Friday Night:

The Advance Auto Parts Monster Jam Thunder Nationals made its return to Richmond Coliseum with a star-studded lineup of Monster Trucks, Quad Wars and more excitement.

The Monster Truck portion of the program kicked off with wheelstand competition with Bad News Travels Fast taking the earlier lead. He held it until the final truck stepped up and it was multi-time Thunder Nationals champion Mike Vaters and Black Stallion that stuck a towering wheelstand for the win. Iron Warrior had suffered a broken transmission and was unable to compete in this portion of the program.

Racing saw Black Stallion take out Stone Crusher, War Wizard topping Mopar Magic, and Bad News with a bye run due to the broken Iron Warrior. Mopar Magic returned for semi-finals as fast loser, but fell victim to Black Stallion. War Wizard eliminated Bad News, setting up an exciting final. At the green, War Wizard got the hole shot, thanks to Randy Moore’s drag racing experience, and nipped Black Stallion in a close final.

The floor was opened for donut action, which gave Bad News Travels Fast the time to shine. Going last in the competition, Bruce Haney detached the steering wheel and held it out the window as the fans went delirious. The tactic brought a score of 23, good enough to take the win. Iron Warrior made a return to action as the crew made a complete transmission change.

The final element was freestyle and no one was holding anything back. A determined Iron Warrior posted a solid 17 to get it started with Bad News and Mopar Magic posting identical 19s to grab the lead. War Wizard took over and Stone Crusher bested him by a single point. The 24 was high, but not high enough to keep Black Stallion from turning it loose. Vaters went straight for it, throwing trick after trick, including high flying wheelies and a backwards power jump over the crush cars. A strong effort throughout the 60 seconds to post a near perfect 29.

Mike Vaters and Trey Myers were doing double duty, bringing jet quads Psycho and Kamikaze to entertain the fans with high speed and high powered antics. Team Virginia defeated Team New York in Quad Wars. Galactron and Reptar transformed for a showdown of good versus evil.

Saturday – 7:30 p.m.

 The second night of the Advance Auto Parts Monster Jam Thunder Nationals in Richmond showed why Mike Vaters and Black Stallion are the kings of Thunder Nationals. The veteran scored three of the elements in dominating fashion during the Saturday night program.

The Ford-powered Ford bodied Black Stallion started the night with a towering wheelstand, drove home the point of dominance with a high flying racing finish and topped freestyle with a stellar run.

The wheelstand action saw Vaters come to the floor as the final truck to pursue the title. Teammate Trey Myers in Iron Warrior had started the event with a 15 that stood until he was tied by Ricky Ownley’s Mopar Magic. Vaters shot to the air to coax a 27 from the judges and the element win.

In round one of racing, Stone Crusher took out War Wizard, Mopar Magic got past Iron Warrior and Black Stallion defeated Bad News Travels Fast. Iron Warrior received the fast loser provisional, but Stone Crusher put him back in the pits inj the semi-finals. Black Stallion earned his spot in the showdown with a victory over Mopar Magic. At the green, Vaters went fast forward and flying to cross the Ford finish line ahead of Stone Crusher.

When donut competition rolled around, the scores kept getting higher and higher Steve Sims and Stone Crusher looked to have a win on the way until Bruce Haney hung the steering wheel out of Bad News Travels fast while spinning the truck. It got the attention of the fans and the judges and earned Haney his second straight donut title.

It was no holds barred in freestyle with each truck doing more and more to make it tough for the other guy. Drivers were shooting for the ceiling in their air passes and it took a reverse run over the crush cars to put Vaters in victory for the third time.

Vaters and Trey Myers entertained the fans with jet quads Psycho and Kamikaze to light the arena. Quad wars racing saw team North Carolina invade and win the Saturday championship. The show also featured Galactron versus Reptar.

Wheelie Competition

Black Stallion 27
Iron Warrior 15
Mopar Magic 15
Bad News Travels Fast 13
War Wizard 10
Stone Crusher 7

Racing
Round one: Stone Crusher over War Wizard, Mopar Magic defeated Iron Warrior, Black Stallion knocked off Bad News Travels Fast. (Iron Warrior returns as fast loser)

Semi-finals: Stone Crusher beat Iron Warrior, Black Stallion topped Mopar Magic

Finals: Black Stallion defeated Stone Crusher

Donut
Bad News Travels Fast 25
Stone Crusher 21
Black Stallion 14
Mopar Magic 12
Iron Warrior 11
War Wizard 7

Freestyle
Black Stallion 27
Stone Crusher 24
War Wizard 22
Mopar Magic 20
Bad News Travels Fast 18
Iron Warrior 11

Sunday – 2:00 p.m.

Valentine’s Day is a time for love and the fans in the Richmond Coliseum loved seeing the action of the Advance Auto Parts Monster Jam Thunder Nationals. High flying action and close competition dominated the scene on the final day of a three-show weekend.

The show opened with Monster wheelstand action with drivers performing twisting vertical drives . Mopar Magic appeared on the way to a victory, but Black Stallion was just one point better to pick up another element in a very successful weekend.

The head-to-head racing in round one found Black Stallion charging right back to the floor to eliminate War Wizard. Stone Crusher went high flying to beat Bad News Travels Fast in the second race. Mopar Magic renewed a Saturday night rivalry by again beating Iron Warrior. The Iron Warrior run was good enough to earn the fast loser provisional and a pass to the semi-finals. That was the good news. The bad news was that he would face his teammate, Black Stallion. It was Black Stallion continuing his dominance, taking the semi finals win. Teammates Stone Crusher and Mopar Magic eyed each other at the line in their showdown, won by Stone Crusher. The finals saw both trucks leave the line at the same time with Black Stallion first across the Ford finish line.

Perfect donut conditions allowed the drivers to showcase the high speed twist that brought the fans to their feet. Iron Warrior and Mopar Magic set the bar high with 18 and 22 respectively. Stone Crusher took it evenly higher with a near perfect 29. The score stood as Bruce Haney and Bad News Travels Fast went for the weekend sweep, but a 24 wouldn’t get the job done. Stone Crusher picked up a popular win. War Wizard was unable to compete due to a broken hub.

The freestyle included a van stack, giving drivers a bit more to target. Iron Warrior opened the action but Bad News took the lead. Stone Crusher returned to the floor in search of a Valentine’s Day double. His performance qualified high in the judges eyes, who put up a trio of 10s and a perfect 30. A quality performance by Black Stallion, including the backwards run, completely clearing the crush cars, left him a few points short and the crowd cheered a native son victory for Virginia’s Steve Sims.

Team Virginia avenged a Saturday night loss to team North Carolina in quad wars. The show also included the Jet Quads and Galactron versus Reptar.

Monster Wheelies
Black Stallion 21
Mopar Magic 20
Stone Crusher 16
Iron Warrior 13
War Wizard 8
Bad News Travels Fast 7

Racing
Round One:  Black Stallion over War Wizard, Stone Crusher defeated Bad News Travels Fast, Mopar Magic dropped Iron Warrior (Iron Warrior gets fast loser provisional)

Semi-finals: Black Stallion beat Iron Warrior, Stone Crusher topped Mopar Magic

Finals: Black Stallion won over Stone Crusher

Donut
Stone Crusher 29
Bad News Travels Fast 24
Mopar Magic 22
Iron Warrior 18
Black Stallion 11
War Wizard – Did not compete (broken hub)

Freestyle
Stone Crusher 30
Black Stallion 26
Bad News Travels Fast 17
Iron Warrior 12
Mopar Magic 8
War Wizard – Did not compete (broken hub)