As a busy weekend of Monster Jam saw 10 different cities see competition, the curiosity of who would be named to the big event in Las Vegas continued to peak everyone's interest. Heading into the weekend, half the field was set, with many former champions set to return to the World Finals.
Nearing the end of the weekend, three more drivers accepted the invite, including two former world champions.
Leading the charge this weekend to go back to Vegas is a driver with a championship under his belt, but not the one many people expected him to have. That driver is Jimmy Creten, the driver of the Bounty Hunter. Creten is the 2005 World Freestyle champion, winning via a tie-breaker between he and former Blue Thunder driver Tony Farrell.
On that night, the track was wet and slick thanks to the rain that fell during the racing portion of that night, but Creten was able to make sure the fans knew he was the top dog on that night.
However, the title that has eluded him the most is the racing title. On five different occasions, Creten has made it to the final round on the fastest track on the circuit ('02, '03, '06, '08, '11), but each time he would end up being the runner up. That's not to say he didn't try his hardest, as he is known to have one of the most powerful trucks on the circuit, pushing the 2,000-horsepower mark with his motor.
As the lead driver of his four-truck field, 2Xtreme Racing, Creten is hungry for a title. This year his truck is running a new set of tires, made in Europe, which have a sharp cleat but are very light weight.
Thus far, the new tires have shown to be very effective, so Vegas may put some strong odds on the former freestyle champion come March 24.
Second on the list being named to the World Finals is a former motocross star that made the transition to Monster Jam relatively easily. We're talking about 2009 World Freestyle champion Damon Bradshaw, who returns to the World Finals for a fourth straight year, but now with a new ride.
The last three seasons, Bradshaw has been driving the Afterburner, sponsored by the U.S. Air Force. Unfortunately, sponsorship from the branch of the armed forces ended entering 2012, but a new major sponsor was ready to take charge, one Bradshaw was already familiar with.
Monster Energy, who previously was an associate sponsor, became the lead on his team, and thus created a brand new truck for him, covered in black with neon green Monster logos, and bright green rims to match.
Look out for Bradshaw to take Monster Energy to a potential monster title.
The final driver getting named to the World Finals this weekend is one that has been to the big show the last four years, but is now doing it with a re-invented truck, one that has a championship to it's credit.
Alex Blackwell has made the World Finals the last four years driving Captain's Curse. However, that truck was discontinued entering the new year as well. But, Marvel Comics was ready to step up and give Alex not just a new identity, but he also got an entire new truck.
Blackwell will return to Las Vegas this time behind the wheel of Wolverine, the same truck that won the 2003 racing championship with Brian Barthell driving.
Blackwell's truck is completely different than the one that Barthell drove to that championship, as it is a completely new Paul Cohen-designed chassis, with a longer wheel base and lower center of gravity. Could be the ticket that Blackwell has needed since he made the final round in 2009. That was his best run at the World Finals, but it ended in a scary way as his brakes failed coming into the corner and he tumbled his Captain's Curse machine into the stands of Sam Boyd Stadium.
No one was hurt, except some of the railing and seats that were covered had some damage that stadium construction had to fix afterward.
Now, just nine spots remain as next weekend will mark one month until the big event. Who will get the nod to return to Vegas, or will some new blood be introduced to the World Finals? Keep checking with MonsterJam.com, as well as AllAboutHorsepower.com, to find out.
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