Josh Strang wins his first GNCC of the season at the Unadilla Valley Sports Complex, but the injured Kailub Russell toughs it out and takes the title.
Rockstar Energy Husqvarna Factory Racing’s Josh Strang earned his first win of the 2015 AMSOIL Grand National Cross Country Series (GNCC) at the Parts Unlimited GNCC at the legendary Unadilla Valley Sports Complex on Sunday, but Factory FMF KTM’s Kailub Russell clinched his third consecutive GNCC title.
Strang got off to the right start in the race when he pulled the holeshot in the XC1 class, but AirGroup/Rockstar Energy/Husqvarna’s Ryan Sipes kept Strang close while staving off a challenge by Rocky Mountain ATV/MC KR4/FAR’s Thad Duvall, who moved up to make it a three-rider battle for the lead on the second lap. Sipes was able to maintain the lead to the finish to claim the victory.
“I’ve never won at this track, and it was good to get my first win here,” Strang said. “The track is rough and fast, but it can get frustrating with the lapped riders. Of course that’s all part of GNCC Racing, and having the high rider turnout is good for our sport.”
Sipes and Duvall swapped second place numerous times, with Duvall ultimately taking the second overall and Sipes third overall.
“Anytime I get to race I have fun, but especially today,” Duvall said. “Ryan and I have become pretty good friends the last few weeks during our time in Slovakia [at the 90th International Six Days Enduro], and racing against someone that I knew I could trust was just awesome.”
Although Russell suffered a torn ACL at the ISDE, he came to Unadilla anyway, knowing that he only needed fifth place or better to land the title. In a gritty performance, Russell managed to fourth and clinch the title with three rounds remaining.
“I wasn’t sure how I was going to feel on the bike, because anything can happen to make my injury worse,” Russell said. “It took me about an hour and half to feel like I had warmed up and get my momentum going.”
Rockstar Energy Husqvarna Factory Racing;s Andrew Delong rode a consistent race finished fifth overall, ahead of JCR Honda’s Chris Bach, who finished disappointing sixth after running in fourth for most of the race. N-Fab AmPro Yamaha’s Grant Baylor rode to a seventh-place finish in XC1 and ninth overall for the day, followed by Canada’s Tyler Medaglia.
Rocky Mountain ATV/MC KR4/FAR’s Nick Davis, who represented Team USA on the Junior World Trophy team at the ISDE, grabbed the XC2 holeshot and tried to get away from DirtWise/Maxxis/KLIM’s Jason Thomas, but Thomas was able to run down Davis and take the class lead. Davis’ suffered a miscue that cost him two more positions, but he quickly found his rhythm again and was able to move back into the class lead. Thomas was forced to pull off a last-lap charge, but he was able to pass Davis again and take the win.
“I didn’t really take a summer break, because I’ve been busy racing local races and training,” Thomas said. “The lappers didn’t affect me today because the local series I’ve been racing has a lot of riders and a short loop, which is very similar to here at Unadilla.”
After being slowed early in the race when barbed wire wrapped up in his rear wheel, E & H Honda’s Trevor Bollinger put on an impressive charge to work his way up from 20th on the first lap to finish in third place.
Factory FMF/KTM backed Kacy Martinez continued her dominance of the WXC class, winning the race by an impressive 3 minutes. Rocky Mountain ATV*MC/KR4/FAR teammates Sarah Baldwin and Brooke Cosner finished second and third respectively.
The AMSOIL GNCC tour makes its next stop in Central City, Pennsylvania, October 3-4 for the Car-Mate Mountain Ridge GNCC.
2015 AMSOIL Grand National Cross Country Series
Parts Unlimited Unadilla GNCC
Unadilla Valley Sports Complex
New Berlin, New York
Results: September 20, 2015 (Round 10 of 13)
XC1
1. Josh Strang-Hus
2. Thad DuVall-Hus
3. Ryan Sipes-Hus
4. Kailub Russell-KTM
5. Andrew DeLong-Hus
6. Chris Bach-Hon
7. Grant Baylor-Yam
8. Tyler Medaglia-Hus
9. Jordan Ashburn-Yam
10. Cory Buttrick-Bet
2015 AMSOIL GNCC Series Overall National Championship Standings (After 10 of 14 rounds)
1. Kailub Russell-283*
2. Grant Baylor-173
3. Thad Duvall-170
4. Chris Bach-159
5. Josh Strang-148
6. Ryan Sipes-143
7. Jordan Ashburn-120
8. Jason Thomas-117
9. Ricky Russell-87
10. Trevor Bollinger-82
*Clinched 2015 AMSOIL GNCC National Championship
XC2
1. Jason Thomas-KTM
2. Nick Davis-Hus
3. Trevor Bollinger-Hon
4. Ricky Russell-Yam
5. Jesse Groemm-Bet
6. Craig Delong-Hus
7. Scott Grills-Yam
8. Benjamin Kelley-KTM
9. Dylan Macritchie-KTM
10. Ryder Lafferty-Hus
2015 AMSOIL GNCC XC2 Class Points Standings (After 10 of 13 rounds)
1. Jason Thomas-252
2. Ricky Russell-176
3. Craig Delong-170
4. Trevor Bollinger-164
5. Nick Davis-150
6. Layne Michael-142
7. Tegan Temple-122
8. Cory Buttrick-122
9. Austin Lee-105
10. Callan May-94
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