the BMX vert final brought an intense excitement to EnergySolutions Arena. It all came down to a final jam between Bestwick, Chad Kagy of Gilroy, Calif., Great Britain's Simon Tabron, Chile's Francisco "Coco" Zurita and Australia's Steven McCann.
It was a battle for the number one and two positions between Kagy and Bestwick, but it was ultimately Bestwick who landed on top the podium with his signature huge airs and a tabletop 540 into an alley-oop 540 for a score of 94.13. Kagy, 31, came in second with a 92.38 and 26-year-old Zurita claimed the first podium of his Dew Tour career with a third-place score of 90.88.
"The contest was so tight; the lead kept swapping every run, and that to me is so exciting," said Bestwick. "Kagy was firing, Simon, Coco and Stevie were firing and it just lent itself to an awesome final. I think this has been one of the best finals I've done in the history of the Dew Tour."
Bestwick's victory puts himself one step closer to securing a spot in the Dew Tour history books heading into the Championship event in Las Vegas. If Bestwick wins in Sin City, he will secure his second consecutive perfect season and will add to his undefeated status with a six-peat as the Dew Cup Champion.
"Vegas means a lot to all of us with more points on the line and an increased prize purse," said Bestwick. "People are going to gamble on the house when they ride in Vegas and put it all on the line."
The four-day skateboarding, BMX and freestyle motocross event will continue tomorrow with BMX dirt finals, skateboard park finals and freestyle motocross. Sunday's events include skateboard vert finals and BMX park finals. The Dew Tour will continue on to Las Vegas for the final event of the season - the Dew Tour Championships this October at the Hard Rock Hotel & Casino.
Dew Tour Toyota Challenge Friday, September 17, 2010 Salt Lake City, Utah. BMX Vert Finals
1.Jamie Bestwick, Great Britain, 94.13. 2. Chad Kagy, Gilroy, Calif., 92.38. 3. Francisco Zurita, Chile, 90.88. 4. Simon Tabron, Great Britain, 90.63. 5. Steven McCann, Australia, 90.00. 6. Vince Byron, Australia, 90.00. 7. Austin Coleman, Los Angeles, Calif., 87.88. 8. Zackery Warden, St. Louis, Mo., 87.88. 9. Jimmy Walker, Chicago, Ill., 87.50. 10. John Parker, State College, Pa., 86.88.
BMX Vert - Tour Rankings
1. Jamie Bestwick, 300. 2. Chad Kagy, 248. 3. Simon Tabron, 238. 4. Steven McCann, 236. 5. Francisco Zurita, 222. 6. Vince Byron, 196. 7. Jimmy Walker, 196. 8. Austin Coleman, 188. 9. Zackery Warden, 157. 10. Jay Eggleston, 140.