LAS VEGAS (March 19, 2016) - In a night that saw the track beating the truck more than not, the Monster Jam World Finals® presented by NGK Spark Plugs crowned Grave Digger® and Adam Anderson the new World Freestyle champion. By winning this championship, Anderson etched the Grave Digger team in to the record books as they won every major championship in 2016 - both Monster Jam featuring the AMSOIL Series, the Monster Jam FS1 Championship Series, the 2016 World Racing championship and now the 2016 World Freestyle championship.
Tonight's 32-truck field pinned 10 former champion drivers representing 15 Monster Jam World Finals Freestyle titles against each other to fight for the hardware. It was a battle of the Grave Digger drivers as Monster Jam World Finals rookie Cole Venard started the night putting Grave Digger in the hot seat. Fifteen drivers later, Dennis Anderson knocked Venard out of the competition. While Anderson [Dennis] enjoyed the hot seat domination for the next nine trucks, it was his oldest son, Adam, who would eliminate his father from the contest, ultimately winning the title.
"It's good to be back," said Anderson [Adam]. "We've loved you for 30-40 years. We've had the best year and all the hardware is going back to North Carolina with Team Digger! Next year is the 35th Grave Digger anniversary, and there's no telling what's going to happen. I can't wait! Thank you to all of Monster Jam fans for coming out."
2016 Monster Jam World Finals Freestyle Champion – Adam Anderson and Grave Digger
Photo Credit: Eric Stern
Monster Jam World Finals Freestyle Results
1. Grave Digger, Adam Anderson: 33
2. Monster Energy, Damon Bradshaw: 32.5
3. Grave Digger, Dennis Anderson: 31.5
4. Team Hot Wheels® Firestorm®, Scott Buetow: 30.5
5. Son-uva Digger , Ryan Anderson: 30.5
6. Grave Digger, Cole Venard: 30.5
7. Metal Mulisha, Todd LeDuc: 29.5
8. Northern Nightmare®, Cam McQueen: 29
9. El Toro Loco®, Marc McDonald: 28.5
10. Soldier FortuneTM, Chad Fortune: 25.5
11. Alien Invasion, Chad Tingler: 25.5
12. Madusa®, Brianna Mahon: 24.5
13. Overkill Evolution, Mike Vaters II: 24.5
14. Monster Mutt®, Charlie Pauken: 24.5
15. Titan, Donald Epidendio: 23.5
16. Grave Digger, Morgan Kane: 23
17. ZombieTM, Bari Musawwir: 23
18. FS1 Cleatus, Neil Elliott: 22.5
19. Max-DTM, Tom Meents: 21.5
20. Max-D, Colton Eichelberger: 20
21. Scooby-DooTM, Nicole Johnson: 19
22. VP Racing Fuels’ Mad ScientistTM, Lee O’Donnell: 19
23. Mohawk Warrior®, George Balhan: 19
24. DragonTM, Scott Liddycoat: 18.5
25. Lucas Oil Crusader®, Linsey Weenk: 17.5
26. Monster Mutt® Junkyard Dog, Dustin Brown: 15.5
27. Monster Energy, Coty Saucier: 15.5
28. Monster Mutt® Dalmatian, Candice Jolly: 14.5
29. Doom’s Day: 14.5
30. Bounty Hunter, Jim Creten: 14
31. Gas Monkey Garage®, BJ Johnson: 13
32. Avenger, Jim Koehler: 12
Saturday, March 19 Monster Jam Awards Recipients
Monster Jam FS1 Championship Series Champion: Adam Anderson, Grave Digger
UTI Technician of the Year: Steven Thompson, Hurricane Force
Arena Freestyle of the Year: Bari Musawwir, Zombie
Stadium Freestyle of the Year: Neil Elliott, Max-D
Wow Factor of the Year: Ryan Anderson, Son-uva Digger
2017 Monster Jam World Finals XVIII (March 23-25) tickets will go on-sale this summer. Check out www.MonsterJam.com for ticket renewal and on-sale information and dates.
For more information on Monster Jam World Finals presented by NGK Spark Plugs, log on to www.MonsterJam.com. Updates will be posted all weekend long on www.Facebook.com/MonsterJam, www.Twitter.com/MonsterJam and www.instagram.com/MonsterJamLive.
