Nitro Circus pays tribute to Northland BMX rider

Steve Mini wows the crowd with his gravity defying act in the Nitro Circus event at Toll Stadium. Photo/Tania Whyte

The world-renowned Nitro Circus tour has paid tribute to a Northlander during their electrifying performance at Toll Stadium.

During a pre-show for the VIP ticket holders, MC and BMX rider Zachary "Catfish" Yankush paid tribute to Northland BMX rider Ben Brown.

Brown died of meningococcal disease in 2011 and, according to those involved in BMX, had the talent to go professional.

Yankush told the crowd they were paying tribute to the budding BMX rider.

"We at Nitro Circus want to give a huge shout out to Ben Brown, a local rider who was the first we heard of that did a backflip at Whangarei Skate Park," he said.

"We know you can't be here with us, but we also know you're definitely looking down on the event and smiling."

"When we heard about this kid that did a backflip in New Zealand, we had to look him up and it is a shame he isn't here right now."

Crowds were lining up in droves to check out the high-flying action in its first ever stop in Northland.

Thirty riders, including Kiwis Jed Mildon and Levi Sherwood, put on a show to delight the crowd of 11,000.

Nitro Circus marketing manager Nathan Brown said they were not expecting the crowd level to be so high.

"Definitely was not expecting the turnout from Northland. For our first time up here, it's absolutely brilliant," he said.

"The riders are pumped about the crowd."

Nitro Circus is an "action sport collective" led by Travis Pastrana, featuring his friends and him travelling around the world riding dirtbikes, base jumping, and performing stunts.