Council Bluffs, IA - Mid-America Center

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Trucks: USHRA Monster Trucks including Maximum Destruction® driven by Kreg Christensen, Black Stallion driven by Mike Vaters, Iron Warrior driven by Trey Meyers, Wolverine driven by Alex Blackwell, and just added: King Krunch driven by David Smith, El Matador driven by Daron Basl, Lucas Oil Crusader℠ driven by Linsey Weenk, and Metal Mulisha driven by Todd Leduc!


Friday Night

76 different Monster Jam teams will start on the road to Las Vegas as NGK Spark Plug Present the Advance Auto Parts Monster Jam World Finals; only 24 will make the field at WF 13. 8 of those contenders were in Council Bluffs to start their journey in 2012.
Todd LeDuc in the seat of the all new Metal Mulisha, making its 2012 debut in Council Bluffs, came away with a victory in the UTI Monster Jam Racing Final. After an eight month break from the seat of a monster truck, and in a completely new truck from the wheels up, and no testing time, Todd came out and showed his off-road racing prowess. In the elimination rounds it was obvious that Todd and the Metal Mulisha entry would be fast, able to 4 wheel drift the far turn and then dynamite the breaks in the near turn, pivot and rocket to the finish proved to be the winning combination. Todd, using his off-road racing background to get a great feel for the 10 foot tall, 9500 pound, 1500 horse monster truck (nearly twice as tall, and almost 7000 lbs heavier than the race trucks he operates in off-road racing) made flawless passes all evening long and in the UTI Championship round he felt if he put pressure on Linsey Weenk and the Lucas Oil Crusader, that Linsey may make a mistake and in the end, whether Linsey felt pressured or not, he made a mistake. Running hot into turn one, he tried to dynamite the brakes and pivot the truck as he accelerated toward out of the corner, unfortunately, the outside tires hooked and grabbed, ending in a whip slam ¾ roll, not quite making it back up on all 4 wheels. Todd took the victory for the Metal Mulisha team, not the way a racer wants to get a win, but in the cut throat world of Monster Jam, especially on the opening weekend and 20 of the qualifying flags (at the start of the night) still up for grabs, a check mark in the win column goes a long way in this short season. You figure that the drivers only have 10 weekends to get the bid to the WF 13 in Vegas and all of the stops are pulled at the beginning of the year when everyone is equal.
Daron Basl and El Matador, as always, were consistent and challenging. Probably one of the most likeable characters on tour, and probably one of the drivers other competitors don't want to meet on the track, Daron motored to a 3rd place finish in the wheelie contest and 4th in freestyle.
Reappearing on the Advance Auto Parts Monster Jam tour is the Marvel hero Wolverine. Nearly 10 years since the last sighting of Wolverine, Alex Blackwell debuted the truck in Iowa, to a savvy and excited fan base. Alex, as typical, put on a killer show on every pass and every hit. The guy has loads of talent as has been witnessed by his meteoric rise and fantastic showings in Vegas. Still getting used to the truck, Alex is going to be a force going forward. He lost in the semi final to the eventual racing winner Todd LeDuc, but I can see where Alex will be as competitive as ever in 2012.
Both David Smith and Mike Vaters had some mechanical gremlins at the opening round. I believe both teams had transmission issues, but Vaters' team had their issue after introductions and had enough time to get the truck fixed and back for freestyle, where as David an King Krunch had their issue after the wheelie contest and were on the line with the torque converter at around 3000 RPM when the tranny let go, giving them less time than Vaters and compounding the problem was that David Smith's King Krunch transmission parts and pieces were EXTREMELY HOT, making it even more difficult. Mike Vaters and Black Stallion did return for freestyle, and put forth a tremendous effort, getting a great ovation from the fans for the hard work put in for them. Teammate to Vaters and Black Stallion are Trey Meyers and Iron Warrior. Trey, a lot like Daron Basl, very consistent and always hammering the truck and track, making sure the Advance Auto Parts Monster Jam fans get what they came to see.
The only double winner of the night was Kreg Christensen in Maximum Destruction. Living up to the name and the mystic that Tom Meents has created in the futuristic SUV, Kreg came out and set the pace in the wheelie contest with a victory and then in freestyle went bigger, faster and wilder then the rest of the field and then capped off a stellar run by putting the truck over on its lid trying to get a donut/cyclone going. Could have lifted, maybe should have lifted, but he didn't. One of the reasons I have always loved watching Kreg is that I truly believe that he feels as if no matter the situation, or circumstance, he can drive out of it. He ran out of real estate and time, but still had his foot on the floor when the RII's went off; desperately trying to get the truck righted and continues on. The Original Bad Boy from Utah can always make the crowd stand and scream!!!
Wheelie Scores:
El Matador 21
Iron Warrior 12
Metal Mulisha 16
King Krunch 19
Lucas Oil Crusader 23
Wolverine 17
Black Stallion DNS (mechanical after intros)
Max D 27

Racing Brackets
Round 1
Lucas Oil Crusader lances King Krunch (Krunch had mechanical off start)
Wolverine slashed El Matador
Metal Mulisha took out Iron Warrior

Semi Final
Lucas Oil Crusader went medieval on Max D (who came in to semi from winning wheelies)
Metal Mulisha skinned Wolverine

UTI Championship Round
Metal Mulisha wins after Crusader crash

Freestyle Scores:
Iron Warrior 15
Metal Mulisha 21
El Matador 18
King Krunch DNS (input shaft for transmission failed)
Lucas Oil Crusader 19
Black Stallion 3 (mechanical issue stopped run short, only 1 hit)
Wolverine 17
Maximum Destruction 22

By Scott Heaton

Saturday 2 PM

Double Down!! Alex Blackwell in Wolverine were the first to double down in 2012, winning racing and freestyle on day 2 in Council Bluffs. Driving the wheels off of the truck to get the win over Linsey Weenk and the Lucas Oil Crusader. In a hot contested main event, both drivers went for broke out of the final turn, when it seemed that the Wolverine would be the hands down winner, here came the Crusader. Linsey left it on the floor and made up most of the distance that Alex had gained. In an amazingly close finish the nod went to a deserving Wolverine.
Alex kept the ball rolling in freestyle. Desperately wanting to be one of the 24 to make the WF 13, Alex is going to keep the pressure on any of the competitors that show up in the same city as Alex, Howie and the Wolverine. Massive air and a blazing quick pace made for the most impressive freestyle of the afternoon.
Daron Basl and El Matador continue to impress. With a solid 2nd place in the wheelie contest, losing in racing to the eventual winner Wolverine and then a strong showing in freestyle only solidify the fact that he is a potential winner every time he laces up the driving shoes. Todd LeDuc and Metal Mulisha had an issue with the right rear drive axle after the wheelie contest and did not return until freestyle. And to even return in that amount of time is a testament to the hard working crews of Monster Jam. Nearly every team on the property was involved with getting the 3rd member out and replaced. Good on ya!! Trey Myers in Iron Warrior along with teammate Mike Vaters in Black Stallion once again showed that they are a team to contend with at any Advance Auto Parts Monster Jam. Both guys run the trucks with reckless abandon, seemingly not worried about anything but giving the fans what they came for, a killer show!!! David Smith in King Krunch, after putting Kings shocks all the way around the truck recently is still chasing a few issues, trying to dial the shocks in without any testing time is going to be an uphill battle for the Flame Motorsports team, with such a short season and not many spots left at the WF 13 (4 spots have already been filled) Dave is going to have to get thru the learning curve in a hurry. Kreg Christensen won the wheelie contest and then had things go awry. Unable to advance out of the semi final round in racing and then having an issue with the RII system during his freestyle run considerably lessened his impact. But you can't keep Kreg and team down. The competition is going to be under fire from them for Saturday night’s show. If history repeats, every time Kreg has a subpar performance he always backs it up with sheer insanity.

Wheelie Scores:
El Matador 24
Iron Warrior 18
Metal Mulisha 5 (broke rear drive axle)
King Krunch 17
Crusader 20
Wolverine 18
Black Stallion 16
Max D 26

Racing Bracket

Round 1
Crusader beat Black Stallion
Max D over Iron Warrior
Wolverine defeat El Matador
King Krunch bye run due to Metal Mulisha mechanical

Semi Final
Crusader over King Krunch
Wolverine beat Max D

Final
Wolverine beat Crusader

Freestyle Scores
Iron Warrior 16
Metal Mulisha 18
El Matador 14
King Krunch 16
Crusader 23
Black Stallion 19
Wolverine 24
Max D 20

By Scott Heaton

Saturday Night 7:30pm

Normally when you see a monster truck bicycle on two wheels, nearly over on the side wall, the driver would lift. Normally. Linsey Weenk, the driver of the Lucas Oil Crusader has never really fit into the “normal” category. His entire career Linsey has had a unique bond with his ride. From his time in the ultra hard to handle Jurassic Attack, to his time spent in the seat of Blue Thunder, and now in the Crusader, Linsey continues to tame the truck on most occasions. Yeah, he's had some spills that he probably could have avoided (like the Minneapolis racing final in December) but more often than not, the guy is going to make it work. In the UTI racing final against David Smith and King Krunch, Linsey made the entire crowd, including myself, jump up and down fist pumping the air as he bicycled over and just romped the throttle, going into the finish line jump (which are very short and steep this year, rocket launchers, really) completely squared up but onto wheels. As he hit the jump the suspension soaked up the odd angle, righted itself and gave Linsey the racing win over a hard charging Smith in Krunch. In his interview Linsey said he could feel that the truck still had some weight on the left side of the truck (the top side) and felt that he could stay on the gas. His heavy right foot stayed on the loud pedal long enough to take the win.
David gave credit to Todd LeDuc of Metal Mulisha for getting the new Kings shocks to perform better for the Flame Motorsports team. In the racing and freestyle events, it was obvious that whatever the Flame Motorsports team was able to glean from Todd LeDuc was paying off. The truck was landing and cornering the way David thought it would with the new boingers. Smith and King Krunch had things dialed in well enough to be at the top of the leader board halfway through freestyle.
Alex Blackwell in wolverine also continued to impress. Running the truck in freestyle like his hair was on fire, a pace that was unmatched and only out done by bigger air from Max D, Alex worked the Marvel truck like the experienced veteran he has become. The sheer rocket launches he pulled off over the Stockholm stack seemed as if he would go thru the roof and land in the parking lot across the street. Simply amazing stuff. No wonder Liquid Sunglasses is a proud sponsor of Alex and team!!
Todd LeDuc and Metal Mulisha pushed thru some adversity with mechanical gremlins this weekend to have a great showing. Going to the semi final in racing, and scoring well in wheelie and freestyle, will only build what is already, in the first weekend of the trucks existence on tour, a huge fan base.
El Matador and Daron Basl, with 18's in both freestyle and wheelies stayed consistent. Daron has a huge job load at every Advance Auto Parts Monster Jam. He is the primary driver for El Matador and crew chief, and those crew chief duties extend to teammate David Smith and King Krunch. May seem like a lot, but I don't think Daron would like it any other way. Trey Myers and Mike Vaters, drivers of Iron Warrior and Black Stallion, pounded the track in every event. One thing about those two boys, they are kids at heart and love to entertain the fans. Kreg Christensen finished the night with a patented Maximum Destruction fashion. Huge air, a blistering pace around the Monster jam raceway, put Kreg in victory lane. The near ceiling touching hits, and the reckless abandon with which Kreg drives, drove the judge to reward him with the highest numbers of the night, not only in freestyle, but in the wheelie contest as well, where he received the only perfect 30 point score of the weekend.

Wheelie Scores
El Matador 18
Iron Warrior 15
Metal Mulisha 11
King Krunch 21
Crusader 27
Wolverine 18
Black Stallion 13
Max D 30

Racing Brackets

Round 1
In a rematch from the afternoons main event Wolverine and Crusader matched up with a reversal of fortunes as Crusader avenged his loss from earlier in the day.
Max D roped the Black Stallion
Metal Mulisha gored El Matador
King Krunch crushed Iron Warrior

Semi Final
Lucas Oil Crusader beat Max D
King Krunch beat Meta Mulisha

UTI CHAMPIONSHIP ROUND
Lucas Oil Crusader with a flair of showmanship wins against King Krunch

Freestyle Scores
Iron Warrior 18
Metal Mulisha 17
El Matador 18
King Krunch 21
Crusader 24
Black Stallion 15
Wolverine 26
Max D 29

By Scott Heaton

Sunday 2pm

Kreg Christensen kept the highlight reel going in Council Bluffs. All weekend long it has been highlight after highlight in the Mid America Center. From Linsey Weenk and the Crusader hitting the finish line jump on 2 wheels, the rocket shots from Alex Blackwell in Wolverine, and then the sky wheelie hit from Kreg in Maximum Destruction. Kreg and Max hit the backside of the crush cars, whacked the loud pedal and sent the truck vertical, then more than vertical, to about a 110 degree angle, settled the rear of the truck into the last crush car, and stuck the landing. Literally. The wheelie bar smashed into the car, and momentum brought the truck back onto the rear wheels, where it stayed. Kreg immediately threw the truck into reverse, gagged the throttle and backed out of what looked like a sure roll over. Nice piece of driving and quick thinking.
When you enter into a race, it doesn't matter how you get it done, the object is to win. Mike Vaters and Black Stallion took advantage of a mechanical on Wolverine in the UTI Championship round. Alex Blackwell, driving Wolverine, launched off the line and then had the power go out. Not sure if it was electrical or if a RII was hit, but as he coasted to a stop, Vaters and Back Stallion motored by for the win. Mike is a 6 time qualifier for the Advance Auto Parts Monster Jam World Finals, and a 7 time Thunder National Champion and is looking to garner 1 of the 20 qualifying flag for WF13. And with a strong showing in week1, Black Stallion is in the running for another shot at a World Championship.
Alex and Wolverine came back out in freestyle and took out a little frustration, which propelled them to the victory. Alex is looking more and more comfortable in his new ride and it does not bode well for the rest of his competition this year.
David Smith had his best outing of the weekend in the final freestyle competition, coming in a close 2nd to Wolverine. Dave and King Krunch, also trying get back to the WFs' after a year away, knows that he is going to have to come out and attack the race track in all of the forms of competition to get that qualifying flag. It may be a challenge, but the Flame Motorsports team is definitely up to the task.

Wheelie Scores:
El Matador 20
Iron Warrior 20
Metal Mulisha 18
King Krunch 21
Crusader 19
Wolverine 16
Black Stallion 16
Max D 30

Racing Bracket

Round 1
Crusader beat El Matador
Wolverine beat Metal Mulisha (tranny went away on Todd LeDuc, would not return)
Black Stallion beat King Krunch
Max D beat Iron Warrior

Semi Final
Wolverine beat Crusader Black Stallion beat Max D

Final
Black Stallion beat Wolverine

Freestyle Scores:
Iron Warrior 7
Metal Mulisha DNS
El Matador 15
King Krunch 24
Crusader 21
Black Stallion 19
Wolverine 25
Max D 23

By Scott Heaton