FMF/KTM’s Charlie Mullins scores his second consecutive AMSOIL GNCC win, and his third of the season, in Tennessee, this weekend.
Factory FMF/KTM rider Charlie Mullins has stolen away the momentum that defending 2014 AMSOIL Grand National Cross Country Series Champion and teammate Kailub Russell enjoyed for prior to the round five of the series and is now on a roll of his own after winning the 33rd Parts Unlimited Loretta Lynn’s GNCC at the Loretta Lynn Ranch in Hurricane Mills, Tennessee, yesterday.
After three hours of racing through the rough, rocky and sometimes muddy 11-mile Loretta Lynn course, Mullins landed his second consecutive victory and third of the season at the event, Round 6 of the 13-race series.
The day’s action began in dry and sunny conditions, but a big rain storm let loose just one hour before the start of the afternoon’s Pro race. Wet and slippery conditions on the racetrack, along with hot and humid temperatures, threw unexpected variables at the country’s top cross country racers.
Factory FMF/KTM’s Russell grabbed the holeshot at the start of the race, claiming the $250 All Balls Racing XC1 Holeshot Award. However, Russell bobbled in the slick first turn, and Mullins quickly took over at the front early on lap one. Russell reclaimed the lead on the same lap, but he couldn’t hang on to it because he had to make an unscheduled stop in the in the woods to replace his goggles. The delay dropped him to fourth place, behind Rocky Mountain ATV*MC/N-Fab AmPro Yamaha’s Josh Strang and Maxxis/KLIM/DirtWise KTM Race Team’s Jason Thomas, but Russell fought his way back into contention for the win.
Russell and Mullins took turns leading different parts of the six-lap race, and heading into the final lap the Factory FMF/KTM duo had the Loretta Lynn crowd anticipating a head-to-head battle to the wire. Russell was once again out front, but when he was forced to stop in the pits to get a splash of gas, Mullins closed the gap, setting up the titanic battle that the crowd had come to see. The front-runners diced it out for the lead position but, as Russell tells it, the great battle effectively ended when he crashed on his own.
“On the last lap I made a little mistake and Charlie got around me,” Russell said. “We battled pretty hard the next couple of corners, banging bars pretty hard and fighting for the first-place position. I kind of got rebounded out of a rut and it sent me to the ground. I put on a hard charge to catch up but the damage was done.”
Mullins held off Russell in the final moments to capture his third victory of the season—and his second straight win—finishing just six seconds ahead of Russell. Mullins now holds a 12-point lead over Russell in the AMSOIL GNCC National Championship point standings heading to Round 7 in two weeks.
“I definitely had to work for this one,” Mullins said. “That last lap we got pretty close and it was everything I had. It feels good to get a win but it’s far from over. We’ve got the tough rounds coming up so I definitely need to stay on my game and get ready for the rocks in West Virginia.”
Russell once again pulled the $100 KR4 Performance Fastest Lap, this time on lap five of racing. Mullins came less than one second away from earning this honor.
Strang put together another respectable ride at the Parts Unlimited Loretta Lynn’s GNCC. After getting of to a second-place start, he mostly ran alone in third place for the majority of the race, maintaining a comfortable gap over JCR Honda’s Chris Bach. Strang pushed hard at the end of the race in an effort to improve his overall position, but he nearly exhausted himself in the process, and he had to accept third overall and third in the XC1 Pro class.
“It was a tough day today the heat and humidity played a toll on all of us,” Strang said. “I’ll take third today, considering last round’s results.”
After riding inside the top five all afternoon, Bach scored an impressive fourth place overall, his best of the season. N-Fab AmPro Yamaha’s Jordan Ashburn was another consistent front-runner at Loretta Lynn’s. Ashburn battled with Bach and Factory Husqvarna’s Andrew Delong closely all afternoon, ultimately finishing fifth overall, followed by Delong, N-Fab AmPro Yamaha’s Paul Whibley and HR Motorsports’ Takeshi Koikeda. Illinois native Adam Bonneur finished ninth in the XC1 Pro class, while Rockstar Energy/WMR KTM’s Ryan Sipes completed the top 10 in the class.
There was yet another big shakeup in XC2 Pro Lites point standings as KTM Support rider Grant Baylor captured a big class win and finished eighth overall to reclaim the points lead after six rounds. Raines Riding University/Atlas Cycles’ Ricky Russell rode hard all afternoon, but this time he wasn’t fast enough to stop Baylor, the reigning XC2 Pro Lites Champion.
Maxxis/KLIM/DirtWise KTM Race Team’s Jesse Groemm had put himself into a favorable position for a podium finish. However, RideMPS.com/AMSOIL Honda’s Layne Michael caught Groemm less than a mile from the finish and put on a spectacular, last-second pass on Groemm in the motocross section to steal away third place in the class. Groemm was fourth, and Imperium Bicycles’ Chris Douglas was fifth.
In WXC (Women’s) action, factory FMF/KTM’s Kacy Martinez grabbed another win, as well as second overall for the day in the morning race. Sara Baldwin made her return to the WXC podium this season with a second place in the class, while N-Fab AmPro Yamaha’s Jessica Patterson finished third in the class.
In the 8 a.m. Youth race, South Carolina’s Cole Mattison secured his third consecutive victory, grabbing yet another Super Mini (14-15) class win along the way. Tennessee’s Sam Thurman captured a second place finish in front of his home state crowd, while Alabama’s Kyler Godwin rounded out the overall podium with third place in the Super Mini (14-15) class.
The 2014 AMSOIL Grand National Cross Country Series resumes May 24 and 25 with the Mountaineer Run GNCC in Masontown, West Virginia. For more information on the series, visit www.gnccracing.com.
2014 AMSOIL Grand National Cross Country Series Presented By Maxxis
Parts Unlimited Loretta Lynn’s GNCC
Hurricane Mills, Tennessee
Results: May 11 2014 (Round 6 of 13)
XC1
1. Charlie Mullins-KTM
2. Kailub Russell-KTM
3. Josh Strang-Yam
4. Chris Bach-Hon
5. Jordan Ashburn-Yam
6. Andrew Delong-Hus
7. Paul Whibley-Yam
8. Takeshi Koikeda-Hon
9. Adam Bonneur-KTM
10. Ryan Sipes-KTM
2014 AMSOIL Grand National Cross Country Series Presented By Maxxis Point Standings (After 6 of 13 rounds)*
1. Charlie Mullins-155/3 wins
2. Kailub Russell-143/3 wins
3. Josh Strang-111
4. Jordan Ashburn-93
5. Paul Whibley-89
6. Grant Baylor-80
7. Ricky Russell-74
8. Steward Baylor-71
9. Andrew Delong-70
10. Thad DuVall-61
*Indicates that the Overall National Championship Standings will determine the 2014 National Champion.
XC2
1. Grant Baylor-KTM
2. Ricky Russell-Yam
3. Layne Michael-Hon
4. Jesse Groemm-KTM
5. Chris Douglas-KTM
6. Jedediah Haines-Yam
7. Sam Evans-Yam
8. Callan May-Yam
9. Trevor Bollinger-Hon
10. Shane Hufford Jr.-KTM
XC2 Series Point Standings (After 6 of 13 Rounds)
1. Grant Baylor-151
2. Ricky Russell-148
3. Trevor Bollinger-117
4. Layne Michael-90
5. Shane Hufford Jr.-89
6. Callan May-83
7. Jesse Groemm-70
8. Sam Evans-70
9. Chris Douglas-61
10. Rory Mead-56
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