Photo by Brett Moist

Point races are tightening as the Monster Jam® season heads closer to Monster Jam World Finals® XVIII.

FS1 West: A doubleheader weekend in Houston saw a change at the top of the leaderboard. Monster Energy® (Todd LeDuc) has moved out front, thanks in part to a third Freestyle win of the season. Grave Digger® (Adam Anderson) claimed a Racing win and Freestyle victory. El Toro Loco® (Marc McDonald) gained a first Racing win of the year. Next stop: Jacksonville, FL

FS1 East:  Lucas Oil Crusader^TM appears unstoppable in Racing, notching a fourth title of 2017 with victory in Indianapolis. The win boosted the point lead, but the race is far from over. Grave Digger (Morgan Kane) was a double winner by taking Wheelies and Freestyle. El Toro Loco (Chuck Werner) performed a corkscrew flip during Freestyle. Next stop: Houston, TX

Stadium Tour 3: Son-uva Digger® (Ryan Anderson) continued on a Racing tear, winning for the third time in five appearances. Anderson has a 14-3 racing record. Grave Digger (Jon Zimmer) kept pace with a Freestyle win as Jester (Matt Pagliarulo) topped Wheelie competition. Next stop: Oakland, CA (final event)

Stadium Tour 4: U.S. Bank Stadium in Minneapolis was the scene for a change at the top of the point standings in this series. VP Mad Scientist^TM (Lee O’Donnell) captured Freestyle and gained enough to shoot past Dragon^TM  (Dustin Brown) in the point tally. Dragon won Racing with the tribute truck USA-1 (Roger Gauger) coming out best in Wheelies. Next stop: San Diego, CA

Triple Threat Series Central presented by AMSOIL: Grave Digger (Krysten Anderson) won all four weekend Freestyle competitions in Pittsburgh and recorded her first event championship with a Friday night performance. Anderson won eight competitions over the weekend. Pirate’s Curse^TM (Camden Murphy) and Megalodon^TM (Justin Sipes) were also multiple winners in the action. Next stop: Rosemont, IL

Triple Threat Series West presented by AMSOIL: Despite some issues on Saturday night, Grave Digger (Cole Venard) came away with the most points and appears well on the way to a return to Monster Jam World Finals XVII. El Toro Loco (Mark List) slipped past Monster Mutt® Dalmatian (Cynthia Gauthier) for third, leading by two points. Next stop: Albuquerque, NM

Triple Threat Series East: Grave Digger (Tyler Menninga) continued to wow everyone with tricks that included a vertical wheelie that lasted more than 20 seconds. Grave Digger’s two event championships of the weekend tightened the race at the top, but Max-D^TM (Blake Granger) broke up a weekend sweep. It was Granger’s first event championship. Next stop: Cleveland, OH

Arena Tour 4: The final stop of the three-week Canada swing for this tour happened in London. Grave Digger (Randy Brown) won seven competitions with Northern Nightmare® (Cam McQueen) taking the other five. Next stop: Memphis, TN

Arena Tour 5: A snowy weekend in Hartford didn’t diminish the fans who came out for three Monster Jam presentations. Grave Digger (Pablo Huffaker) took home all three event championships and added some breathing room in the point standings from Rammunition (Mat Dishman). Bad News Travels Fast (Brandon Derrow) returned to the series and moved up in points, thanks to a solid weekend. Next stop: Toledo, OH

Arena Tour 6: Carolina Crusher® (Gary Porter) took both Freestyle wins while Stinger (Zane Rettew) claimed both Wheelie wins in Columbia, SC. Megalodon (Alex Blackwell) was a three-time winner with two wins in Timed Racing and a Donut competition. Next stop: Oklahoma City, OK