Tom Meents Wins Racing, Cam McQueen Wins Freestyle World Championships In Vegas

Event: Monster Jam World Finals XII
Venue: Sam Boyd Stadium
Location: Las Vegas, Nevada
Date: March 24th, 2012

Racing Champion: Tom Meents – Maximum Destruction
Freestyle Champion: Cam McQueen – Northern Nightmare

Lineup (24 Trucks):

Avenger – Jim Koehler
Bounty Hunter – Jimmy Creten
Brutus – Chris Bergeron
Captain America – Chad Fortune
Captain’s Curse – Pablo Huffaker
El Toro Loco – Marc MacDonald
Grave Digger – Dennis Anderson
Grave Digger The Legend – Adam Anderson
Grinder – John Seasock
Iron Man – Lee O’Donnell
Lucas Oil Crusader – Linsey Weenk
Madusa – Debra Miceli
Maximum Destruction – Tom Meents
Metal Mulisha – Todd Leduc
Mohawk Warrior – George Balhan
Monster Energy – Damon Bradshaw
Monster Mutt – Charlie Pauken
Monster Mutt Dalmatian – Candace Jolly
Northern Nightmare – Cam McQueen
Son-uva Digger – Ryan Anderson
Spider-Man – Chad Tingler
Stone Crusher – Steve Sims
Team Hot Wheels – Neil Elliott
Wolverine – Alex Blackwell

Todd Leduc made the most of a last minute addition to the World Finals field, laying down the fastest qualifying time of the night.

Qualifying Results

1) Metal Mulisha – Todd Leduc – 16.201
2) Captain’s Curse – Pablo Huffaker – 16.201
3) Monster Energy – Damon Bradshaw – 16.272
4) Grave Digger The Legend – Adam Anderson – 16.329
5) Team Hot Wheels – Neil Elliott – 16.350
6) Lucas Oil Crusader – Linsey Weenk – 16.425
7) Son-uva Digger – Ryan Anderson – 16.432
8) Maximum Destruction – Tom Meents – 16.481
9) El Toro Loco – Marc MacDonald – 16.648
10) Bounty Hunter – Jimmy Creten – 16.714
11) Grinder – John Seasock – 16.724
12) Monster Mutt Dalmatian – Candace Jolly – 16.725
13) Northern Nightmare – Cam McQueen – 16.757
14) Grave Digger – Dennis Anderson – 16.780
15) Wolverine – Alex Blackwell – 16.893
16) Madusa – Debra Miceli – 16.943
17) Monster Mutt – Charlie Pauken – 16.980
18) Brutus – Chris Bergeron – 17.059
19) Mohawk Warrior – George Balhan – 17.193
20) Iron Man – Lee O’Donnell – 17.505
21) Avenger – Jim Koehler – 17.713
22) Stone Crusher – Steve Sims – 17.753
23) Captain America – Chad Fortune – 18.159
24) Spiderman – Chad Tingler – DNF

Tom Meents in Maximum Destruction was unstoppable tonight in Las Vegas, marching his way through the bracket to his 6th World Finals Racing Championship.

Racing Results

Round One
Spiderman (Tingler) def. Monster Mutt (Pauken)
El Toro Loco (MacDonald) def. Brutus (Bergeron)
Iron Man (O’Donnell) def. Monster Mutt Dalmation (Jolly)
Northern Nightmare (McQueen) def. Avenger (Koehler)
Grave Digger (Anderson) def. Stone Crusher (Sims)
Grinder (Seasock) def. Madusa (Miceli)
Bounty Hunter (Creten) def. Mohawk Warrior (Balhan)
Wolverine (Blackwell) def. Captain America (Fortune)

Round Two
Spiderman (Tingler) def. Metal Mulisha (Leduc)
Maximum Destruction (Meents) def. El Toro Loco (MacDonald)
Team Hot Wheels (Elliott) def. Iron Man (O’Donnell)
Grave Digger The Legend (Anderson) def. Northern Nightmare (McQueen)
Monster Energy (Bradshaw) def. Grave Digger (Anderson)
Lucas Oil Crusader (Weenk) def. Grinder (Seasock)
Son Uva Digger (Anderson) def. Bounty Hunter (Creten)
Wolverine (Blackwell) def. Captain’s Curse (Huffaker)

Quarter-Finals
Maximum Destruction (Meents) def. Spiderman (Tingler)
Grave Digger The Legend (Anderson) def. Team Hot Wheels (Elliott)
Monster Energy (Bradshaw) def. Lucas Oil Crusader (Weenk)
Wolverine (Blackwell) def. Son Uva Digger (Anderson)

Semi-Finals
Maximum Destruction (Meents) def. Grave Digger The Legend (Anderson)
Monster Energy (Bradshaw) def. Wolverine (Blackwell)

Finals
Maximum Destruction (Meents) def. Monster Energy (Bradshaw)

Cam McQueen in Northern Nightmare laid down an incredible performance, complete with backflip, and won his first Monster Jam World Finals title!

Freestyle Results

1) Northern Nightmare – Cam McQueen – 38
2) Bounty Hunter – Jimmy Creten – 32
3) Son Uva Digger – Ryan Anderson – 30
4) Team Hot Wheels – Neil Elliott – 30
5) Grave Digger The Legend – Adam Anderson – 30
6) Stone Crusher – Steve Sims – 30
7) Monster Energy – Damon Bradshaw – 27
8) El Toro Loco – Marc MacDonald – 27
9) Brutus – Chris Bergeron – 26
10) Mohawk Warrior – George Balhan – 25
11) Grave Digger – Dennis Anderson – 25
12) Captain America – Chad Fortune – 25
13) Spiderman – Chad Tingler – 24
14) Metal Mulisha – Todd Leduc – 23
15) Iron Man – Lee O’Donnell – 23
16) Lucas Oil Crusader – Linsey Weenk – 21
17) Grinder – Lupe Soza – 18
18) Wolverine – Alex Blackwell – 18
19) Maximum Destruction – Tom Meents – 16
20) Monster Mutt – Charlie Pauken – 16
21) Captain’s Curse – Pablo Huffaker – 15
22) Avenger – Jim Koehler – 13
23) Madusa – Debra Miceli – 11
24) Monster Mutt Dalmation – Candace Jolly – 4

(Photos by Ross Z. Bonar & Jeff Luckey)

Monster Truck Radio 03/24/12 – Monster Jam World Finals XIII Live

Monster Truck Radio With Host Ross Z. Bonar & Co-Host Chris Parrish
Date: Monday, March 24th, 2012
Special Edition: Host Ross Z. Bonar anchors coverage live in studio as co-host Chris Parrish reports live from Las Vegas, the show features pre-recorded interviews with several of the competitors, along with stats, analysis, trivia w/prizes and much more! [Read more…]

Leduc Fastest Qualifier, Musawwir Wins Young Guns Shootout

(Las Vegas, NV – Monster Jam PR) – The Metal Mulisha monster truck, driven by Todd LeDuc, set the fastest qualifying time of the night (16:201) and secured the #1 seed heading into Saturday night’s Advance Auto Parts Monster Jam World Finals℠ presented by NGK Spark Plugs at Las Vegas’ Sam Body Stadium. Bari Musawwir, driving Spider-Man, became the inaugural Young Guns Shootout Champion at tonight’s Double Down.

Todd Leduc made the most of a last minute addition to the World Finals field, laying down the fastest qualifying time of the night.

Metal Mulisha laid down the night’s fastest time in the first qualifying run, and Captain’s Curse®, driven by Pablo Huffaker, matched the Metal Mulisha time in its second run. The eventual pole position went to Metal Mulisha by way of tie-breaker and leads the field into tomorrow night’s 13th-annual Advance Auto Parts Monster Jam World Finals. Monster Energy, driven by Damon Bradshaw, takes third position into Saturday.

Pablo Huffaker is back in Captain's Curse for this year's World Finals, and tied for the top spot in qualifying, losing to Leduc on a tie-breaker.

“The Metal Mulisha truck is so fast,” said LeDuc. “I was hitting all of my marks out there tonight, and I am excited for tomorrow night. I would like to thank Brian Deegan for this opportunity.”

In the first ever Monster Jam World Finals Young Guns Shootout at Friday’s Double Down, Musawwir, and Spider-Man, raced to an impressive win over the Advance Auto Parts Grinder, driven by Nicole Johnson.

“I am living a dream here tonight,” said Spider-Man driver Musawwir. “I want to thank my team and family for helping me get to this point in my career.”

Bari Musawwir is the first ever Young Guns Shootout champion after defeating Nicole Johnson in Grinder in the finals.

Monster Jam World Finals Official Qualifying Times

1) Metal Mulisha – Todd Leduc: 16:201
2) Captain’s Curse – Pablo Huffaker: 16:201
3) Monster Energy – Damon Bradshaw: 16:272
4) Grave Digger The Legend – Adam Anderson: 16:329
5) Team Hot Wheels – Neil Elliott: 16:350
6) Lucas Oil Crusader – Linsey Weenk: 16:425
7) Son-uva Digger – Ryan Anderson: 16:432
8) Maximum Destruction – Tom Meents: 16:481
9) El Toro Loco – Marc MacDonald: 16:648
10) Grinder – John Seasock: 16:724
11) Monster Mutt Dalmatian – Candace Jolly: 16:725
12) Grave Digger – Dennis Anderson: 16:780
13) Bounty Hunter – Jimmy Creten: 16:822
14) Wolverine – Alex Blackwell: 16:893
15) Madusa – Debra Miceli: 16:943
16) Monster Mutt – Charlie Pauken: 16:980
17) Brutus – Chris Bergeron: 17:059
18) Mohawk Warrior – George Balhan: 17:193
19) Northern Nightmare – Cam McQueen: 17:310
20) Iron Man – Lee O’Donnell: 17:505
21) Stone Crusher – Steve Sims: 17:753
22) Avenger – Jim Koehler: 17:717
23) Captain America – Chad Fortune: 18:159
24) Spiderman – Chad Tingler: DNF

Tickets for the 2013 Advance Auto Parts Monster Jam World Finals℠ go on-sale in two weeks. See below for detailed on-sale information.

April 4-9, 2012: Double Down #1 – All fans that purchased 2012 Double Down packages will receive an e-mail to renew their Double Down packages for 2013 starting Wednesday, April 4th. Fans wishing to renew their exact same seats for 2013 must do so by Monday, April 9th.

April 11-16, 2012: Double Down #2 – Double Down fans looking to change or add seats for 2013 may renew their seats from Wednesday, April 11th through Monday, April 16th.

April 18, 2012: General Public On-Sale – Double Down Packages and regular tickets will go on sale to the general public at 1:00pm EST/10:00am PST on Wednesday, April 18, 2012. Double Down packages will only be available online at UNLVTickets.com or call 866-4JAM-TIX. Regular tickets will be available through the Thomas & Mack Center box office, all UNLV Tickets outlets, online at UNLVTickets.com or call 866-4JAM-TIX.

For more information on the Advance Auto Parts Monster Jam World Finals℠ presented by NGK Spark Plugs, log onto www.MonsterJam.com. Updates will be posted all weekend long on Facebook.com/MJOnline and Twitter.com/MonsterJam.

About Feld Motor Sports

Feld Motor Sports®, Inc. is the world leader in specialized arena and stadium-based motor sports entertainment. Feld Motor Sports, Inc. productions include Advance Auto Parts Monster Jam®, Monster Energy Supercross, AMA Arenacross Series, Nuclear Cowboyz®, and IHRA® Nitro Jam®. Feld Motor Sports, Inc. is a division of Feld Entertainment, the world’s largest producer of live family entertainment. For more information on Feld Entertainment, visit www.feldentertainment.com.

TMB Road to the World Finals Rankings – Final Standings

The 2012 Monster Jam regular season wrapped up this weekend with five arena shows around the country, bringing to a close TMB’s sixth edition of the “Road to the World Finals” unofficial standings. For the first time ever, a driver other than Dennis Anderson or Tom Meents has finished at #1, and that driver is none other than Ryan Anderson and Son Uva Digger!

Ryan Anderson’s incredible season featured 8 stadium event wins, 7 of those coming in freestyle competitions. Add to that an additional 12 racing and freestyle wins in arena shows, along with 5 wheelie contest victories and you have one of the best seasons by any driver in recent Monster Jam history. Many have been predicting Ryan to be the odds on favorite to win the World Freestyle Championship, and he would certainly be deserving of the title as his 7 stadium freestyle wins tower over his next closest competitors at only 4 wins. A big congratulations to Ryan Anderson from all of us here at TMB on such an incredible 2012 season.

Ryan Anderson and Son Uva Digger are the winners of TMB's 2012 "Road to the World Finals"!

While he wasn’t able to come out on top, Dennis Anderson finished at #2 overall by just over 20 points, the equivalence of only one stadium victory. While son Ryan may be the favorite for the freestyle title, there is no question that Dennis Anderson is the man to beat for the racing crown. With 5 stadium racing wins this year (his closest competitors were only able to win 3), and another 3 arena racing wins, Anderson has a great shot at celebrating Grave Digger’s 30th Anniversary with his 4th racing championship.

Anderson edged out Tom Meents by only 2 points for second, as the 9-time World Finals champ finished at #3 this year. Meents turned in another great season, picking up 7 stadium wins overall along with another 16 arena wins. While he may not have finished the year on top, Meents would be a worthy champion in either category and as always in Vegas, if you want to win a World Finals title, you’ll have to beat Tom Meents to do it.

The top 5 is rounded out by two Grave Digger drivers who perennially top the charts in total wins on the Monster Jam tour. Pablo Huffaker and Gary Porter were dominant once again in 2012, with Pablo racking up 67 wins across all competitions, to Gary’s 60. Pablo also mixed in some strong stadium performances to earn another invite to Vegas, while Porter’s accomplishments were once again overlooked as the best performing driver not to receive a World Finals invitation.

Skipping back to the all important cutoff at the 24th position, this is the line all drivers want to be above after the last week of competition on TMB’s “Road to the World Finals”. Being compared on the same scale as every other driver to compete in Monster Jam throughout the season, if you can finish in the top 24, you’ve proved you deserve consideration for a spot at the World Finals, whether you ultimately are lucky enough to get the call, or not.

The action was hot and heavy as it is every year, with drivers jockeying in and out of the top 24 each and every week. Less than 10 points separated 20th from 25th at the finish, with Jimmy Creten, Charles Benns, John Seasock, Morgan Kane and Bari Musawwir making the cut, and Chad Fortune just barely missing it. Cam McQueen, Jon Zimmer and Rod Schmidt all finished within 15 points of the cutoff as well. Of that group of drivers, only Creten, Seasock and McQueen received invites, while Kane and Musawwir were made part of the lineup for the new Young Guns Shootout instead.

Check out the Final 2012 Road to the World Finals unofficial rankings below:

For results from Normal Level events, check out the 2012 Results Tracker March 16th-17th Weekend Results page (drivers earn 5 points for a racing or freestyle win, 2 points for a wheelie or donut win).

We hope you’ve enjoyed following TMB’s “Road to the World Finals” for all the results and current standings every week this season. Keep in mind this is all unofficial and is just for fun, and enjoy the Monster Jam World Finals this weekend in Las Vegas!

About TMB’s Road to the World Finals:

For some time, fans across the country have wondered why the USHRA does not run a public points system of some kind for their Monster Jam series. We are included in the group that would love to be able to follow the standings of such a series each week. We are of the belief that a berth in the Monster Jam World Finals should be earned based on performance throughout the year in both racing and freestyle. Regardless of what portion of the monster truck industry you favor, there is no denying that the Monster Jam World Finals is the biggest and highest profile event our sport has to offer. A chance to compete at this event is a big deal for many drivers out there, and it is our opinion that they should be able to earn their way in. We’re not saying that Feld Motorsports doesn’t pick the World Finalists based on performance currently–we’re simply saying that we don’t know how they make up the field because the process isn’t made public.

So with that in mind, we have created an UNOFFICIAL points system that is simple (although it may seem complicated) and that rewards performance in all Monster Jam events across the country leading up to the World Finals. In our Standings, we will show the cut-off after the 24th truck, indicating that IF entry to the World Finals was based SOLELY on performance, these are the drivers that would be headed to Las Vegas. Keep in mind that this is just for fun and has no actual bearing on the selection of World Finals participants. See below for a breakdown of our points system and our rationale for the decisions we made in creating it.

Elite Level Events

What is an Elite Level event? We define an Elite Monster Jam event as any with a field of 12 of more trucks. We have chosen to award these events the highest amount of points, because these are the highest profile Monster Jam events. These events are the ones held in the major stadiums in front of the biggest crowds, some of which are even televised on SPEED. It is our belief that performance in the highest profile shows should be weighted most heavily toward a World Finals berth because these events are most similar to the World Finals itself. The most points any one driver can score in an Elite Level event (and thus in any event) is 40. If an event meeting all of this criteria holds 3 or more shows over the course of a single weekend, the points for each show are worth half of what is listed below.

Racing Finish – Points Awarded

1st – 20
2nd – 15
Semi-Finals – 7.5

Freestyle Finish – Points Awarded

1st – 20
2nd – 15
3rd – 10
4th – 5

Normal Level Events

What is a Normal Level show? The majority of Monster Jam events held around the country are Normal Level shows. These events are typically held in smaller arenas around the country, consisting of multiple shows held over the course of the weekend (anywhere from 2-5), with fields of anywhere from 5-10 trucks. Looking at the points awarded for these shows, you will notice they are much less than the upper levels. We equate the significance level of an entire 4 show weekend of Normal Level events with the significance of one Elite Level show–thus, the maximum points a driver can earn in racing/freestyle each weekend at a Normal Level event is 40 (this based on the usual maximum # of shows being 4–a couple events being the exception with 5–and an available 10 points per show (10×4=40)). Beginning in 2012, we are also awarding 2 points for wheelie/donut contest wins as that information has become more readily available than when the Road to the World Finals was first started.

Wheelie/Donut Finish – Points Awarded

1st – 2

Racing Finish – Points Awarded

1st – 5

Freestyle Finish – Points Awarded

1st – 5

(Photo courtesy Paul M. Harry)

Monster Photos: Monster Jam – Dayton, OH 2012

Event: Monster Jam
Venue: EJ Nutter Center
Location: Dayton, Ohio
Date: March 16th, 2012
Photographer: Chris Parrish

Lineup: Amsoil Shock Therapy (Jon Zimmer), Bad Habit (Joe Sylvester), El Toro Loco (Becky McDonough), Grave Digger (Chad Tingler), Grinder (John Seasock), High Maintenance (Jocelyn Perrin), Nitemare (Andy Hoffman), Spiderman (Bari Musawwir)
[Read more…]

Monster Photos: Monster Jam – Cleveland, OH 2012

Event: Monster Jam
Venue: Quicken Loans Arena
Location: Cleveland, Ohio
Date: February 24th & 26th, 2012 (2 shows)
Photographer: Paul M. Harry

Lineup: Bad Habit (Joe Sylvester), Grave Digger (Chad Tingler), Grinder (Lupe Soza), Madusa (Debra Miceli), Rap Attack (Dave Rappach), Samson (Dan Patrick), Spiderman (Bari Musawwir), War Wizard (Randy Moore)
[Read more…]

Monster Photos: Monster Jam – Wheeling, WV 2012

Event: Monster Jam
Venue: WesBanco Arena
Location: Wheeling, West Virginia
Date: February 25th, 2012 (2 shows)
Photographer: Paul M. Harry

Lineup: Aftershock (Bob Robbins), Batman (Norm Miller), High Maintenance (Jocelyn Perrin), Instigator (Paul Breaug), Monster Mutt (Joe Miller), Virginia Giant (Diehl Wilson)
[Read more…]

TMB Road to the World Finals Rankings – Week #10

Only one final weekend of competition remains before the Monster Jam World Finals and Ryan Anderson has all but locked up the #1 spot on the 2012 TMB “Road to the World Finals”! Anderson used a strong weekend in Reno to stay on top despite Dennis Anderson and Tom Meents racking up big points finishing 1-2 in both racing and freestyle in Syracuse. The elder Anderson’s second straight double down performance was enough to put Grave Digger over Maximum Destruction for 2nd place overall. With all three of these drivers taking the week before the World Finals off, the top three are essentially locked in.

Gary Porter and Neil Elliott combined to nearly sweep the weekend in Toledo to round out the top 5. Porter and Pablo Huffaker, in 6th position overall, are the only drivers currently ranked in the top 10 that are competing this upcoming weekend, so they will have one last chance to rack up some wins and improve their position.

While the final Monster Jam World Finals lineup was announced by Feld this week, the action is still incredibly hot and heavy back around the 24th and final spot on the TMB “Road to the World Finals” as drivers vie to see who will be able to say they earned a shot at the World Finals title, whether they ultimately ended up being selected or not.

Several of the drivers competing for that final spot had big weekends and while no drivers fell out or jumped in to the top 24, positions were exchanged leaving Chad Fortune on the hot seat and Bari Musawwir less than 5 points back in 25th. Musawwir, Cam McQueen, Rod Schmidt and Jon Zimmer are mathematically still in contention, while Chad Tingler, Charles Benns, John Seasock, Morgan Kane, and Fortune are just barely hanging on.

How will it all shake out? Only one weekend of competition remains on the TMB “Road to the World Finals”!

Ryan Anderson has all but clinched the top spot on the 2012 TMB "Road to the World Finals" power rankings after a big weekend in Reno!

Check out the Road to the World Finals unofficial rankings after Week #10 below:

Here is how points were scored in this weekend’s Elite Level events:

3/10 – Syracuse, New York

Racing Finish – Driver – Truck – Points Earned

1st – Dennis Anderson – Grave Digger – 20
2nd – Tom Meents – Maximum Destruction – 15
Semi-Finals – Todd Leduc – Metal Mulisha – 7.5
Semi-Finals – Jon Zimmer – Amsoil Shock Therapy – 7.5

Freestyle Finish – Driver – Truck – Points Earned

1st – Dennis Anderson – Grave Digger – 20
2nd – Tom Meents – Maximum Destruction – 15
Tie 3rd – Todd Leduc – Metal Mulisha – 7.5
Tie 3rd – John Seasock – Grinder – 7.5

For results from Normal Level events, check out the 2012 Results Tracker March 9th-11th Weekend Results page (drivers earn 5 points for a racing or freestyle win, 2 points for a wheelie or donut win).

Keep following TMB’s “Road to the World Finals” for all the results and current standings each week. Keep in mind this is all unofficial and is just for fun, and enjoy as we track the Monster Jam series all the way to the World Finals in March!

About TMB’s Road to the World Finals:

For some time, fans across the country have wondered why the USHRA does not run a public points system of some kind for their Monster Jam series. We are included in the group that would love to be able to follow the standings of such a series each week. We are of the belief that a berth in the Monster Jam World Finals should be earned based on performance throughout the year in both racing and freestyle. Regardless of what portion of the monster truck industry you favor, there is no denying that the Monster Jam World Finals is the biggest and highest profile event our sport has to offer. A chance to compete at this event is a big deal for many drivers out there, and it is our opinion that they should be able to earn their way in. We’re not saying that Feld Motorsports doesn’t pick the World Finalists based on performance currently–we’re simply saying that we don’t know how they make up the field because the process isn’t made public.

So with that in mind, we have created an UNOFFICIAL points system that is simple (although it may seem complicated) and that rewards performance in all Monster Jam events across the country leading up to the World Finals. In our Standings, we will show the cut-off after the 24th truck, indicating that IF entry to the World Finals was based SOLELY on performance, these are the drivers that would be headed to Las Vegas. Keep in mind that this is just for fun and has no actual bearing on the selection of World Finals participants. See below for a breakdown of our points system and our rationale for the decisions we made in creating it.

Elite Level Events

What is an Elite Level event? We define an Elite Monster Jam event as any with a field of 12 of more trucks. We have chosen to award these events the highest amount of points, because these are the highest profile Monster Jam events. These events are the ones held in the major stadiums in front of the biggest crowds, some of which are even televised on SPEED. It is our belief that performance in the highest profile shows should be weighted most heavily toward a World Finals berth because these events are most similar to the World Finals itself. The most points any one driver can score in an Elite Level event (and thus in any event) is 40. If an event meeting all of this criteria holds 3 or more shows over the course of a single weekend, the points for each show are worth half of what is listed below.

Racing Finish – Points Awarded

1st – 20
2nd – 15
Semi-Finals – 7.5

Freestyle Finish – Points Awarded

1st – 20
2nd – 15
3rd – 10
4th – 5

Normal Level Events

What is a Normal Level show? The majority of Monster Jam events held around the country are Normal Level shows. These events are typically held in smaller arenas around the country, consisting of multiple shows held over the course of the weekend (anywhere from 2-5), with fields of anywhere from 5-10 trucks. Looking at the points awarded for these shows, you will notice they are much less than the upper levels. We equate the significance level of an entire 4 show weekend of Normal Level events with the significance of one Elite Level show–thus, the maximum points a driver can earn in racing/freestyle each weekend at a Normal Level event is 40 (this based on the usual maximum # of shows being 4–a couple events being the exception with 5–and an available 10 points per show (10×4=40)). Beginning in 2012, we are also awarding 2 points for wheelie/donut contest wins as that information has become more readily available than when the Road to the World Finals was first started.

Wheelie/Donut Finish – Points Awarded

1st – 2

Racing Finish – Points Awarded

1st – 5

Freestyle Finish – Points Awarded

1st – 5

(Photo courtesy Jim Allen)

Monster Photos: Monster Jam – Indianapolis, IN 2012

Event: Monster Jam
Venue: Lucas Oil Stadium
Location: Indianapolis, Indiana
Date: March 3rd, 2012
Photographer: Danny Maass

Lineup: Amsoil Shock Therapy (Jon Zimmer), Backdraft (Jeremy Slifko), Captain America (Chad Fortune), El Toro Loco (Becky McDonough), Eradicator (Andy Slifko), Excaliber (Mike Barnes), Grave Digger (Chad Tingler), Grinder (John Seasock), Incinerator (Ryan Rice), Iron Man (Scott Buetow), Lucas Oil Crusader (Linsey Weenk), Maximum Destruction (Tom Meents), Monster Mutt Rottweiler (Charles Benns), Spiderman (Bari Musawwir)
[Read more…]

TMB Road to the World Finals Rankings – Week #9

The month of March is underway and there are now just two weeks of competition left before the 2012 Monster Jam World Finals. With four stadium events this weekend, a lot was on the line and Ryan Anderson stepped up big in El Paso. Son Uva Digger’s weekend sweep of freestyle has him back out in front over Tom Meents. Meents had a solid weekend in Indianapolis, winning racing and staying within reach of the top spot.

Dennis Anderson had a huge double down performance in Jacksonville to keep the third spot overall, while Gary Porter turned in another strong weekend to stay in fourth. A big double down performance in the motor city has Adam Anderson back into the top 5 overall.

Looking back to the scramble for the top 24, John Seasock used a strong showing Indianapolis as did Joe Miller in Saginaw to make their way IN, knocking Bari Musawwir and Carl Van Horn OUT. Chad Tingler now has the hot seat, a mere 1/2 point ahead of Musawwir who is the first driver on the outside looking in.

Ryan Anderson has re-claimed the top spot on the Road to the World Finals after two big freestyle wins in El Paso.

Check out the Road to the World Finals unofficial rankings after Week #9 below:

Here is how points were scored in this weekend’s Elite Level events:

3/3 – Jacksonville, Florida

Racing Finish – Driver – Truck – Points Earned

1st – Dennis Anderson – Grave Digger – 20
2nd – Mat Dishman – Rammunition – 15
Semi-Finals – Mark Hall – Raminator – 7.5
Semi-Finals – George Balhan – Mohawk Warrior – 7.5

Freestyle Finish – Driver – Truck – Points Earned

1st – Dennis Anderson – Grave Digger – 20
2nd – Lupe Soza – Grinder – 15
3rd – George Balhan – Mohawk Warrior – 10
4th – Steve Sims – Stone Crusher – 5

3/3 – Detroit, Michigan

Racing Finish – Driver – Truck – Points Earned

1st – Adam Anderson – Grave Digger The Legend – 20
2nd – Frank Krmel – Grinder – 15
Semi-Finals – Kreg Christensen – Maximum Destruction – 7.5
Semi-Finals – Alex Blackwell – Wolverine – 7.5

Freestyle Finish – Driver – Truck – Points Earned

1st – Adam Anderson – Grave Digger The Legend – 20
2nd – Frank Krmel – Grinder – 15
3rd – Kreg Christensen – Maximum Destruction – 10
4th – Dan Evans – Hot Wheels – 5

3/3 – Indianapolis, Indiana

Racing Finish – Driver – Truck – Points Earned

1st – Tom Meents – Maximum Destruction – 20
2nd – Chad Fortune – Captain America – 15
Semi-Finals – Linsey Weenk – Lucas Oil Crusader – 7.5
Semi-Finals – John Seasock – Grinder – 7.5

Freestyle Finish – Driver – Truck – Points Earned

1st – Linsey Weenk – Lucas Oil Crusader – 20
2nd – John Seasock – Grinder – 15
3rd – Bari Musawwir – Spiderman – 10
4th – Jon Zimmer – Amsoil Shock Therapy – 5

3/3 – El Paso, Texas

Racing Finish – Driver – Truck – Points Earned

1st – Marc MacDonald – El Toro Loco – 20
2nd – Ryan Anderson – Son Uva Digger – 15
Semi-Finals – Devin Jones – Barbarian – 7.5
Semi-Finals – Rick Swanson – Obsessed – 7.5

Freestyle Finish – Driver – Truck – Points Earned

1st – Ryan Anderson – Son Uva Digger – 20
2nd – Marc MacDonald – El Toro Loco – 15
3rd – Damon Bradshaw – Monster Energy – 10
Tie – 4th – Dan Rodoni – The Patriot – 2.5
Tie – 4th – David Smith – King Krunch – 2.5

3/4 – El Paso, Texas

Racing Finish – Driver – Truck – Points Earned

1st – Marc MacDonald – El Toro Loco – 20
2nd – Ryan Anderson – Son Uva Digger – 15
Semi-Finals – Paul Cohen – Grave Digger – 7.5
Semi-Finals – Damon Bradshaw – Monster Energy – 7.5

Freestyle Finish – Driver – Truck – Points Earned

1st – Ryan Anderson – Son Uva Digger – 20
2nd – Marc MacDonald – El Toro Loco – 15
Tie – 3rd – Damon Bradshaw – Monster Energy – 7.5
Tie – 3rd – Lee O’Donnell – Iron Man – 7.5

For results from Normal Level events, check out the 2012 Results Tracker March 2nd-4th Weekend Results page (drivers earn 5 points for a racing or freestyle win, 2 points for a wheelie or donut win).

Keep following TMB’s “Road to the World Finals” for all the results and current standings each week. Keep in mind this is all unofficial and is just for fun, and enjoy as we track the Monster Jam series all the way to the World Finals in March!

About TMB’s Road to the World Finals:

For some time, fans across the country have wondered why the USHRA does not run a public points system of some kind for their Monster Jam series. We are included in the group that would love to be able to follow the standings of such a series each week. We are of the belief that a berth in the Monster Jam World Finals should be earned based on performance throughout the year in both racing and freestyle. Regardless of what portion of the monster truck industry you favor, there is no denying that the Monster Jam World Finals is the biggest and highest profile event our sport has to offer. A chance to compete at this event is a big deal for many drivers out there, and it is our opinion that they should be able to earn their way in. We’re not saying that Feld Motorsports doesn’t pick the World Finalists based on performance currently–we’re simply saying that we don’t know how they make up the field because the process isn’t made public.

So with that in mind, we have created an UNOFFICIAL points system that is simple (although it may seem complicated) and that rewards performance in all Monster Jam events across the country leading up to the World Finals. In our Standings, we will show the cut-off after the 24th truck, indicating that IF entry to the World Finals was based SOLELY on performance, these are the drivers that would be headed to Las Vegas. Keep in mind that this is just for fun and has no actual bearing on the selection of World Finals participants. See below for a breakdown of our points system and our rationale for the decisions we made in creating it.

Elite Level Events

What is an Elite Level event? We define an Elite Monster Jam event as any with a field of 12 of more trucks. We have chosen to award these events the highest amount of points, because these are the highest profile Monster Jam events. These events are the ones held in the major stadiums in front of the biggest crowds, some of which are even televised on SPEED. It is our belief that performance in the highest profile shows should be weighted most heavily toward a World Finals berth because these events are most similar to the World Finals itself. The most points any one driver can score in an Elite Level event (and thus in any event) is 40. If an event meeting all of this criteria holds 3 or more shows over the course of a single weekend, the points for each show are worth half of what is listed below.

Racing Finish – Points Awarded

1st – 20
2nd – 15
Semi-Finals – 7.5

Freestyle Finish – Points Awarded

1st – 20
2nd – 15
3rd – 10
4th – 5

Normal Level Events

What is a Normal Level show? The majority of Monster Jam events held around the country are Normal Level shows. These events are typically held in smaller arenas around the country, consisting of multiple shows held over the course of the weekend (anywhere from 2-5), with fields of anywhere from 5-10 trucks. Looking at the points awarded for these shows, you will notice they are much less than the upper levels. We equate the significance level of an entire 4 show weekend of Normal Level events with the significance of one Elite Level show–thus, the maximum points a driver can earn in racing/freestyle each weekend at a Normal Level event is 40 (this based on the usual maximum # of shows being 4–a couple events being the exception with 5–and an available 10 points per show (10×4=40)). Beginning in 2012, we are also awarding 2 points for wheelie/donut contest wins as that information has become more readily available than when the Road to the World Finals was first started.

Wheelie/Donut Finish – Points Awarded

1st – 2

Racing Finish – Points Awarded

1st – 5

Freestyle Finish – Points Awarded

1st – 5

(Photo courtesy Jim Allen)

TMB Road to the World Finals Rankings – Week #8

The month of February is in the books and with only three weeks left on the TMB “Road to the World Finals”, Tom Meents in Maximum Destruction has solidified his hold on the #1 spot. The top 3 in the rankings went head to head this weekend at Cowboys Stadium in Arlington, Texas as Meents, Ryan Anderson in Son Uva Digger and Dennis Anderson in Grave Digger were all part of one all-star lineup.

Dennis would actually have the best night in Grave Digger, winning racing and finishing runner-up in freestyle. Meents prevailed in the head to head match-up with Son Uva Digger however, as Max D’s semi-finals in racing and freestyle victory netted far more points than Ryan’s 3rd place in freestyle. The standings are still very close heading into another big weekend to start off March, with Meents up by 19 over Son Uva Digger and 28 over Grave Digger. Gary Porter approaches a jaw-dropping 50 wins while Neil Elliott nearly doubled down again in Oakland, and they round out the top 5 overall.

In the scramble for a spot in the top 24, Feld teammates Chad Tingler and Bari Musawwir used a big weekend in Cleveland to jump IN, knocking Jim Koehler and John Seasock OUT. Seasock, Koehler and Jon Zimmer are all just barely on the outside looking in, all less than 5 points out.

Another big weekend for Tom Meents in Arlington has extended his lead on the TMB Road to the World Finals.

Check out the Road to the World Finals unofficial rankings after Week #8 below:

Here is how points were scored in this weekend’s Elite Level events:

2/25 – Oakland, California

Racing Finish – Driver – Truck – Points Earned

1st – Todd Leduc – Metal Mulisha – 20
2nd – Neil Elliott – Maximum Destruction – 15
Semi-Finals – Paul Cohen – Grave Digger – 7.5
Semi-Finals – Dan Rodoni – The Patriot – 7.5

Freestyle Finish – Driver – Truck – Points Earned

1st – Neil Elliott – Maximum Destruction – 20
Tie 2nd – Chuck Werner – El Toro Loco – 12.5
Tie 2nd – Chad Fortune – Captain America – 12.5
4th – Adam Anderson – Grave Digger The Legend – 5

2/25 – Arlington, Texas

Racing Finish – Driver – Truck – Points Earned

1st – Dennis Anderson – Grave Digger – 20
2nd – Marc MacDonald – El Toro Loco – 15
Semi-Finals – Tom Meents – Maximum Destruction – 7.5
Semi-Finals – David Smith – King Krunch – 7.5

Freestyle Finish – Driver – Truck – Points Earned

1st – Tom Meents – Maximum Destruction – 20
2nd – Dennis Anderson – Grave Digger – 15
3rd – Ryan Anderson – Son Uva Digger – 10
Tie – 4th – Marc MacDonald – El Toro Loco – 2.5
Tie – 4th – Frank Krmel – Grinder – 2.5

For results from Normal Level events, check out the 2012 Results Tracker February 24th-26th Weekend Results page (drivers earn 5 points for a racing or freestyle win, 2 points for a wheelie or donut win).

Keep following TMB’s “Road to the World Finals” for all the results and current standings each week. Keep in mind this is all unofficial and is just for fun, and enjoy as we track the Monster Jam series all the way to the World Finals in March!

About TMB’s Road to the World Finals:

For some time, fans across the country have wondered why the USHRA does not run a public points system of some kind for their Monster Jam series. We are included in the group that would love to be able to follow the standings of such a series each week. We are of the belief that a berth in the Monster Jam World Finals should be earned based on performance throughout the year in both racing and freestyle. Regardless of what portion of the monster truck industry you favor, there is no denying that the Monster Jam World Finals is the biggest and highest profile event our sport has to offer. A chance to compete at this event is a big deal for many drivers out there, and it is our opinion that they should be able to earn their way in. We’re not saying that Feld Motorsports doesn’t pick the World Finalists based on performance currently–we’re simply saying that we don’t know how they make up the field because the process isn’t made public.

So with that in mind, we have created an UNOFFICIAL points system that is simple (although it may seem complicated) and that rewards performance in all Monster Jam events across the country leading up to the World Finals. In our Standings, we will show the cut-off after the 24th truck, indicating that IF entry to the World Finals was based SOLELY on performance, these are the drivers that would be headed to Las Vegas. Keep in mind that this is just for fun and has no actual bearing on the selection of World Finals participants. See below for a breakdown of our points system and our rationale for the decisions we made in creating it.

Elite Level Events

What is an Elite Level event? We define an Elite Monster Jam event as any with a field of 12 of more trucks. We have chosen to award these events the highest amount of points, because these are the highest profile Monster Jam events. These events are the ones held in the major stadiums in front of the biggest crowds, some of which are even televised on SPEED. It is our belief that performance in the highest profile shows should be weighted most heavily toward a World Finals berth because these events are most similar to the World Finals itself. The most points any one driver can score in an Elite Level event (and thus in any event) is 40. If an event meeting all of this criteria holds 3 or more shows over the course of a single weekend, the points for each show are worth half of what is listed below.

Racing Finish – Points Awarded

1st – 20
2nd – 15
Semi-Finals – 7.5

Freestyle Finish – Points Awarded

1st – 20
2nd – 15
3rd – 10
4th – 5

Normal Level Events

What is a Normal Level show? The majority of Monster Jam events held around the country are Normal Level shows. These events are typically held in smaller arenas around the country, consisting of multiple shows held over the course of the weekend (anywhere from 2-5), with fields of anywhere from 5-10 trucks. Looking at the points awarded for these shows, you will notice they are much less than the upper levels. We equate the significance level of an entire 4 show weekend of Normal Level events with the significance of one Elite Level show–thus, the maximum points a driver can earn in racing/freestyle each weekend at a Normal Level event is 40 (this based on the usual maximum # of shows being 4–a couple events being the exception with 5–and an available 10 points per show (10×4=40)). Beginning in 2012, we are also awarding 2 points for wheelie/donut contest wins as that information has become more readily available than when the Road to the World Finals was first started.

Wheelie/Donut Finish – Points Awarded

1st – 2

Racing Finish – Points Awarded

1st – 5

Freestyle Finish – Points Awarded

1st – 5

(Photo courtesy Jim Allen)

Monster Truck Radio 02/13/12 – Bari Musawwir & Scott Hartsock

Monster Truck Radio With Host Ross Z. Bonar & Co-Host Chris Parrish
Date: Monday, February 13th, 2011
Guest #1: Bari Musawwir, driver of Spiderman
Guest #2: Scott Hartsock, driver of Gun Slinger
Roller’s Report Guest: Eric Tack, driver of Odyssey Batteries Bigfoot #14 [Read more…]

The Allen Report: Monster Jam – Phoenix, AZ 2012

(Coverage By Christopher Allen, Photos By Jim Allen)

Survival is crucial to success in monster truck racing. If you can’t keep your truck in one piece the whole night, someone else will walk onto the winner’s stage. And this year’s show at the Chase Field Monster Jam was a prime example of that. The show featured both Grave Digger and Son-Uva Digger with Carl Van Horn and Ryan Anderson driving. The “General” himself, Brian Deegan drove the Metal Mulisha for the first time in his career. Former World Finals fastest qualifier Marc McDonald brought El Toro Loco back. Linsey Weenk returned to Phoenix with the Lucas Oil Crusader. Former sprint car driver Taryn Laskey filled in for Nicole Johnson in Tasmanian Devil. The other teams were: Mitch Tulachka and Shane Phreed in Geter Done and Robo Machine. Allen Pezo and Ron Nelson drove Predator and Pouncer. Kelvin Ramer drove Time Flies and former California Kid driver Garrett Ladelle drove Detour. Rounding out the field were Mark Schroeder and Rod Wood driving the Felon and McGruff.

Grave Digger was ready to face the former Bustin’ Loose driver in Pouncer in the semi-finals when he lost oil pressure coming to the start line due to a rollover during introductions and had to be replaced by Felon, whom he had beaten the round before. Mark took advantage of the opportunity and won. In the other half of the semis with Son-Uva Digger taking on Crusader, Ryan spun out coming down the main straightaway of the so-cal style track only to get the win back when the former Canadian hit the jammer obstacle and flipped over. In the finals a broken ring and pinion in the back axle of Felon meant Predator, who had lost to him back in the opening round, had to take his place. In the final, it was neck and neck until the third member of the Anderson equation spun out again, giving Allen Pezo a huge win.

Brain Deegan set the bar early with a lead score of 20 and held the lead most of the night. El Toro Loco took the lead with only the two “Diggers” to go thanks to a score of 23. The man they call “CVH” saved his truck from another rollover, but was unable to fire back up and keep going with time still on the clock. When all was said and done, Ryan Anderson took the win by just one point, extending his perfect record of freestyle wins to five. But in true Anderson fashion, trophy or not, he came back out and unleashed his inner beast, giving the Digger-maniacs in the stands a wicked encore.

Monster Jam at Chase Field gets bigger every year this year’s show is one of the reasons why. For us at “The Allen Report”, Firebird Raceway is next on our schedule in April. Until then, thanks for reading, enjoy the great photos by Jim Allen and cheer on!

All content copyright TheMonsterBlog.com 2011.

Monster Photos: Monster Jam – St. Louis, MO 2012

Event: Monster Jam
Venue: Edward Jones Dome
Location: St. Louis, Missouri
Date: February 4th, 2012
Photographer: Danny Maass

Lineup: Bounty Hunter (Jimmy Creten), El Toro Loco (Becky McDonough), Grave Digger (Carl Van Horn), Grinder (John Seasock), Ice Cream Man (Scott Sweat), Incinerator (Ryan Rice), Iron Man (Lee O’Donnell), Lucas Oil Crusader (Linsey Weenk), Maximum Destruction (Tom Meents), Metal Mulisha (Todd Leduc), Monster Energy (Damon Bradshaw), Monster Magic (Bryan Wright), Razin Kane (JR McNeal), Scarlet Bandit (Dawn Creten), Stone Crusher (Steve Sims), Tasmanian Devil (Taryn Laskey)
[Read more…]

Monster Photos: Monster Jam – St. Louis, MO 2012

Event: Monster Jam
Venue: Edward Jones Dome
Location: St. Louis, Missouri
Date: February 4th, 2012
Photographer: Ross Z. Bonar

Lineup: Bounty Hunter (Jimmy Creten), El Toro Loco (Becky McDonough), Grave Digger (Carl Van Horn), Grinder (John Seasock), Ice Cream Man (Scott Sweat), Incinerator (Ryan Rice), Iron Man (Lee O’Donnell), Lucas Oil Crusader (Linsey Weenk), Maximum Destruction (Tom Meents), Metal Mulisha (Todd Leduc), Monster Energy (Damon Bradshaw), Monster Magic (Bryan Wright), Razin Kane (JR McNeal), Scarlet Bandit (Dawn Creten), Stone Crusher (Steve Sims), Tasmanian Devil (Taryn Laskey)
[Read more…]