Reed has led from the moment the season started, but heads to this weekend's Las Vegas finale with only a 10-point advantage over second placed Kevin Windham.

The reason for the relatively slim margin is that, while Reed has won eight races this season, he has also suffered more than his fair share of bad luck.

The 26-year-old has had victory snatched from him on a number of outings, but none have come close to what seemed like a season-ending practice accident just over a fortnight ago.

Nursing a broken shoulder and some painful flesh wounds, Reed scored what could be a crucial nine points - just hours after being released from the emergency room at the Detroit round - then bounced back to score two consecutive second place finishes, amassing the necessary points to keep Windham at bay.

Reed's toughness will now be tested one final time at Sam Boyd Stadium in Las Vegas and, although he doesn't need to win to secure the 2008 title, backing off is not part of the plan.

"It's all or nothing this weekend," said Reed. "I would have liked to have built myself an unbeatable lead heading into the final at Las Vegas but it hasn't happened that way.

"It's been a very testing few weeks, and a tough season, and it all comes down to Saturday night's race.

"I've got what it takes, I can win this, and I'm pumped. Windham has a lot of work in front of him.

"I'm still very sore but the pain just becomes a blur when a championship is at stake, I've worked too hard to miss out now," he declared.

If Windham wins, Reed will need to finish within the top six to secure the 2008 Monster Energy AMA Supercross crown. The pairing will be tied on points if the Aussie crosses the line in sixth, but his tally of race wins will hand him the crucial advantage.