XDL Series Ends With A Bang In Indy For Stunter Brian Bubash
- 4 Sept 2009
One of the top street bike stunt riders in the XDL series is 25-year-old, Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania resident Brian Bubash. XDL is the premier competition series for sportbike freestyle athletes with events that stretch across the U.S. Bubash began competing in sportbike freestyle competition in 2005 and has not stopped progressing since.
Brian Bubash performs a stoppie during XDL qualifying for round 4 in Indianapolis, Indiana.
Brian Bubash said "Stoppies are my favorite stunt because they're the most exhilarating."
When asked what his thoughts were about XDL round 4 in Indianapolis, Indiana, Brian said, “If I were to sum it up in one word, that word would be AWESOME!” Bubash certainly did have an awesome event taking home wins in both the Individual Freestyle and Team Battle competitions as well as a third place finish in the K&N Circle Challenge.
Bubash rides a 2004 Kawasaki ZX6R with a nostalgic Yamaha paint job to support the Pittsburgh Steelers.
K&N air filters offer Bubash increased power and protection for his Kawasaki stunt bikes.
XDL round 4 was held on a public street, which was closed to traffic for the event, in downtown Indianapolis, Indiana. Indianapolis has a strong racing tradition, and the XDL finals were held the Friday before the Indy MotoGP race. Friday saw a torrential downpour of rain during Individual Freestyle qualifying. Even despite the unfavorable weather, crowds packed the bleachers to watch the XDL competition.
“The rain didn’t affect my qualifying run, I felt more confident than usual,” said Bubash. Being from Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, Bubash is not a stranger to riding in wet weather, which gave him an edge over his competitors. Brian had an excellent qualifying run with good execution. His qualifying performance landed him second place during qualifying in Individual Freestyle. Brian said, “I hate qualifying in the top three because it puts a lot of pressure on you for the finals.”
The finals were later that same night, and luckily Mother Nature chose to cooperate. The rain eventually stopped and the pavement dried out. The dry pavement allowed competitors to ride harder which began to heat up the competition for the finals. Finals are run in reverse order of qualifying, which meant Bubash was second to last to compete in the finals.
When Brian finished his run his friends told him he did well. “My friends won’t lie. If I didn’t have a good run, my friends will tell me I sucked,” said Bubash. Brian also felt like he had a very solid run, and felt confident in his performance. XDL differs from most judged competitions. In XDL, competitors do not know their score until officials present the awards. “It’s an agonizing wait,” said Bubash. However, when all was said and done, Brian Bubash stood atop the podium going home with the first place trophy and prize money.
Bubash has been using K&N products since he was a kid. “I’ve always run K&N,” said Brian, “I always look for that red and black box when I need a filter.” Bubash protects his valuable engines with K&N air filter part number KA-6003 and wrench-off oil filter part number KN-204 for his twin 2004 Kawasaki ZX6R stunt bikes. “My stunt bikes run way more crisp with a K&N air filter,” said Brian. He also runs a K&N wrench-off oil filter, which simplifies oil changes. Bubash prefers to service his own bikes because he has more confidence in their reliability and performance when he does. “Some people will take any sponsor, I only look for sponsors that I believe in,” said Bubash.
Even though the XDL round 4 event in Indianapolis, Indiana concludes the XDL Sportbike Freestyle Championship season, Brian Bubash won’t be taking any time off. There is not an actual off-season for Bubash. Having made stunting his official job, Brian will continue to travel across the country for other events. Follow Brian Bubash throughout the year at the K&N news site.
Find K&N products for your vehicle using the K&N application search then use the K&N dealer search to find a K&N dealer in your part of the world.
Brian Bubash performs a stoppie during XDL qualifying for round 4 in Indianapolis, Indiana.
Brian Bubash said "Stoppies are my favorite stunt because they're the most exhilarating."
Bubash rides a 2004 Kawasaki ZX6R with a nostalgic Yamaha paint job to support the Pittsburgh Steelers.
K&N air filters offer Bubash increased power and protection for his Kawasaki stunt bikes.
XDL round 4 was held on a public street, which was closed to traffic for the event, in downtown Indianapolis, Indiana. Indianapolis has a strong racing tradition, and the XDL finals were held the Friday before the Indy MotoGP race. Friday saw a torrential downpour of rain during Individual Freestyle qualifying. Even despite the unfavorable weather, crowds packed the bleachers to watch the XDL competition.
“The rain didn’t affect my qualifying run, I felt more confident than usual,” said Bubash. Being from Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, Bubash is not a stranger to riding in wet weather, which gave him an edge over his competitors. Brian had an excellent qualifying run with good execution. His qualifying performance landed him second place during qualifying in Individual Freestyle. Brian said, “I hate qualifying in the top three because it puts a lot of pressure on you for the finals.”
The finals were later that same night, and luckily Mother Nature chose to cooperate. The rain eventually stopped and the pavement dried out. The dry pavement allowed competitors to ride harder which began to heat up the competition for the finals. Finals are run in reverse order of qualifying, which meant Bubash was second to last to compete in the finals.
When Brian finished his run his friends told him he did well. “My friends won’t lie. If I didn’t have a good run, my friends will tell me I sucked,” said Bubash. Brian also felt like he had a very solid run, and felt confident in his performance. XDL differs from most judged competitions. In XDL, competitors do not know their score until officials present the awards. “It’s an agonizing wait,” said Bubash. However, when all was said and done, Brian Bubash stood atop the podium going home with the first place trophy and prize money.
Bubash has been using K&N products since he was a kid. “I’ve always run K&N,” said Brian, “I always look for that red and black box when I need a filter.” Bubash protects his valuable engines with K&N air filter part number KA-6003 and wrench-off oil filter part number KN-204 for his twin 2004 Kawasaki ZX6R stunt bikes. “My stunt bikes run way more crisp with a K&N air filter,” said Brian. He also runs a K&N wrench-off oil filter, which simplifies oil changes. Bubash prefers to service his own bikes because he has more confidence in their reliability and performance when he does. “Some people will take any sponsor, I only look for sponsors that I believe in,” said Bubash.
Even though the XDL round 4 event in Indianapolis, Indiana concludes the XDL Sportbike Freestyle Championship season, Brian Bubash won’t be taking any time off. There is not an actual off-season for Bubash. Having made stunting his official job, Brian will continue to travel across the country for other events. Follow Brian Bubash throughout the year at the K&N news site.
Find K&N products for your vehicle using the K&N application search then use the K&N dealer search to find a K&N dealer in your part of the world.
