GUTHRIE, OK—Current series points leader, Kyle Peters, widened the gap between first and second place during rounds four and five in Guthrie, Oklahoma. Peters won both the 250 Pro Sport and 450 Pro Sport classes on Friday and Saturday, sweeping the weekend.
Two newcomers to the series, Dustin Winter and Grant Harlan, put on impressive performances and both saw the podium over the weekend. Additionally, defending champion, Jace Owen, was in the middle of the action, but a few unlucky crashes kept him from being in contention for the top spot.
Round Four of the 2020 AMA Kicker Arenacross Series took place at the Lazy E Arena on Friday, January 24th.
Newcomer to the series, Grant Harlan, came out the gate hot in Heat One of the 250 Pro class on Friday night. He held the lead for a couple of laps before slipping up on lap three and falling back. Ultimately Kyle Peters won the heat, followed by Gared Steinke in second and Grant Harlan in third.
Another newcomer to the series, Dustin Winter, made his debut in the 250 Pro Heat Two on Friday and had a strong showing as he came in third place in the heat. Jace Owen won this heat followed by Kyle Bitterman who took second.
Friday's 450 Pro Heat One was a battle between the defending champion, Jace Owen, and the two newcomers. Owen came out solid and won the heat. Dustin Winter came in second place followed by Grant Harlan in third.
Kyle Peters was dominant in the second heat of 450 Pro. He won this heat without issue. Kyle Bitterman took second place and Richard Jackson came in third.
The 250 Pro Main started with a new face taking charge of the pack. Sean Calderon came out of the gate strong and had the lead after lap one, but he couldn't hang on long and Peters and Owen capitalized on that and moved into the top two spots. For the first few laps, Peters had a decent lead on Owen, but things looked to be going in Owen's favor as he closed the gap during laps four to six. His efforts fell short though as Peters was in the zone and cruised to victory in the first main of the weekend. He was joined on the podium by Jace Owen (2nd) and Grant Harlan (3rd).
The start of the 450 Pro Main was all Jace Owen. He got the hole shot and took an early lead in the class. Kyle Peters was hot on his tail and Owen slipped up and his bike went down causing him to fall back to the middle of the pack. Peters moved into first place with Grant Harlan not too far behind in second. Owen navigated his way back to third place but a hungry Kyle Bitterman was challenging him for the final spot on the podium throughout the final laps of the race. Bitterman's attempt was unsuccessful though as Owen hung on and finished in third. Peters took first followed by Harlan in second.
Round Five of the 2020 AMA Kicker Arenacross Series took place in Guthrie, Oklahoma at the Lazy E Arena on Saturday, January 25th.
Saturday night started off with a bang as fans got to see a Kyle Peters vs. Jace Owen match up in heat one of the 250 Pro class. Peters took the lead outright from the beginning, but Owen was not far behind the entire time. Peters ended the heat in first place, followed by Owen in second and Greye Tate in third.
Heat two went to the newcomers of the weekend as Grant Harlan took first place, Dustin Winter in second and Richard Jackson in third. All three put on an impressive performance as the ousted Kyle Bitterman and Gared Steinke for the top spots in the race.
The 450 Pro Heat One race saw some solid riding, with little drama. Kyle Peters continued his dominance of the weekend with a win in the heat. Kyle Bitterman finished second and Gared Steinke came in third.
Heat Two of the class started off full of excitement. Grant Harlan and Jace Owen were in the front of an eager pack at the start of the race with what had the makings of a great battle. Unfortunately Harlan went down hard before the completion of the first lap and the race was red flagged. Harlan was able to walk himself off the track but that ended his succesful run in the weekend races. After the restart of the heat, Owen came in first place, Dustin Winter in second and Richard Jackson in third.
The 250 Pro Main excitement was found in the battle for 2nd and 3rd place. Kyle Peters pulled ahead early in the race and remained unchallenged throughout. Kyle Bitterman, Gared Steinke and Jace Owen were all neck-in-neck for much of the race as they battled for the remaining two spots on the podium. Dustin Winter was also lurking not too far behind Owen throughout the race waiting for his moment to make a move. As Owen made his move into second place, Winter followed suit and moved into third, both finished in their respective positions.
The start of the 450 Pro Main class closely mirrored Friday night's action. Jace Owen came out of the gate in the zone and pulled out to an early lead. While Peters was not far behind, it seemed to be Owen's race to lose after a few laps in. Owen ultimately saw the same luck as the night before as he lost control of his bike and went down again. Kyle Peters and Dustin Winter capitalized on this and moved into first and second place. Peters finished the race in first, followed by Winter in second and Owen in third.
With Peters sweeping the weekend, he moves into a bit more comfortable lead in the series, ahead of second place Owen by 17 points. There's a lot of racing left to go though and plenty of opportunity for Owen to make his way back to the top.
Round Four, Five and the Overall Standings are as follows:
Round 4 (1/24/2020)
250 Pro Sport
Finish | Rider | Machine | Moto Finishes |
1st | Kyle Peters | Honda | 1-1 |
2nd | Jace Owen | Honda | 1-2 |
3rd | Grant Harlan | Honda | 3-3 |
4th | Kyle Bitterman | Kawasaki | 2-4 |
5th | Dustin Winter | KTM | 3-5 |
6th | Gared Steinke | Kawasaki | 2-6 |
7th | Preston Taylor | Kawasaki | 5-7 |
8th | Richard Jackson | Suzuki | 7-8 |
9th | Zachary Butkiewicz | Suzuki | 8-9 |
10th | Adam Cranford | Kawasaki | 6-10 |
450 Pro Sport
Finish | Rider | Machine | Moto Finishes |
1st | Kyle Peters | Honda | 1-1 |
2nd | Grant Harlan | Honda | 3-2 |
3rd | Jace Owen | Honda | 1-3 |
4th | Kyle Bitterman | Kawasaki | 2-3 |
5th | Preston Taylor | Kawasaki | 4-5 |
6th | Richard Jackson | Suzuki | 3-6 |
7th | Gared Steinke | Kawasaki | 4-7 |
8th | Dustin Winter | KTM | 2-8 |
9th | Greye Tate | Kawasaki | 7-9 |
10th | Zachary Butkiewicz | Suzuki | 6-10 |
Round 5 (1/25/2020)
250 Pro Sport
Finish | Rider | Machine | Moto Finishes |
1st | Kyle Peters | Honda | 1-1 |
2nd | Jace Owen | Honda | 2-2 |
3rd | Dustin Winter | KTM | 2-3 |
4th | Gared Steinke | Kawasaki | 5-4 |
5th | Greye Tate | Kawasaki | 3-5 |
6th | Presten Taylor | Kawasaki | 6-6 |
7th | Zachary Butkiewicz | Suzuki | 7-7 |
8th | Adam Cranford | Kawasaki | 4-8 |
9th | Richard Jackson | Suzuki | 3-9 |
10th | Ayden Nyland | Suzuki | 6-10 |
450 Pro Sport
Finish | Rider | Machine | Moto Finishes |
1st | Kyle Peters | Honda | 1-1 |
2nd | Dustin Winter | KTM | 2-2 |
3rd | Jace Owen | Honda | 1-3 |
4th | Kyle Bitterman | Kawasaki | 2-4 |
5th | Gared Steinke | Kawasaki | 3-5 |
6th | Preston Taylor | Kawasaki | 8-6 |
7th | Zachary Butkiewicz | Suzuki | 4-7 |
8th | Richard Jackson | Suzuki | 3-8 |
9th | Greye Tate | Kawasaki | 5-9 |
10th | Koltyn Thompson | Yamaha | 5-10 |
AMA Kicker Arenacross Overall Series Standings
Place | Rider | Machine | Points |
1st | Kyle Peters | Honda | 248 |
2nd | Jace Owen | Honda | 231 |
3rd | Kyle Bitterman | Kawasaki | 191 |
4th | Gared Steinke | Kawasaki | 186 |
5th | Greye Tate | Kawasaki | 143 |
6th | Zachary Butkiewicz | Suzuki | 125 |
7th | Darian Sanayei | Kawasaki | 102 |
8th | Mason Kerr | Kawasaki | 98 |
9th | Skyler Adams | KTM | 91 |
10th | Preston Taylor | Suzuki | 85 |
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Main Image: Jack Jaxson