Kurt Caselli Dedicates WORCS Race Win In Honor Of Nathan Woods

FMF/KTM
rider Kurt Caselli's goal this season is to defend his championship
one race at a time. This weekend, that took a backseat to honoring
his friend and fallen teammate, Nathan Woods.
The entire off-road racing community was devastated after hearing
Friday's news of Woods' passing. The winningest rider in WORCS
history and a 2-time WORCS Champion, Woods succumbed to injuries
after a crash during Friday's practice session. Saturday's race
schedule was moved to Sunday to allow the WORCS community to
participate in a parade lap in honor of their late friend. The
parade lap was led by Woods' wife Amanda and former mechanic and
long-time friend, Charles Jirsa. Caselli followed behind with
Nathan's son Braxton, and behind them was a long train of friends
and family who rode a lap for one of the sports' best riders.
With a heavy heart, WORCS resumed the race schedule on Sunday and
riders lined the gate to race a 1 hour plus 1 lap moto. Caselli
took the holeshot and led the entire race, increasing his lead each
lap. His only mistake throughout the race occurred when he washed
out the front end on the first lap, but Caselli quickly recovered
to still finish the lap with a 25 second lead. The FMF/KTM Team had
Caselli and teammate Mike Brown pit once for gas near the end of
the race to ensure the riders would have enough fuel to reach the
finish.
While Caselli held the lead out front, Brown bounced back and forth
inside the top three, battling with Still Performance/KTM rider
Kevin Rookstool. Near the end of the race Brown struggled with arm
pump and dropped a few positions to eventually finish 5th.
Rookstool took a spill halfway through the race and recovered to
finish behind Brown in 6th. Caselli took home the win by 1 minute
and 1 second over the 2nd place ride of Kyle Summers.
"We are very happy with the
results today. Caselli is exactly where we expected him to be and
his new training program is paying off. Brown was also inside the
top three for most of the race and we feel both of our riders will
be top competitors throughout this series. As devastating as this
weekend has been, it is welcoming for Caselli to win in honor of
our friend Nathan Woods," remarked Antti Kallonen, Factory FMF/KTM
Team Manager.
After rearranging the race schedule on Saturday, WORCS officials
decided to give each rider 24 points for Saturday, with the
exception of Woods who was awarded 25 points for Saturday and 25
more for Sunday. Fittingly then, at the end of the day it is Woods
who will lead the series heading to the next round, as he has done
many times before.
Next Event: February 26-27, 2011 - Primm, NV
Overall Race Results
1. Kurt Caselli - KTM
2. Kyle Summers
3. Bobby Garrison
4. Taylor Roberts
5. Mike Brown - KTM
6. Kevin Rookstool - KTM
7. Bobby Bonds
8. Robbie Bell
9. Destry Abbott
10. Brendan Ritzman
Overall Points
1. Nathan Woods - 50
2. Kurt Caselli - 49
3. Kyle Summers - 46
4. Bobby Garrison - 44
5. Taylor Roberts - 42
6. Mike Brown - 40
7. Kevin Rookstool - 39
8. Bobby Bonds - 38
9. Robbie Bell - 37
10. Destry Abbott - 36