Vuillemin hoping for triple in SoBe Nationals.

Yamaha's David Vuillemin comes into this Sunday's SoBe National at High Point Raceway as the two-time defending winner of the event, but still hopes to become only the second rider in the 25-year history of the race to win the 250 race three times in a row.

The 24-year old Vuillemin is ranked fourth in the AMA Chevy Trucks US Motocross Championship coming into the third round of the twelve-event series.

"Mount Morris has been good to me," said Vuillemin, who could become the first to win three straight at the track since the legendary Kent Howerton accomplished the feat 21 years ago.

"It's still early in the season, but Ricky [Carmichael] is already gaining an advantage. It's important for me to have a very strong result and of course it would be nice to win three in a row at Mt Morris."

If Vuillemin is to get his third victory at High Point, he is likely to have to go through Carmichael, the defending 250cc AMA Chevy Trucks US Motocross champion. RC comes into this weekend's event atop the series, after taking victories in the first two rounds in California. High Point remains the only event in the series that Carmichael has not won in the 250 class, however, although he is a two-time 125-class winner at the circuit.

Vuillemin's Yamaha team-mate Tim Ferry is second in the series standings, and is more than ready to get another victory in the series. It's been over a year since the former 125cc race winner at High Point last won.

Honda's Sebastien Tortelli comes into Sunday's race ranked third and, like Ferry, is going on a year since he last won. Ezra Lusk joins Vuillemin as the only other former 250 High Point winner in the field Sunday. Lusk won the race in 1998, but is currently fifth in the standings after the first two rounds.

The 125 series has been taken by storm this year by 16-year old rookie sensation James Stewart Jr. The young Kawasaki rider leads the 125 championship after winning his first two AMA Chevy Trucks US Motocross Championship events. Even though he's a rookie, Stewart does have experience on the High Point circuit, which he raced on as an amateur.

"I don't know how it is that I've been able to go so fast so far this year," said Stewart, the first prominent African-American in the sport, "I just twist the throttle and good things happen. I'm looking forward to racing at Mt Morris. At first, I was a little worried about racing there, since it always seems to turn into a mud race, but I learned a lot about racing in those conditions at Hangtown."

Stewart already has positive experience of the slippery conditions, however, having taken victory last Sunday at the Hangtown Classic in Sacramento, where a downpour made the track a sloppy quagmire in the second moto. He won the muddy race by over twelve seconds.

South African Grant Langston and Australian Chad Reed, both former top world championship motocross competitors, are locked in a great battle for second place in the 125 championship. Both are still trying to come to grips with the sheer speed that Stewart has shown in his debut season. Langston, who is second to Stewart in the championship, is pinning his hopes on the long and gruelling season where anything can happen.

"The year is made up of 24 motos - so consistency is the key," Langston said.

Pennsylvania fans will be rooting for Fombell's Branden Jesseman, who rides for Team Blimpie Suzuki. Jesseman is tenth in the 125 series and is coming off a strong fifth-place performance last week in Sacramento.

Mt Morris is located in the rolling hills of the southwest corner of Pennsylvania, right smack dab on the West Virginia border. One of the longest-running races on the circuit, High Point has been home to some of the more memorable races in the history of American motocross. Founded by famed promoter Dave Coombs Sr, the High Point track is one of the more fan-friendly tracks on the circuit in that from any one of several vantage points, fans can see pretty much the entire track - a trait synonymous with the Coombs' venues. The track is definitely a favourite amongst the riders, especially those who excel at the technical riding aspects of motocross.