GNCC Round 13 2016 Race Report
McClure Takes Home the AMSOIL Ironman GNCC Overall Win
Covert Awarded XC2 Pro-Am National Championship
Photos by: Ken HIll
Adam McGill jumped out to the early lead to grab the $250 Wiseco Holeshot Award.
CRAWFORDSVILLE, Ind. (October 29, 2016) – The 2016 AMSOIL Grand National Cross Country (GNCC) Series took place today, October 29, with the 22nd running of the AMSOIL Ironman GNCC held annually at Ironman Raceway in Crawfordsville, Indiana. The top spot on the box quickly became anyone’s to take with the two-time National Champion and N-Fab/Maxxis/AmPro Yamaha/Lonestar/MXP’s Walker Fowler missing from the start line due to a lingering issue that occurred at a local hare-scramble last weekend.
As the green flag dropped for the highly anticipated season finale, CST/LSR/Induction Solutions/DeRisi/SG/Tire Blocks-backed Adam McGill wasted no time in making his way to the front and claiming the $250 Wiseco XC1 Pro Holeshot Award. McGill immediately felt pressure from Maxxis/Fly Racing/HMF/Ye Olde Cycle Barn/Suzuki’s Chris Borich and Coastal Racing/MSR/Maxxis’ Brycen Neal who were on his back tires as the trio checked through timing and scoring for the first time.
The second lap played in favor of McGill who began to have some breathing room where he held a ten second lead over Neal who had moved into the second place position. Borich remained in the picture but seemed to be having some issues.
As the teams began their pits stops on the second lap, Borich unmounted from his quad to adjust his shock. Once the six-time champion was back in action he set his sights on making up lost time and taking over the lead. Just one lap later, Neal came into the pits with a broken front end bracket.
After a hard faught season, Jarrod McClure earned his first overall win of the year.
Their misfortunes allowed an open spot for JMR/ATVriders.com/DWT’s Jarrod McClure who took full advantage of the opportunity to display his talent. With a clear track McClure quickly caught up to McGill. The two began battling it out until McGill’s spindle broke. As McGill made his way off the track, McClure continued to the finish line virtually untouched. McClure would end up crossing the finish victorious for the first time this season, and Borich followed nearly three minutes behind him.
Meanwhile, Landon Wolfe continued to push from a top-five start to secure third when the two-lap card came out. Despite the enormous amount of pressure on him, Wolfe would end up landing on the podium with third. Wolfe’s placement proved that he will be a top contender for the 2017 championship with his first career podium finish at the Ironman GNCC.
Overall Podium: (3) Landon Wolfe, (1) Jarrod McClure, (2) Chris Borich.
Fast Traxx/Wolf Racing’s Brian Wolf finished just off the podium with fourth, while Independent Cycles/Shockworx Motorsports/Variom’s Matthew Lindle finished fifth in his XC1 Pro debut. Neal continued charging hard in an attempt to salvage as many points as possible, and at the conclusion of the two-hour race the Yamaha rider placed sixth. Both N-Fab/Maxxis/AmPro Yamaha/Lonestar/MXP’s Cole Richardson and BNR/Moose Racing/Maxxis-backed Josh Merritt faced issues on the first lap, which took them out of contention for the overall win.
Greg Covert was named the 2016 XC2 Pro-Am champion.
The XC2 Pro-Am championship remained undecided coming into the final round. Randy Hamilton headed into the woods first after claiming the $100 All Balls Racing XC2 Pro-Am Holeshot Award on his JMR/ATVriders.com/DWT-backed machine. Dillinger’s Celtic Pub & Eatery/GBC Motorsports/Moose Racing’s Marty Christofferson made quick work to secure the lead by the conclusion of the first lap. While Christofferson continued to lead from start to finish, Goldspeed/Hygear Suspension/Waynesburg Yamaha/Moto-Xperts/Spider Graphix-backed Greg Covert’s third place finish earned him the coveted XC2 Pro-Am National Championship.
Indiana native Austin Abney continued his success from 2015, taking the College A (16-21) class win along with sixth overall. Abney’s impressive performance also allowed him to break the record and become the top finishing ATV amateur in GNCC history, where he finished ahead of many of the XC1 Pro and XC2 Pro-Am competitors.
Can-Am/DWT/Houser Racing/Elka Suspension/HMF’s Cody Miller dominated the Side-by-Side UTV racing action where he led every lap from start to finish. Miller’s speed mixed with his consistency secured him the UTV Overall National Championship. Cody’s brother, Hunter Miller worked his way from the outside the top ten to earn his first ever overall podium with second. JB Off-Road/Can-Am-backed Tim Farr placed third.
Cody Miller took home not only the UTV overall win, but also the National Championship.
In the 10 a.m. race, Can-Am/DWT/Houser Racing/Elka Suspension/HMF’s Cody Miller continued his winning streak making it three-in-a-row in the 4×4 Pro division. Can-Am/QuadBoss’ Bryan Buckhannon and Cunningham Racing/Can-Am/Spider Graphix/Gold Speed’s Kevin Cunningham finished in second and third.
Ye Olde Cycle Barn/Maxxis/Fox Shocks’ Alicia McCormick capped off a successful year in the WXC class by taking home another win. The victory wouldn’t come easy for McCormick who battled with New York’s Katelyn Osburn and GBC/BNR/Spider Graphix’s Kara Merritt who rounded out the WXC podium.
WXC Podium: (2) Katelyn Osburn, (1) Alicia McCormick, (3) Kara Merritt.
The familiar face of Pierce Performance/Maxxis/Waynesburg Yamaha/FLY Racing’s John Glauda Jr. landed just off the 10 a.m. overall podium with fourth, but his placement vaulted him to the top of the amateur ranks where he pocketed the $125 GT Performance Overall Amateur Award.
The first race to hit the woods of Indiana was the Youth ATVs. Rhett Cox ended the season victorious with the overall win, but Mikey Nickels second overall finish was good enough to earn him the Overall ATV Youth National Championship. Daulton Keyes claimed the last spot on the podium with third.
Youth Overall Podium: (3) Daulton Keyes, (1) Rhett Cox, (2) Mikey Nickels. Nickels was also presented with the No. 1 plate.
Both the 1 p.m. ATV Pro race and UTV race were broadcast LIVE in their entirety on RacerTV.com and can be viewed as archived video online by visiting the GNCC LIVE page. A highlight show featuring the event will be broadcast on the NBC Sports Newtwork on Saturday, December 17, at 4:00 p.m.
For more information on the GNCC series, visit the official website at www.gnccracing.comor call (304) 284-0084. Join the conversation on the series Facebook page, follow us on Twitter and Instagram, and be sure to always hashtag #GNCCLIVE.
AMSOIL Ironman GNCC
Crawfordsville, Indiana
Round 13 of 13
Saturday, October 29
XC1 Pro Event Results:
- Jarrod McClure (HON)
- Chris Borich (SUZ)
- Landon Wolfe (HON)
- Brian Wolf (HON)
- Matthew Lindle (HON)
- Brycen Neal (YAM)
- Jay Shadron (YAM)
- Johnny Gallagher (YAM)
- James Green (HON)
- Cody Collier (YAM)
*Overall National Championship Standings:
- Walker Fowler (326)
- Adam McGill (280)
- Chris Borich (269)
- Brycen Neal (212)
- Jarrod McClure (212)
- Cole Richardson (187)
- Landon Wolfe (166)
- Marty Christofferson (128)
- Greg Covert (128)
- Josh Merritt (116)
*Indicates that the Overall National Championship Standings will determine the 2016 National Champion.
XC2 Pro-Am Event Results:
- Marty Christofferson (HON)
- Randy Hamilton (HON)
- Greg Covert (YAM)
- Bryson Hoppes (YAM)
- Jonathan Fugate (HON)
- Shea Dickson (HON)
- Wes Kinsley (SUZ)
- Austin Gourley (HON)
- Devin Masters (SUZ)
- Braden Nichols (HON)
XC2 Pro-Am Series Points Standings:
- Greg Covert (287)
- Marty Christofferson (277)
- Westley Wolfe (241)
- Randy Hamilton (230)
- Cody Collier (200)
- Matthew Lindle (162)
- Bryson Hoppes (161)
- Kevin Yoho (124)
- Kenny Shick (124)
- James Green (123)
About GNCC Racing
The AMSOIL Grand National Cross Country Series presented by Maxxis is America’s premier off-road racing series. Founded in 1975, the 13-round championship is produced exclusively by Racer Productions. Cross-country racing is one of the most physically demanding sports in the world. The grueling three-hour GNCC races lead as many as 2,000 riders through tracks ranging in length from eight to 12 miles. With varied terrain, including hills, woods, mud, dirt, rocks and motocross sections, GNCC events are tests of both survival and speed. The series draws talent from all over the U.S., Europe, Japan, Australia and New Zealand. GNCC Racing is televised weekly on NBC Sports and RacerTV.com. For more information, please visit www.gnccracing.com.
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