Team Motoworks Can-Am DS450 in the first pro ATV moto at Pleasure Valley Raceway Sunday and tried hard not to look back.

Natalie had to contend with pressure from Rockstar Yoshimura Makita Suzuki's Dustin Wimmer, who stayed close to the Can-Am rider early on. Wimmer settled in to Natalie's pace for several laps before making one last push to close the gap, but the defending champ couldn't get around the Iron Man.

Natalie's moto 1 win came on the heels of a third-place finish in moto 2 at the last round in Millville, Mn.

The win did not come easy for Natalie. He had to fight hard and maintain a grueling pace as the track only got hotter and dustier. Wimmer kept Natalie in reach for most of the moto, but by the end he couldn't pull the trigger.

Natalie and Wimmer weren't the only two battling hard for position, whether that battle was to maintain a spot or pass several riders.

Jeremy Lawson moved up through the pack passing several riders, including Joe Byrd, who finished in fifth. Lawson punished his Walsh Racecraft LTR450 throughout the first moto, and it held up to give him a solid third place finish, which tied his best of the season so far.

Rockstar Yoshimura Makita Suzuki's Josh Creamer, the points leader heading in to Pleasure Valley, put in a respectable effort to maintain points in moto 1. Creamer finished fourth behind Lawson.

The number nine seemed to be holding back in moto 1 with only a fourth place finish, and that became more evident as he unleashed the speed in dominating fashion in moto 2.

Creamer rode smart and didn't take his chances. Pleasure Valley only provided a few opportunities for for the quad racers to make any passes, and those who could pass took advantage in moto 1.  

Mushin Racing's Thomas Brown moved his Yamaha YFZ450R through the pack as well, and he even put a textbook pass on teammate Cody Gibson in the same off-camber corner where Wimmer came close to passing Natalie several times.

Gibson didn't relent easily. He hung tight on Brown's rear wheels but couldn't retake the position and eventually faded. Still, it proved one of the young  rookie's best showings so far this year, as Brown finished in eight and Gibson took home ninth place.

The French Can-Am rider, Jeremy Warnia, took home sixth place ahead of Balwin Motorsports' Josh Upperman, who finished in seventh place in moto 1.

Pat Brown rounded out the top 10 in moto 1 on his Yoshimura and Lonestar backed Honda.  Harold Goodman, Cody Grant, Keith Little and Brian Baragnwanath rounded out the first pro moto, which only saw 15 pros leave the gate at PVR. The big dissapointment in moto 1 was Chad Wienen, who destroyed a Fox Podium X rear shock and ended with a DNF.

Dustin Wimmer pushed his Suzuki hard to try and catch the leader and eventual winner of moto 1, John Natalie, Jr......

....but Natalie pushed his Can-Am even harder to take the moto 1 win. "Dustin Wimmer and I had a really good battle the whole race, but I came across the finish line first," Natalie said.

Check back Tuesday for coverage of moto 2 and more photos from the weekend at PVR.