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KOPP HOPING FOR THREE STRAIGHT AT GREENVILLE
HALF-MILE
July 17, 2007
AMA Racing news release
Only one rider has tasted victory at Greenville, Ohio’s Darke
County Fairgrounds Half-mile and that is Screamin’ Eagle/Latus
Harley-Davidson rider Joe Kopp. Kopp, the 38-year-old former AMA Grand
National Champion from Mica, Wash., will be gunning for his third
straight national win at the 3rd Annual Annie Oakley Shootout in
Greenville this Saturday, July 21, part of the AMA Ford Quality Checked
Flat Track Championship.
The season has been a rollercoaster ride for Kopp so far. His races have
either been hits or misses, but he comes to Greenville coming off a
podium performance last weekend in Saluda, Va. That third-place finish
moved him into ninth in the AMA Grand National Twins Championship
standings. However, Kopp is only 10 points away from being inside the
top five, so a third straight win on Greenville’s pea-gravel cushion
half-mile could put him right back in the thick of the championship
chase as the series enters mid-season.
“I feel pretty confident coming into Greenville this weekend,” said
Kopp, who won the AMA Grand National Championship in 2000. “It’s
going to be tough with these young kids coming up.”
Kopp, a 15-year pro, is referring to a new generation of riders who are
beginning to make their mark, making it tough on veterans like himself
and Chris Carr.
“It’s getting a little tougher these days for guys like Chris and
me,” Kopp continued. “We’ve both been struggling a bit. Sometimes
I wonder though if we’re struggling or these young guys are just
getting really good. I don’t think you’ve heard the last from us
though. I think I’ll have something for them on these cushion
tracks.”
Kopp went on to say that he has room on his wall for another mounted
muzzleloader trophy. The winner of the Greenville National is awarded a
unique muzzleloader trophy in honor of Annie Oakley, the famous sharp
shooting performer of the late 1800s and early 1900s, who grew up in
Darke County.
After five rounds of the 13-race AMA GNC Twins Championship Jared Mees
leads Ken Coolbeth by nine points. Mees pulled off a solid string of
three-straight national wins but Coolbeth, the defending champion who
rides for the factory Harley-Davidson squad, responded with a victory
last weekend in Virginia.
So with Kopp, a two-time Greenville Half-mile winner, Mees, the series
points leader, and Coolbeth, the defending champ and winner of the most
recent round, you have a race this Saturday that’s up for grabs.
Also among the series leader coming into Greenville are Jake Johnson,
whose finished in the top-10 at every round this year and is ranked
third in the standings. Bryan Smith, like Mees, is another of the young
guns in the Grand Nationals and he’s scored two podium finishes so far
to push his ranking to fourth nationally. And then there’s Chris Carr,
the winningest active rider in the series. Carr, a perennial front
runner who is still considered by most competitors as the rider to beat,
is seeking his first win of the season.
Another rider to watch at Greenville is Ohio’s own George Roeder.
Roeder, from Monroeville, Ohio, grew up racing on cushion tracks like
Greenville and he’s always a threat on these types of tracks.
The race will be broadcast on MavTV. Visit www.mavtv.com
for additional information.
For ticket information call (765) 962-0596.
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