Could we be on the brink of the most spectacular AMA/Prostar World Finals ever?

This year-end spectacle usually draws upwards of 700 motorcycles from all over the country. Adding to the excitement, this year’s soggy season-opener has pushed two full events into one extraordinary action-packed four-day finale.

There have been plenty of instances throughout AMA/Prostar’s 14-year existence that inclement weather has forced two events to the same weekend. In fact it’s happened four times in the past two seasons. However, never before has Prostar’s greatest event, the famed World Finals, been contested as a double header.

This season-ending double points event creates some interesting situations in the championship battles. The two-month window it usually takes to complete the final two races of the tour will be packed into one decisive weekend, leaving little room for error. For racers who get on a hot streak, it will be a dream. For racers who slump or run into mechanical problems, it will be a nightmare.

Let’s preview some of the upcoming championship battles.

600 Super Sport

For Kawasaki’s Chip Hunter and Yamaha’s Ed Krawiec Prostar’s nine-event, nine-month season has been reduced to a two-race weekend showdown. Both riders enter the tour’s final stop deadlocked for first place at 653 points apiece. The rival duo will each vie for their first ever AMA/Prostar championship. Krawiec will attempt to become the first non-Kawasaki mounted rider to win the championship since the inception of the category in 1995. Hunter hopes to carry on Kawasaki’s tradition of dominance and add his name to the long list of top-notch Team Green personnel that have accomplished the feat; Keith Dennis, Rickey Gadson, Marty Ladwig, Ernie Velasco, and most recently, Ryan Schnitz.

This has been a heated, knock-down-drag-out battle between these fierce, competitors all season long. We started to see teammates and “blockers” popping up for each squad as early as Norwalk. Concerning the number of blockers we’ll see at the final race, 600 Super Sport guru Pat Leonard may have said it best. Leonard joked, “Right now there are 25-600s being built for the World Finals.”

Lumberjack’s Championship Odds - Even

It’s hard to not consider Hunter a favorite given the dominance of Kawasaki, but the battle between these two has been seesaw-like all year long. Expect a few more hundredths out of Hunter’s machine but expect some razor-sharp reaction times from Krawiec.

Hot Rod Cruiser

About midway through the season it looked as if Mark Underwood would be the one having to play catch-up at the World Finals. Underwood’s Harley-mounted adversary Rick McWaters jumped out to a lofty points lead by going to the final at four of the first five races. Yet it’s actually McWaters who will have to come from behind at the season finale.

Patrick racing gained the points lead by performing flawlessly at the last two races, while mechanical woes eliminated McWaters in the semis in Atco and Alabama. McWaters now trails Underwood by a mere 10 points in the championship series.

An interesting subplot in the feud is each competitor is aiming to prove something about last year’s controversial season where McWaters won the first seven events but was eventually disqualified for having illegal motor modifications. McWaters is on a mission to prove he can win with a legal bike and that the valve-angle alteration that disqualified them from the championship last year was a misunderstanding. Defending class champ Underwood is out to prove that he doesn’t need a disqualification to win a title. Underwood felt as if last year’s championship was bittersweet and wants one that’s less tainted with controversy and confusion.

This will be an intense battle between a pair of Ohio-boys that have been racing each other for nearly 20 years.

Lumberjack’s Championship Odds – Underwood 2 to 1

You can bet Nigel Patrick will have Underwood’s machine tuned up to run 9.40s which will make things very challenging for McWaters, who should run in the 9.60-9.70 zone.

The bottom line here is that McWaters is very consistent off the line, but if Underwood doesn’t make a mistake, his motor should give him enough to make up the deficit.

However, another factor to take into consideration is the strain put on the onboard starters used to fire these massive high compression V-twins. This season we’ve witnessed both Underwood and McWaters lose races because their bikes failed to start in the water box.

Pro Stock

With three victories on the year Keith “The New Sheriff in Town” Dennis has jumped out to a commanding 132-point lead in the championship series. If Paul “The Professor” Gast shows up, he will have a shot at capturing his elusive 5th career championship that has escaped him every season since 1999. Gast started the year with two wins but missed St. Louis and was conspicuously absent at the last two races, relinquishing the points lead.
Lumberjack’s Championship Odds – Dennis 3 to 1

If Gast attends he will most likely have the quickest motorcycle, but to win the championship something will have to go seriously wrong for Dennis and the MSP team. With a 132-point lead, two trips to the semis should seal the deal for Dennis.

Top Fuel

The question in Top Fuel isn’t who’s going to win the championship; Larry “Spiderman” McBride has already clinched it. The question is can McBride complete AMA/Prostar’s first nine-race undefeated season? In 1997 Hall of Fame bound Tony “The Tiger” Lang, with the tuning expertise of John Alwine, went undefeated for the entire four-race season. However never before has anyone, in any category, gone on a nine-race winning streak in the same season.

Lumberjack’s Odds McBride will complete undefeated season – 3 to 2

McBride’s machine has been tremendously consistent for a 1,000-plus horsepower nitro bike. Nevertheless McBride has struggled at Gainesville in recent years and will undoubtedly face the toughest field of the year, with about 10 fuelers expected to compete. To complete the undefeated season McBride will have to run consistent low-sixes all weekend.

Odds we will see Gainesville Raceway’s first 5-second motorcycle pass – 3 to 1

It’s hard to believe it hasn’t happened yet in Gainesville. The facility boasts one of the NHRA’s smoothest track surfaces and longest shut down areas. The McBride brothers should have no problem accomplishing the feat with two event’s worth of chances and four days to tune. Also, keep an eye on Alaska-based veteran Ron Webb, who won this race last year. Webb has been quickly encroaching on the five-second zone and has a shot to join the elite sub-six second club.

Pro Mod

Since winning the 2002 Pingel Thunder Nationals as the 18th-qualified second alternate, C&W Kawasaki jockey Charlie Farrar has been on fire. Farrar’s consistent round wins and three event victories this season have gained him a 131-point lead over Mimmo Marciano. Ohio’s Steve Drake is 144 points back and will also have a shot if Farrar makes a few mistakes.

Adding to the mix, one of the quickest bikes in the category the second half of the season has been the Franco’s performance Suzuki piloted by Dragbike.com webmaster; Scott Valetti. After missing the first three races Valetti is out of the championship hunt but could play spoiler if he draws Farrar early.

Lumberjack’s Championship Odds – Farrar 4 to 1

Expect the largest, most competitive Pro Mod Field of the year, and quite possibly the quickest bump spot ever. However, the Nybergs and Big Doobs will have Farrar’s Kawasaki tuned-up to reach at least one of the finals, which will be enough to grant him the championship.

Formula Super Bike

Coby Adams and Chip Ellis swept the first three races in Formula Super Bike, extending their Team Green ZX-12 undefeated streak to 11. Unexpectedly the bike suffered its first ever loss at Norwalk when Tom Miceli defeated it. Thus beginning a phenomenon that Ellis calls the “Tommy-jinx.” Miceli went on to better the fearsome green machine at each of the last four events. Miceli’s four consecutive event victories have brought him within 126-points of Ellis, despite missing the St. Louis race.

Lumberjack’s Championship Odds – Ellis 6 to 1

Miceli has a very legitimate chance of winning both events, but that alone will not win him the championship. Due to the lack of bikes, even if Ellis goes out early there won’t be enough rounds for Miceli to close the point gap. Ellis would have to run into mechanical problems or fail to qualify for one of the races for Miceli to have a chance.

Funny Bike

One year ago it looked as if Funny Bike was headed for extinction. Now it’s here to stay but the nearly defunct class has entered a rebuilding stage without the presence of perennial powerhouses like Gary Clark and Steve Rice. A positive aspect of shedding the former champs is that it gives talented newcomers a chance to step-up. This year Travis Davis of Douglas, GA has done just that. Thanks to some remarkable tuning Davis has won 4 of the 6 races in which he has participated in this season, earning him a 115 point lead over second place rider Rob Giard.

Lumberjack’s Championship Odds – Davis 5 to 2

Davis has been to the final round at every single event he’s entered this season. There isn’t any reason not to believe this trend won’t continue in Gainesville.

Street Bike Shootout

Rickey Gadson has more AMA/Prostar professional victories than any other rider in the history of the organization but he lacks a Street Bike Shootout Championship. Gadson’s dominance this season has him just a few laps away from collecting the career first. Gadson won every event on the tour until Honda’s Barry Henson put an end to his win-streak last month in Alabama.

The past two World Finals have been devastating for Gadson, losing the championship to Kent Stotz by less than 15 points each time. This year should be different and will require a Team Green disaster for Gadson to relinquish his 233-point lead. Lumberjack’s Championship Odds – Gadson 20 to 1

If Gadson can qualify in the top-half, it will be enough to award him his first ever Street Bike Shootout Championship. Gadson’s rig would have to run out of gas on the way to the event for him to not win the championship, and even then I’d give him 2 to 1 odds.

Odds the Street Bike Shootout ET record will fall – 2 to 1

Record holder Kent Stotz may be out of the championship hunt, but that won’t stop him from turning up the boost on his CBR1100X. Stotz says he’s never blown up a motor by turning up the boost too high, and if he has to sacrifice one to the aluminum gods trying to find the breaking point – so be it. Look for Stotz, Henson, or Gadson to eclipse the record 7.64 elapsed time mark.

The stage is set for some dramatic late-season clashes this November 13th through the 15th in Gainesville. Don’t miss out on what could quite possibly be the largest most spectacular motorcycle drag race ever. See you there!