Kenny Coolbeth Jr., Harley-Davidson’s factory rider in the AMA Grand National Championship, broke through to earn his first win of the 2012 season tonight at the Knoxville (Iowa) Speedway Half-Mile. It was the first win for Coolbeth in over a year. (Ken Kerr photo)

Kenny Coolbeth Jr., Harley-Davidson’s factory rider in the AMA Grand National Championship, broke through to earn his first win of the 2012 season tonight at the Knoxville (Iowa) Speedway Half-Mile. It marked the completion of a strong comeback for Coolbeth, who missed the middle section of the season due to injury.

Coolbeth took the win by a half-second over Jake Johnson. Sammy Halbert rounded out the podium finishers.

Series leader Jared Mees had a mechanical problem and did not finish the race. That means the championship is now a flat out sprint to the finish with Mees now holding off Johnson by five points. Halbert is just a single point back on Johnson, as the two swap the runner-up ranking back and forth in the last couple of rounds.

Shayna Texter backed up her historic Pro Singles win at Knoxville last year with another victory tonight in the class.

This photo of winner Coolbeth is courtesy of Ken Kerr. You can view his work at www.kerrgraphix.com.