As it turns out, Red Bull and their premier motocross tour, X-Fighters, were not just saying all the right things back in April when they became the first organization to stand behind the riders’ “Save a Brother” safety movement. Last Saturday, June 16, X-Fighters organizers were forced to make the difficult decision of canceling the third stop of the tour at Kazlicesme Square in Istanbul due to 45 kph crosswinds.

The large amount of money spent to put on the event combined with the hype and anticipation from the Turkish fans would have made it easy to push for the contest to run. But ultimately Red Bull remained true to their commitment, calling off the event due to safety concerns.

X Fighters sports director, Tes Sewell, released an official statement regarding their decision: “The number one priority for us is the safety of the athletes. What the 12 best FMX riders do takes an incredible amount of skill and precision and it can be very dangerous when it goes wrong. For all of us it’s disappointing not to be able to give the Turkish fans the pinnacle of this sport and show them the highest level of freestyle motocross.”

Andre Villa, Nate Adams, and Drake McElroy helped lead the charge with “Save a Brother,” a four-page list of guidelines, which includes regulations on landing requirements, ramp specifications, in-and-out run distances, arena heights, padding, and weather conditions. So far riders and contest organizers have continued to stand behind the guidelines.

As far as competition goes, the overall standings will remain the same heading into the next stop of the 2012 World Tour in Madrid on July 20 at the Plaza de Toros de las Ventas.

1. Todd Potter USA
2. Levi Sherwood New Zealand
3. Javier Villegas Chile