XDL Sportbike Freestyle Championship Round 4: Indy - Colton Gets Win - Points Race Tightens - XDL Sets New Standard
Text: Randy Grube
Photo: David Avila

The inaugural XDL Indy ran as part of the MotoGP weekend from September 11 to 14, 2008. On what was probably the biggest motorcycle weekend of the year, XDL did its part to show that sportbike freestyle is well on its way to becoming a core part of the motorcycle industry. Set in beautiful downtown Indianapolis on a portion of North Street that intersects the Indiana War Memorial, XDL put on two days of blockbuster competition in front of capacity crowds. Aaron Colton took the win in Individual Freestyle, with Nick Brocha and Bill Dixon close on his heels. Alex Flores suffered a crash during his warm up and could only manage an 8th place finish. This has tightened the points race at the front and after adjusting for the bye, which allows riders to drop their lowest score, only 18 points separate the top four. With a maximum of 46 points up for grabs at each event, the top is locked in a dead heat and everyone down to 8th place Luke Emmons still has a mathematical shot at the title.

Weather was a factor all weekend long. While it only sprinkled during night practice on Thursday, it started raining in earnest Friday morning and intensified all day. By the time qualifying came around conditions were torrential. With about one third of the riders remaining, Mother Nature finally took mercy on the field and the downpour subsided. Aaron Colton took the top qualifying spot in part due to excellent rain preparation. By the time the Individual Freestyle competition got started conditions were almost ideal and the stands were packed. The mood among the 15 qualifiers was serious. Everyone wanted to win the biggest competition of the year. In the end, Red Bull rider Aaron Colton followed up on his great qualifying run to take home the prize. "It feels awesome, long deserved and redeeming. " exclaimed a jubilant Colton. "It feels like I accomplished exactly what I came to XDL Indianapolis to do. " Colton credits part of his win with his unusual training regimen: "I took a different approach. I had fun. I did a lot of road racing, I did trials stuff, did a little bit of motocross. And then I really put the pedal to the metal the last two weeks and finally did a lot of the stunt stuff."

Points leader Nick Brocha also had expectations of winning but ended up in second due to his unfamiliarity with the wet conditions. Said Brocha of his finish: "If there is any event I should have won based on my training, it was this one. I came to this event prepared, more so than at other events and I wanted to debut 4 new tricks, but then it rained and it threw off my game and destroyed my confidence...I got second and I deserve second. Aaron got a well-deserved win but I’m not happy...I really was ready and I blew it." Nevertheless, Nick leaves Indy with the points lead and a wild pack at his heels. "I need one more first and one more 3rd for sure or I’m in trouble."

Third place Bill Dixon felt he finished right where he should have based on the riding and admitted he could have done better: "In my final run I definitely didn’t ride my best, I wasn’t riding like myself. I didn’t hit all my points on point like I normally would." But Dixon is in the thick of the championship chance right where he hopes to be: "I want be in the top three, I want to be in the top spot." Although the short riding surface didn’t quite match his normal style he still had high praise for XDL Indy: "This is probably my favorite venue I’ve ever been to; right in the city, with MotoGP, it don’t get any better than that."

2007 Champion Alex Flores looked set to take the fight to Colton until he crashed in a nasty high side during his warm up and broke the handlebars on his bike. In a testament to the dedication of this champion and the camaraderie amongst the athletes, three riders immediately offered Flores their bike and he set off on Rick Hart’s steed to take home a valiant 8th place.

The support competitions featured some unfamiliar winners and the unveiling of new tricks. Japanese pro Shin Kinoshita finally won Circle Challenge after he had been knocking on the door the last few times. Sickest Trick was won by Jacob Bardwell for doing a back flip from a Christ on to the seat of his motorcycle and keeping going. Darius Khashabi made a guest appearance at XDL and took home Freestyle Burnout with one of the most radical smoke shows of the year. And as has almost become customary these days, Bill Dixon and Destiny won the Tandem competition.

A piece of big news was the debut of the Aprilia All Star Challenge, a new competition replacing Target Stoppie. All competitors must complete a difficult skills course in the shortest amount of time possible, riding an Aprilia SXV 4.5. The Aprilia All Star Challenge is a points competition and the leader after Long beach will take home a new Aprilia SXV 4.5. Dan Jackson took the inaugural win with a time of 28.53 seconds and currently leads the points.

Overall, XDL Round 4 at Indy was a well-executed competition in front of a great crowd, at a spectacular venue, on an once-in-a-lifetime weekend. Thomas Evans summed it up best by saying: "I honestly think this is the best stunt riding competition ever. Period." He should know. He’s been to most of them.

The current point standings is available on our results page.