KTM’s Kailub Russell capitalizes on the misfortune of his teammate and earns his fifth consecutive AMSOIL GNCC win
The following is from Racer Productions, producer of the AMSOIL GNCC Series:
Sunday’s inaugural Car-Mate Gusher GNCC at the RiverStone Estate in Foxburg, Pennsylvania, had the potential to be a mudfest after considerable rain swept through the area on Saturdau, but the storm passed quickly, leaving excellent conditions for round 11 of the 2013 AMSOIL Grand National Cross Country Series. And when all was said and done, factory KTM riders Kailub Russell and Charlie Mullins waged a terrific battle in the XC1 Pro race, which resulted in a fifth consecutive overall win for Russell.
Factory FMF/KTM’s Mullins netted the $250 All Balls Racing Holeshot Award and led the XC1 field into the woods at the start of the race, followed by Russell, AmPro Yamaha’s Jordan Ashburn, Shenandoah Honda/USWE-Sports.com’s Thad DuVall and Rocky Mountain ATV/MC’s Josh Strang. The lead pack remained tight, with the running order changing several times during the first half of the three-hour race.
Russell took the lead on lap two, with Ashburn running second after Mullins made a mistake and slipped back to third. DuVall was hung on in fourth place as the top four riders gapped the rest of the field by over a minute. A pit stop would cost Duvall substantial time, however, and he would be forced to play catch-up for the rest of the race.
Meanwhile, Mullins passed Ashburn to regain second place, and he put the pressure on Russell in an attempt to retake the lead. The duo swapped the lead position back and forth multiple times in the second half of the seven-lap race, but Mullins fell out of the hunt for the win when he was forced to pit late in the race due to a handguard malfunction, and that let Russell was able to extend his lead and easily claim his fifth straight victory of the season.
“The dirt was great and it had good traction,” Russell said. “For a track up north, I couldn’t believe how well it managed the rain, I was pretty pumped once I got out there! We’re just taking it race by race [for the championship]. Charlie has been riding really good this year and so have the rest of the guys so it’s going to be a tough next couple of rounds for sure.”
Mullins’ runner-up finish still netted valuable points toward the championship. He now sits seven points behind Russell with two rounds remaining in the 2013 season.
“It was an okay day today, but I felt like I made a lot of mistakes,” Mullins said. “Kailub and I went back and forth a couple times and I felt like we had a good pace going out there,” Mullins said. “I got out of here with some okay points and I’m healthy to go to Italy, and then we’ll come back strong for Ohio.”
DuVall overcame issues early in the race to charge past Ashburn and land the final podium position in the XC1 Pro class.
“I’m happy with third, but it’s just one of those days where I wish I could have done better,” DuVall said. “I wanted to come out of here healthy and on the podium before heading to the ISDE and that’s what I did.”
Ashburn wasn’t able to hold off the hard-charging Duvall for a podium finish but he did match his season best finish of fourth overall for the day, while Strang rounded out the top five overall.
The XC2 Pro Lites class win came down to F.A.R Husqvarna’s Andrew Delong and DirtWise Schools/KTM-Parts.com/Maxxis rider Jason Thomas, as the two battled back and forth for most of the race. After Ryan Echols claimed the $100 DigitalOffroad.com Holeshot Award, Delong grabbed the early lead, followed by the hard-charging Thomas, who elected to race a KTM 125 two-stroke in the race. It seemed to work for Thomas, as he dogged Delong for the lead and actually took it just before the halfway point. Delong reclaimed the lead on lap five, however, and he held it to claim his second consecutive XC2 Pro Lites win and a fifth-place finish overall. Thomas finished second in XC2, just over a minute behind Delong.
“Today it was all about the person who made the least mistakes,” Delong said. “It was really technical out there and I had trouble getting into the groove at the beginning but when I started finding my flow, I got my speed up and then I had a good time riding. It was a blast today!”
Ohio’s Scott Grills ran inside the top five all day, carding his second straight podium appearance with a third-place finish in XC2.
North Carolina’s Trevor Bollinger won the 4 Stroke A Lites Class and also secured the Top Amateur Award with 13th overall for the day. Factory FMF/KTM’s Maria Forsberg once again topped the AM Overall win after a hard-fought battle through time adjustment with off-road racing legend Jeff Fredette, who finished about 40 seconds behind Forsberg to take second overall and first place in the Silver Masters (55+) class. Third place overall went to West Virginia native Coalton Cupp, who claimed first place in the 250 C Class. FMF/RPM/KTM’s Kacy Martinez finished second in the Women’s Class, while Sarah Baldwin rounded out the top three in the Women’s Class division.
North Carolina’s Braxton McGee topped the Youth Overall podium, besting his biggest opponent in the Super Mini (14-15) Class, South Carolina’s Cole Mattison, who finished second overall for the day. Indiana’s Vincent Smith secured the victory in the Super Mini (12-13) Class while taking third overall for the day.
The 2013 AMSOIL Grand National Cross Country Series heads to St. Clairsville, Ohio on October 12 and 13 for the ITP Powerline Park GNCC. For more information on the series, please visit www.gnccracing.com.
Car-Mate Gusher GNCC
RiverStone Estate
Foxburg, Pensylvania
Results: September 22, 2013
Round 11 of 13
XC1 Pro
1. Kailub Russell-KTM
2. Charlie Mullins-KTM
3. Thad DuVall-Hon
4. Jordan Ashburn-Yam
5. Josh Strang-Kaw
6. Chris Bach-KTM
7. Takeshi Koikeda-Hon
8. Adam Bonneur-Kaw
9. Rory Mead-KTM
10. Mark Fortner-Bet
*Overall National Championship Standings
1. Kailub Russell-280
2. Charlie Mullins-273
3. Chris Bach-177
4. Thad DuVall-161
5. Josh Strang-158
6. Grant Baylor-129
7. Paul Whibley-127
8. Jordan Ashburn-124
9. Jason Thomas-119
10. Andrew DeLong-93
*Indicates that the Overall National Championship Standings will determine the 2013 National Champion.
XC2 Pro Lites
1. Andrew DeLong-Hus
2. Jason Thomas-KTM
3. Scott Grills-Kaw
4. Shane Hufford Jr.-KTM
5. Grant Baylor-KTM
6. Chris Douglas-Hus
7. Sam Evans-KTM
8. Nick Davis-Hus
9. Ryan Lojak-Yam
10. Zach Love-KTM
XC2 Pro Lites Series Standings
1. Grant Baylor-243
2. Jason Thomas-215
3. Andrew DeLong-181
4. Shane Hufford Jr.-149
5. Scott Grills-118
6. Travis Coy-106
7. Samuel Evans-105
8. Layne Michael-104
9. AJ Stewart-102
10. Chris Douglas-101
About GNCC Racing
The AMSOIL Grand National Cross Country series 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 1,500 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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