For the third and final year, Austin will serve as the host city for X Games Austin 2016. X Games Austin has an incredible weekend in store, seamlessly blending competition across Skate, BMX, Moto X, and Flat Track Racing disciplines, as well as seven distinctly themed villages and entertainment and music from world-class artists to include Blink-182. Monster Energy will feature athlete autograph signings, brand ambassadors and an outdoor lounge at the Galleria, X Games Austin’s sponsor village.
Ready for Austin, the Monster Energy team is stacked with a large number of athletes earning coveted invites. Visit monsterenergy.com for a full list of invitees—key athletes and events to watch out for include:
Jamie Bestwick, the unquestionable king of BMX vert, will be ready to reclaim gold this year. He’s won every X Games Vert event since 2007 except 2015 where his teammate Vince Byron took gold, ending Bestwick’s streak of nine consecutive gold medals.
Loaded with raw talent, four-time X Games gold medalist Kyle Baldock from Australia will be going for his fourth consecutive gold in BMX Dirt and also poses a threat in BMX Park.
In Skateboard Street, Nyjah Huston will once again be the one to beat. Last year he took gold in Skateboard Street marking his 6th career gold medal. Even outside of X Games he’s lethal. In fact, he’s won more prize money in skateboarding competition than anyone else in history. Fellow Monster Energy teammate Ishod Wair is definitely capable of earning a spot on the podium and has the credibility to back it up as one of skateboarding’s most popular skaters and a fan favorite.
Coming off his recent second place Hart Lines street skateboarding victory and X Games Austin 2015 gold-medal in Skateboard Park, Curren Caples will be gunning for the podium in both Skateboard Park and Skateboard Street. A versatile skateboarder with unsurpassed speed and flawless style, Caples continues to rise in skateboarding fame and is definitely one to watch. Another one to watch is Raven Tershy, the “underground NorCal ripper” from Santa Cruz, California is definitely a favorite for gold and has a skill level that surpasses most.
Dedicated to progression and constant advancement, Tom Schaar, already has a lot of records under his belt as the first skateboarder to land a 1080 and the youngest skateboarder to win a gold medal in Skateboard Big Air at X Games Austin 2014. He took bronze in Skateboard Big Air at X Games Austin 2015, bagging his fourth career X Games medal and will be looking to reclaim gold this year.
Pierre Luc Gagnon, owner of an incredible 21 X Games medals (nine Gold, ten Silver, two Bronze), will be out for the win again after reclaiming gold in 2015.
Five-time X Games medalist and triple threat Taka Higashino will be competing in FMX, Moto X QuarterPipe and Moto X Best Trick. With three straight X Games gold medal wins at X Games LA 2012, X Games Foz do Iguacu 2013, and X Games LA 2013, and the unfortunate X Games Austin 2014 and X Games Austin 2015 FMX events being cancelled because of weather, Higashino is more than ready to reclaim gold.
Josh Sheehan who took bronze in the inaugural Moto X QuarterPipe event at X Games Austin 2015, and his second X Games career medal is definitely one to watch and will be competing in Moto X Best Whip, Moto X QuarterPipe, FMX and Best Trick.
X Games rookie Axell Hodges will make his debut competing in Moto X Best Whip and Moto X Step Up and is also up for his video part in Real Moto.
Nate Adams will once again join his teammates as he goes for the podium in Moto X Step Up, FMX and is an alternate in Moto X Best Whip. Adams took his third gold in Moto X Speed and Style at X Games Austin 2015 marking an impressive 19 X Games medals overall and is ready for more gold.
In Flat Track look out for Brad “The Bullet” Baker who took bronze at the inaugural event in 2015, Kenny Coolbeth, Jr., and the favorite to win gold Jared Mees, who lead the entire main event in 2015 only for a mechanical failure to cost him gold on the final lap.
For more visit monsterenergy.com and Monster Energy Facebook this week to score all the exclusive updates from X Games Austin 2016 including photos, videos, and contest results as they happen. Follow us on Instagram and Twitter and search #UnleashedAtX for exclusive behind-the-scenes looks in Austin.
Monster Energy is Ready to Dominate With Its Team of World-Class Athletes | X Games Austin 2016
May 31, 2016
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Monster Energy, the Official Energy Drink Sponsor of X Games Austin 2016, is Ready to Dominate with its Team of World-Class Competing Athletes. Officially sponsoring X Games for the third year, Monster Energy proudly announces its team of athletes headed to X Games Austin 2016 taking place June 2-5 at Circuit of The Americas (COTA) in Austin, Texas with live coverage on ESPN and ABC. With four days of competition ahead, the Monster Energy team is ready for action.
After doing a BMX 'zine for ten years (1987 - 1996) FATBMX made it on the internet. The year was 1998. Here to stay.