(NEWS RELEASE)

AURORA, Ill. (April 8, 2011) – The most parity driven Monster Energy AMA Supercross, an FIM World Championship, season of all time continues this weekend from the Edward Jones Dome in St. Louis. The 14^th race of the season is coming off another exciting night of action from Arlington in which the championship lead changed hands for the fourth time this season.

Monster Energy Kawasaki’s Ryan Villopoto has returned to the top of the Supercross class standings following a runner-up effort in Arlington. After two weeks of misfortune, Villopoto and his team have returned to the form that has led them to a series-leading five wins and are looking to build on the momentum they established last weekend.

“It’s definitely nice to have the points lead back,” said Villopoto. “I felt good in Arlington and I really want to get back on top of the podium again this year.”

Last year in St. Louis, Villopoto suffered a season-ending injury while battling for the championship. While his return to the Edward Jones Dome will be a major storyline, it’s just another race for Villopoto.

“When I go back to St. Louis, I’m not thinking about what happened last year,” Villopoto added. “You can’t really think about that stuff when you are out of the track. I will be there to race and to get as many points as I can.”

The misfortune experienced by TwoTwo Motorsports/Bel-Ray Racing’s Chad Reed last weekend in Arlington ultimately dropped him into second in the championship after taking over the lead heading into Cowboys Stadium. Reed’s tough break allowed Villopoto as well as Rockstar/Makita Suzuki’s Ryan Dungey to capitalize and make the title fight even more competitive than it’s been all season.

Dungey secured his series-leading 10^th podium effort in Arlington after a third-place finish and another strong ride. He enters St. Louis, a venue which he won at last season, just seven points out of the lead in the standings and just a single point out of second.

“All in all, it was a good day in Arlington,” said Dungey. “My whole Rockstar/Makita Suzuki team and I worked really good together and they did a great job with my Suzuki tonight. The track was tough; especially the whoop sections which were really big and technical. I got off to a good start in the main and was able to work my way up to second in like the 10^th lap, but then a couple laps later I came up on a lapper and just misjudged what he was going to do and went down. I got back up in third and made a hard charge for second and got close but just came up a little short. All in all, I felt great and my RMZ felt great too. I’m looking forward to St. Louis. It’s always a tough track; tacky and technical. We got a win there last year so it would be good to go back there and get another win.”

American Honda’s Trey Canard continues to enjoy a remarkable rookie season. The up-and-coming rider grabbed his second win in three weeks at Arlington with his most impressive ride of the season. Now Canard boasts three wins, tying him for the second most in the series, and has moved into fourth place in the standings, just 16 points out of the lead with four races remaining.

“I am the happiest I have been all season right now,” said Canard. “Everything about last weekend felt right. My bike setup was spot on and I rode really well. It’s been a crazy supercross season full of unexpected happenings so my goal from here on out is to keep finishing on the podium and earn as many points as possible. I’m only 16 points out of the points lead so if I can keep posting results like last weekend then who knows what could happen.”

San Manuel Yamaha’s James Stewart was looking to get back onto the podium in Arlington after experiencing his own misfortune over the past few weeks. A strong effort put Stewart in position to finish on the box, but a mid-race incident resulted in a fourth-place finish for the two-time champion. This week, Stewart headed back home to train this week and is hoping to turn things around for these last four races of the series.

“I feel like I’ve been riding good, but things just didn’t click this past weekend,” said Stewart. “I’m going to work on it this week and get some good training in. I hope to get it together for St. Louis and make each one of these races count. I have to thank everyone who has been standing by this year – my team, my fans, my sponsors and my family. I couldn’t do this without them.”

Stewart’s San Manuel Yamaha teammate Kyle Regal made his return to competition in Arlington after taking some time off to heal an injured wrist. It was a good step in the right direction for Regal to come back, and he’s looking to build upon the effort.

“I struggled with some crashes in the Main, but I’m glad to be back.” said Regal. “I’m looking forward to a solid week of training in Florida and hope for better results in St. Louis this weekend.”

GEICO Honda’s Kevin Windham has experienced mixed results throughout the 2011 Monster Energy Supercross season, but the veteran rider is enjoying his time out on the track competing against his younger counterparts. One rider that has caught Windham’s attention is his teammate, Supercross Lites Eastern Regional Championship leader Justin Barcia.

“It’s been a lot of fun watching Justin ride to his potential,” Windham said. “It’s brought back a lot of great memories of years when I was right in the mix for the championship. You look at this kid and see the energy and excitement he’s carrying right now and it’s refreshing.”

As for Barcia and the rest of his Supercross Lites competitors, the Eastern Regional Championship hits the home stretch this weekend in St. Louis. Just two races remain on the schedule and Barcia’s advantage over the field sits at 13 points. With a podium effort and finish no worse than second through seven races, Barcia is feeling confident coming into Saturday night.

“It’s getting close,” said Barcia. “The emotions are there, but having guys like K-Dub (Windham) and Rock (team manager and former multi-time world champion Mike LaRocco) around has really helped. They’re keeping me focused on the right things. We just need to finish strong and we’ll do that if keep doing exactly what we’ve been doing all year. I have the best team behind me. We have the best sponsor. The bikes are perfect. It comes down to execution and just finishing this thing off.”

Keeping Barcia honest and taking a lot of the momentum over the past two weeks is Monster Energy/Pro Circuit/Kawasaki’s Dean Wilson. The second-year rider won his second consecutive race of the season in Arlington after another strong ride in which he chased down his championship rival and made a pass for the win. The victory gave Wilson a series-leading three wins this season in the Eastern Regional Championship and he’s looking to keep the ball rolling in St. Louis and continue to close in on Barcia’s advantage.

“It’s nice that the races have come together for me after a few bad rounds,” said Wilson. “It would be nice to make it three-in-a-row.”

Wilson’s Monster Energy/Pro Circuit/Kawasaki teammate Blake Baggett has experienced a tough couple of weeks on the track, but with a win to his credit already this season, Baggett is looking to get back on track this weekend. His speed has been obvious despite the results, but this week he will be looking to get the start he was missing in Arlington.

“Most of my starts this year haven’t been great so I have been working a lot of that this week,” said Baggett. “When I start the race at the front, I am usually really comfortable and able to stay there. A good start will be one of my main goals this weekend.”

Also looking to make waves in the Supercross Lites class prior to the conclusion of the season in Las Vegas just a few weeks down the road is DNA Shred Stix/Star Racing Yamaha’s Ryan Sipes, who is a winner in his own right this season, as well as GEICO Honda’s Blake Wharton.

Tickets are available at the Edward Jones Dome Box Office (from April 4 – April 9, 2011 only), Select Schnuck’s and Macy’s locations in the St. Louis area, SupercrossOnline.com, all Ticketmaster retail locations, online at http://www.ticketmaster.com, or charge by phone at (800) 745-3000. Tickets will also be available at participating Yamaha dealers. Practice and qualifying begins at 12:30 p.m., and the main event begins at 7:00 p.m. Club level tickets: $50; Gold circle tickets: $35; Price level 3 tickets: $25 adults/$10 kids; Price level 4: $20 adults/$10 kids; Treadhead tickets: $10. Fans can also get into the Pits for FREE from 12:30 – 6 PM Race Day when they recycle a MONSTER Energy Can at the stadium Pit Entrance (valid only with event ticket).

SPEED will broadcast the Supercross Lites class race at 6:00 p.m. EST/3:00 p.m. PST and will also broadcast the Supercross class race at 3:30 a.m. EST/12:30 a.m. PST on April 15, 2011.

For more information on the Monster Energy AMA Supercross, an FIM World Championship, please log on to http://www.SupercrossOnline.com. For all media requests, please contact Denny Hartwig dhartwig@feldinc.com or 630-566-6305. To follow Monster Energy Supercross on Facebook and Twitter, log on to http://www.facebook.com/supercrosslive and http://twitter.com/supercrosslive.

About Feld Motor Sports®
Feld Motor Sports®, Inc. is the world leader in specialized arena and stadium-based motor sports entertainment. Feld Motor Sports, Inc. productions include Advance Auto Parts Monster Jam®, Monster Energy Supercross, AMA Arenacross Series, Nuclear Cowboyz®, and IHRA® Nitro Jam®. Feld Motor Sports, Inc. is a division of Feld Entertainment, the world’s largest producer of live family entertainment. For more information on Feld Entertainment, visit http://www.feldentertainment.com.