Cypress, Calif. – Yamaha ATV Racing capped a record-breaking, championship-winning season this year with the new 2014 YFZ450R filling podium spots and taking top honors in motocross and cross country racing. Among the year’s highlights for team blue, Yamaha’s Dustin Nelson celebrated a record sixth QuadX Series championship, Chad Wienen took his third straight AMA Racing title and Yamaha received the AMA Pro ATV Manufacturer’s title for the third year in a row.
“I’m proud to cap off this racing season with my sixth QuadX championship,” Nelson said. “The 2014 YFZ450R ran flawlessly at every event carrying me all the way to the #1 plate.”
Yamaha’s YFZ450R—the highest performance, most technologically-advanced sport ATV—received some significant power and handling updates in 2014. The YFZ450R is assembled in the U.S.A. at Yamaha’s factory in Newnan, GA.
"This year was one of my best yet—the team worked so well together,” Wienen said. “Not only did we win seven of the nine AMA rounds, we also were able to grab some holeshots and lead from start to finish. This new Yamaha YFZ450R has helped elevated my game to a whole new level. As for 2015, we are working to keep the same program that has won three straight championships and ultimately make it four."
Leading Yamaha’s ATV racing efforts in the Grand National Cross Country (GNCC) series, Yamaha’s Walker Fowler doubled his first-place podiums this year to six and pushed hard to the final race taking second overall and just missing the top spot by the thinnest of margins in this year’s XC-1 class. Cole Richardson captured the XC-2 class Championship aboard his YFZ450R with eight wins on the season.
“The amount of times we were rubbing and bouncing off each other was insane,” Fowler said of the season finale as he battled for the championship. “It was controlled chaos and it was just so cool.”
Yamaha’s Thomas Brown grabbed five podiums in the AMA Racing series with a first and second place finish at Amsoil ATV Showdown at Sunset Ridge and NYCM Insurance National at Unadilla, respectively. Just missing second place overall by two points, Brown took third place overall for 2014.
“I had a great program—awesome team members and a bullet proof quad—and we were pumped to be on the podium so many times this year,” Brown said. “I'm already getting excited for next year and look forward to building on our momentum and grabbing more wins.”
Yamaha continues to lead the sport ATV market in sales, championships and support. This year has seen extended trackside support for all ATV racers at each stop of the AMA ATV nationals. Layne Barnes and Pro Motorsports from Mt. Pleasant, IA, supported all of the events on behalf of Yamaha stocking replacement parts and providing technical assistance to riders on race days. Yamaha, the number one brand in sport ATVs, also supports racers in the Grand National Cross Country series, World Off-Road Championship Series and Yamaha Quad-X Series.
