2012 Lucas Oil AMA Pro Motocross Championship Scheduled In Lake Elsinore Saturday

After a two-year run in Pala, the final round of the high-profile 2012 Lucas Oil AMA Pro Motocross Championship is moving to the

Event producer Davey Coombs, president of MX Sports Pro Racing, told Cycle News that the Lake Elsinore facility “is the ideal location for a national event in Southern California."

The Sept. 8 final-round championship is the premier event of the internationally acclaimed 12-race series, according to an American Motocross joint press release.

“Not only does the Lucas Oil AMA Pro Motocross Championship include the best tracks in the sport, it also features the fastest riders on the planet, as well as an expanded television package with NBC Sports Group,” according to the release.

“We are very fortunate to have so many great, iconic motocross tracks as part of the Lucas Oil AMA Pro Motocross Championship ... that challenge the racers and have strong, loyal fan bases that come out to see these races,” Coombs said in the news release. “This series is the pinnacle of professional motocross, and the growth we’ve seen in the last three years for both the live audiences and television viewers watching from all over the world has been outstanding.”

According to Cycle News, a falling out between Pala Raceway and MX Sports Pro Racing caused the event to be shifted northward to Lake Elsinore.

Lake Elsinore and surrounding cities have been a mecca for motocross racing since the 1970s. According to the American Motorcyclist Association, Riverside County is a hotbed of off-road activity and has been practice grounds for racing heroes like Jeremy McGrath, Mike Metzger and Ricky Johnson.

When the Lake Elsinore track closed in mid-2010, many motocross riders had to travel out of town after city officials determined park operator Randy Hiner was out of compliance with permit conditions.

under the leadership of new park operators Gio, Joe and Tom Nanci of Vision Quest Enterprises, and general manager Chad Azevedo.

“We have put a ton of time and effort into making our track into a national-caliber facility," Tom Nanci told Cycle News.

For more on the event, click here.

EDITOR'S NOTE: This article was originally published in January 2012.