or the first time since it’s creation by promoters Tim Clark and Eric Peronnard, the 2007 Endurocross Championship became a series instead of a single-race-for-the-title one-off event. With three events adding up to an AMA Championship many of the world’s top off-road racers set their sights on the crown and the potential of more than $50,000 in prize money for any rider who could win all three events.
     The first round of the Maxxis EnduroCross series kicked off in Denver, Colorado on September 30, with round one of three taking place at the National Western Complex. Riders from all different types of racing, including Enduro, Hare Scrambles, Hare and Hound, WORCS, GNCC and even Supercross, as well as several pro trials riders, showed up to race the opening round. In the end, it was Moose Racing’s David Knight on top of the podium with Pro trials rider Keith Wineland in second. In his first race since retiring in 2005, Supercross rider Damon Huffman rounded out the podium in third place.      The opener set the stage for a rivalry between Knight and Huffman that would see the pair banging bars to the very end.
     Round two saw David Knight remain in contention for the $50,000 bonus offered by Motorcycle Mechanics Institute for any rider who could win all three rounds of the 2007 Maxxis EnduroCross Series by taking his second-straight win of the series at the Lazy E Arena in Guthrie, Oklahoma. The Red Bull KTM-backed rider made short work of the treacherous and technical course by grabbing the lead at the exit of the first turn and, after battling for a lap with teammate David Pearson, pulled away to a relatively easy win.
     Damon Huffman, who came out of retirement to ride the series, took the long road to the runner up spot, coming from the back of the pack after the start to finish second. The Suzuki-mounted Huffman was involved in a first-turn pile-up with Kawasaki’s Ricky Dietrich and was nearly last when Knight and the rest of the pack hit turn two.
Finishing third was Pearson, who actually passed Knight on the second lap, but then took a backseat to the Isle of Man native before falling at the midway point of the race and giving way to Huffman.
     With the final round set at the Orleans Hotel & Casino in Las Vegas, Nevada, where Knight had won in previous years, the big Englishman was hoping to make a clean sweep of the series and claim the $50K, but it was not to be. Polish rider Taddy Blazusiak, who, a few months earlier, won the Enduro at Erzberg in Austria, (one of the toughest single-day motorcycle races in the world) showed up in sin city and added yet another difficult motorcycle race event win to his resume, this time the Maxxis EnduroCross, at the sold out Orleans Arena. In another close finish (last year John Dowd edged out Nathan Woods for the win), Blazusiak, a former pro trials rider, made a late-race pass on KTM teammate Knight to take the win, robbing Knight of the $50,000 MMI triple crown money that was available to him if he won the race.
     Despite missing out on the $50,000 and another $10,000 for the event win, a very disappointed Knight still wrapped up the inaugural Maxxis EnduroCross Championship Series. It was a good year for the likeable Brit, who also won the GNCC Series and can claim World Enduro, ISDE, and Last Man Standing titles on his resume.
The racing action was again incredibly exciting and action-packed, especially in the LCQ, where Damon Huffman (mounted on a Kawasaki for the final) squeezed into the main event by passing John Dowd and trials rider Cody Webb just a few yards from the finish line after the two riders ahead of him ran into each other and became tangled, ending their evening prematurely. Dowd’s front wheel had caught Webb’s foot peg, stalling the two just long enough for Huffman to ride past.
     In the 10-rider main event, Knight took control of the lead by the end of the first lap and soon had Blazusiak pressuring him in every turn. Even after bumping a couple of times, Knight held on to the lead. But with just a little over a lap left, Blazusiak saw a chance and made his move, squeezing inside of Knight, who seemed to give Blazusiak some space, not wanting to risk the championship (but sacrificing the money). Blazusiak went on to win the race, just a few seconds ahead of Knight. Third place went to Finland’s Mika Ahola, making it an all-European podium.
     The top-finishing American was trials rider Colton Haaker who finished fourth on a Montesa, while Zip-Ty Yamaha rider Nick Brozovich finished fifth, which was good enough to give him third in the series behind Knight and Huffman, who finished eighth in the main after struggling all night.
     Former National Trials Champion Geoff Aaron, riding an all-wheel-drive Christini/KTM 250 two-stroke, finished sixth, followed by Monster Kawasaki’s Destry Abbott, who qualified for the main event for the first time. Huffman was next, then came National Enduro Champion Mike Lafferty and Nathan Kanney, who is now back from his tour in the World Enduro Championships, where he rode a Husqvarna.
     For 2008 the Endurocross Series will expand to six races in five different cities. The Endurocross promoters were careful to avoid conflicting with WORCS in 2008, so racers such as Kurt Caselli, Destry Abbott, Ricky Dietrich, Justin Soule, Nathan Woods and Nick Brozovich can easily contest both. Three of the six rounds do, however, share weekends with another one of the largest off-road series in the U.S., the GNCC. Although Knight still plans to contest some rounds of the Endurocross Series, he says that he will focus on defending his GNCC title.
     The 2008 EnduroCross series will kick off in Las Vegas on Fourth of July weekend at the Orleans Arena, the same location as the season finale on November 15th. The full schedule is listed below.


2008 AMA/Maxxis National EnduroCross Series Schedule
July 5th
Las Vegas, Nevada
August 16th
Guthrie, Oklahoma
September 13th
Florence, South Carolina
September 27th
Denver, Colorado
October 4th
Columbus, Ohio
November 15th
Las Vegas, Nevada

The popular Las Vegas Endurocross round saw the pits at the Orleans Hotel and Casino packed with fans all day long.

Chad Reed (left) was on hand in Vegas to check out the Endurocross action. (Shown here with Eric Sorby).

One of the many challenging portions of the Vegas Endurocross track was this tricky rock quarry.

Moose Racing’s David Knight (#101) came into the Las Vegas Endurocross finale leading the series after wins at both the Colorado and Oklahoma rounds.