Covington Coveting a Crack at Carmichael’s Track

Monster Energy Cup
Sam Boyd Stadium

Courtesy of Feld Motor Sports
LAS VEGAS, NV, JUNE 15, 2012

Monster Energy Kawasaki Team Green rider Thomas Covington of Murrieta, California, is the latest addition to the line-up for the Amateur All-Star Class 2012 Monster Energy Cup at Las Vegas’ Sam Boyd Stadium on October 20.

Thomas Covington is looking forward to racing on this year’s Monster Energy Cup track. Photo courtesy of kawasaki.com

Covington, 16, finished sixth overall at last year’s Monster Energy Cup, scoring 8-5 finishes in the two-main-event format. Covington is one of 22 top Amateur riders at this year’s event who will represent the next generation of racers as they compete on the world’s biggest stage, with 3 ½ hours of live television coverage. Consisting of two five-lap main events, the Amateur All-Star Class features the graduating class of top Amateurs who will turn professional the following season.

“The Monster Energy Cup is one of my favorite races of the year,” said Covington. “Getting to ride supercross and get my feet wet before I turn Pro is an awesome opportunity! Before the Monster Energy Cup, we will start riding a little supercross at the Kawasaki test track. I am looking forward to it this year.”

Covington began riding at age 4 and scored his first AMA Amateur National Motocross Championship at the Loretta Lynn Ranch in 2003 and subsequently added three additional titles to his résumé. Along the way, he became friends with 15-time AMA National Champion Ricky Carmichael, who will be designing this year’s Monster Energy Cup track.

“It’s cool that Ricky is designing the track,” said Covington. “I know it will be a good track.”

Ricky Carmichael is once again designing the track layout for this year’s Monster Energy Cup.

Carmichael, a five-time Supercross-class Champion, took the next step in designing this year’s track when he sat down with Feld Motor Sports to discuss the optimal track layout for fans and riders. Carmichael met with Feld Motor Sports’ Todd Jendro, vice president of two-wheel operations; Dave Prater, director of supercross; and Nate Swartzendruber, Monster Energy Cup manager; as well as Dirt Wurx’s Chris Blankenship, at his Florida compound.

“I am really excited to design this year’s Monster Energy Cup track, which will be all new and something that the fans and riders have never seen before,” said Carmichael. “I am going to take what I learned from designing last year’s track and give the riders the perfect combination of big air, high speeds, and technical rhythm sections that will generate great racing.”

The 2012 Monster Energy Cup features an all-new track design inspired by five-time Supercross-class Champion Ricky Carmichael. The Carmichael-inspired track design will consist of supercross and motocross obstacles unlike any other racetrack design in the world. More than 200 feet of the track will be built into the grandstands, and the riders will exit the stadium and race through the Monster Energy Fan Zone outside of the stadium and through the pit area before they catapult back into the stadium. The Monster Energy Cup posts a $250,000 purse, with the winner walking away with a $100,000 check, and any rider who wins all three main events will take home $1 million.

Tickets for the 2012 Monster Energy Cup can be purchased at the Thomas & Mack Center box office, UNLVtickets outlets, online at www.UNLVtickets.com, www.MonsterEnergyCup.com, or by phone at 702/739-FANS. Tickets will be available at the Sam Boyd Stadium box office on the day of the event only.

For more information on the Monster Energy Cup, log on to www.SupercrossOnline.com.