The Women’s Motocross Championship, sanctioned by AMA Pro Racing (WMX) returns for another eight-race schedule for the 2012 season of Lucas Oil Pro Motocross Championship, sanctioned by AMA Pro Racing. Perennial rivals Ashley Fiolek and Jessica Patterson have won the past four WMX Class titles and will once again lead the world’s fastest women into action for what is sure to be a highly-competitive summer.

The WMX Class will be showcased as the first set of motos at each of the eight rounds of the championship. As in years past, the women will engage in a pair of 15-minute motos to determine an overall winner. The gate will drop on the WMX Class’ opening moto to kick-start the day’s festivities, with the second moto following just prior to intermission.

“The WMX Class is always an exciting battle and you can expect that to continue this summer,” said MX Sports Pro Racing’s President Davey Coombs. “Over the last four years, the quality of racing has gotten better and better thanks to a continued increase in the depth of talent. The championship has clearly emerged as the world’s premier series for female riders and the WMX Championship boasts more factory-supported riders than ever before.”

The 2012 season will also mark the WMX Class’ return to television. Each round of the championship will be featured in the weekly Lucas Oil Pro Motocross Championship Highlight Show on NBC Sports, recapping the captivating moments and storylines of all eight Nationals.

The WMX season kicks off on May 19 from the Hangtown Motocross Classic in Sacramento, Calif. Fiolek and Patterson will be challenged throughout the summer by veterans Tarah Gieger and Mariana Balbi, in addition to up-and-coming riders like Jacqueline Strong and Vicki Golden and Sayaka Kaneshiro.,

Following Hangtown, the schedule will take the women to staple racetracks – Hangtown, Freestone, Thunder Valley, High Point, RedBud, Washougal, and Moto-X 338 before joining their male counterparts in the 250 and 450 Classes at the inaugural race at Lake Elsinore Motorsports Park, the 2012 season finale.

Ashley Fiolek overcame incredible odds to become one of the fiercest competitors in motocross. In Vogue’s April issue, Contributing Editor Jason Gay tracks the improbable rise of a champion. Photos by Bruce Webber.

“She blows my mind,” says fifteen-time motocross champion Ricky Carmichael. “She’s revolutionizing women’s motocross.”

The full profile is available on Vogue.com

Team Honda’s Ashley Fiolek is the focus of a feature article in the April 2012 issue of Vogue magazine.

MX Sports Pro Racing and Alli Sports have announced a multi-year agreement with Red Bull to become the “Official Energy Drink of Pro Motocross” for the upcoming Lucas Oil Pro Motocross Championship, sanctioned by AMA Pro Racing. The partnership will be highlighted by Red Bull title sponsorship at three of the 12 national events this summer: Budds Creek on June 16, RedBud on July 7 and Unadilla on August 18.

Read the rest of the article at RedBullUSA.com

My Five is an Alli feature where they ask five fun questions to different athletes and compile all the answers. For this installment, they talked to women’s motocross rider Ashley Fiolek.

What company would be your dream sponsor? Definitely a sushi sponsor, Love the stuff!! I could even wear chopsticks in my hair or something like that! Although a pink hair dye company would also save me a lot of dough!
What traumatized you as kid? Gee…nothing I can think of, life is good!
Who or what would you consider your nemesis? Let’s see, probably just myself, like when you have self doubt or start thinking negative…not a good way to go! Although after the “roasting” that he gave me at the year end MX banquet I may have to say Jason Weigandt!

Check out the rest at AlliSports.com

Motocross.com: At what point in your life did you realize that you had become a famous motorcycle racer?
Ashley: I really didn’t realize it. I just grew up racing motorcycles. I loved to be at races. This is just what I grew up doing. I’m pretty fortunate that it turned into all this.

Motocross.com: Women’s motocross has been around since the ’70s. Sue Fish was popular along with some other racers but until you, and especially your generation, women’s motocross hadn’t really hit the mainstream or earned the acclaim that it has now. Do you attribute some of your fame to helping build up the sport?
Ashley: I’ve always had a thought about how women’s motocross could grow and how we should represent ourselves as riders and show the world that we work just as hard as everybody else in the sport. We don’t go as fast as the men but we go fast for women. I wanted that to grow into something, to be an opportunity for women that if they want to do it for a living they can do that.

Read More at Motocross.com

Y&R family, Ashley Fiolek, just did this quick video for ALLI Moto about her race to regain the Number 1 plate for this season. We got a lot of stuff planned with 2011 WMX Championship Ashley Fiolek coming very soon.

Heading into the 2011 WMX series finale at Pala Raceway with a comfortable 22-point lead in the championship point standings, Red Bull’s Ashley Fiolek needed nothing more than a safe and conservative ride to lockdown her third Women’s Motocross Championship in four years, and she did exactly that with a solid third-place overall performance in front of Southern California’s motocross faithful.

With the sun shining and the Pala circuit beat and battered from the two men’s motos before it, the much-anticipated WMX moto one gates finally dropped, and a battle between Fiolek and championship rival Jessica Patterson immediately ensued. With everything to lose and a championship to gain, Fiolek kept her excitement and determination in check as she let the hard-charging Patterson go, and proceeded to throw down seven smooth and consistent laps en route to a smart second-place finish. Behind Ashley, Red Bull teammate Tarah Gieger crossed the stripe in the third spot just a few seconds back.

Just one more moto separated Fiolek from her third WMX championship since entering the professional ranks back in 2008, and with a plan in place, the always-smiling Floridian rolled to the line for the final moto of the day at the Pala National. A good start and seven trouble-free laps was on order, and once again Ashley delivered as she strolled in for a conservative, yet championship worthy, third-place finish. Fiolek’s 2-3 moto scores tallied for third overall on the day, earning more than enough points to solidify the title.

“I can’t even describe how I’m feeling right now,” Fiolek commented after the race. “After losing the title to Jessica last year, the only thing on my mind has been this moment, and I’m so thankful for everyone and everything that helped me get here. This is incredible… I’m so happy right now!”

CHAMPIONSHIP POINT STANDINGS
1) Ashley Fiolek (363)
2) Jessica Patterson (349)
3) Tarah Gieger (310)
4) Jacqueline Strong (209)
5) Vicki Golden (207)

Steel City Raceway in Delmont, Pennsylvania hosted Round 11 of the 2011 AMA Pro Motocross Championship series on Saturday beneath bluebird skies and hot, humid conditions. In the WMX class, Red Bull darling Ashley Fiolek did exactly what was required to protect her championship points lead, as she put in a safe and conservative second-place overall ride behind title threat Jessica Patterson.

Fiolek entered the weekend at Steel City with one thing, and one thing only, on her mind—protect her championship lead. With just four motos to go in the 2011 WMX series, Ashley rolled to the line for Steel City’s moto one with a solid 30-point lead, and looked to put in a safe ride, steering clear of harm’s way en route to the checkers. When the gates dropped, she grabbed the holeshot and moved her way into the early lead as she’s done nearly every moto this year, but put up little fight as championship rival Jessica Patterson and Red Bull teammate Tarah Gieger pushed their way into first and second, respectively. With plenty of padding in her points lead, Fiolek let the top-two go, and proceeded to put in a conservative ride for a safe and secure third-place finish.

In moto two, Fiolek once again let Patterson have her way with the lead, and circulated in the third spot for just over three laps before getting by Gieger for second on lap four. Ashley’s 3-2 moto scores were good for second overall on the day, and she now has her sights set on the final two motos of the series next weekend at Pala Raceway in Southern California.

“I’m very thankful to head out to California with a comfortable points lead,” Ashley commented after the race. “Of course, it was tough not battling for the win today, but the championship my priority, not individual moto wins. I can’t wait for Pala!”

Stay tuned, as Fiolek goes for her third Women’s Motocross Championship in just four years next weekend at the series finale.

Hurricane Irene brought only the trailing edge of her fury to the sands of Southwick, Massachusetts over the weekend for the tenth round of the 2011 AMA Pro Motocross Championship series (round 6 of the WMX series), but still managed to wreak havoc on the Moto-X 338 circuit. Expected to unleash the torrents toward the end of the race day, teasing rains during practice led to progressively stronger and wetter downpours, and despite the soupy, chaotic conditions, Red Bull’s Ashley Fiolek prevailed aboard her American Honda to take her third overall win of the series. 
After a five-week break in their racing schedule, the ladies of the WMX rejoined the 2011 AMA Pro Motocross Championship at Southwick to run the sixth of eight rounds of their series. Entering the day with an eight-point lead in the championship points chase over series rival Jessica Paterson, Red Bull’s Ashley Fiolek was hoping to further extend her cushion on the track generally dominated by sand specialists, and did exactly that after impressive 1-2 moto finishes and resulting overall win.
When the gates dropped for Moto #1, Fiolek piloted her factory Honda straight to the front of the pack, and went on to lay down seven near-perfect laps en route to a seemingly easy win. Behind Fiolek, Red Bull teammate Tarah Gieger crossed the checkers just a couple seconds back on her TLD Honda, solidifying a strong second-place finish—her best moto result of the series thus far.
With Hurricane Irene now well into her tirade, Moto #2 went off under rain soaked skies and muddy track conditions, and Fiolek once again pointed her Red Bull-backed Honda toward the front of the pack. Unable to match the pace of Patterson early on, Fiolek wisely took the conservative approach with the championship on her mind, and backed it down a notch to cruise in for a drama-free second-place finish. With her 1-2 moto scores good for first overall on the day, Fiolek was absolutely ecstatic to grab another win while extending her championship points lead to 30.
“Moto two was crazy,” Ashley commented from the podium. “Those were some of the most challenging conditions I’ve ever raced in. My hat’s off to Jessica [Patterson]… She rode really well today. She was unable to score any points in the first moto, and I hate to see the championship possibly come down to that, but I’m also really happy to be leaving here with a larger points lead. We still have four more motos to go, though, so anything can happen!”