GNCC Racing - AMSOIL Hoosier: Motorcycle Race Report
by: Kayla Bolton
TimeMonday, May 8, 2023 | 12:55 PM
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
AMSOIL Hoosier: Motorcycle Race Report
Six Races, Six Different Winners as Girroir Earns Overall Win
CRAWFORDSVILLE, Ind. (May 8, 2023) – The Grand National Cross Country Series presented by Specialized, an AMA National Championship (GNCC Racing) saw completely different conditions on day two of the AMSOIL Hoosier event. The rain fell overnight causing muddy, slick conditions on Sunday morning, but as the sun came out throughout the afternoon hours the mud was becoming tacky for the afternoon racers.
When the XC1 Open Pro class took off it was Magna1 Motorsports/Husqvarna’s Jordan Ashburn earning the $250 All Balls Racing XC1 Holeshot Award. The battles were on throughout the duration of the race. Rocky Mountain ATV*MC/Tely Energy KTM’s Steward Baylor would hold the early lead, but Ashburn would take over the lead on lap three and hold it for the next couple of laps. Unfortunately, a mechanical issue would take him out of the running on the fourth lap.
Baylor would once again take over the lead, but he would have company from both FMF/KTM Factory Racing riders, Ben Kelley and Jonathan Girroir. As the two-lap card came out it would be Girroir leading the way with Baylor and Kelley running second and third. Girroir would continue to push throughout the last lap and come through to earn his first-ever overall XC1 Open Pro win, making him the sixth different winner in six races.
Baylor would come through to earn second overall on the day, while Kelley would hold on for third in the XC1 class and fifth overall as Witkowski and Draper of the XC2 class would finish third and fourth overall on the day.
Rockstar Energy Husqvarna Factory Racing’s Craig DeLong would battle back-and-forth throughout the day to earn fourth in the XC1 class. DeLong would start back in fifth on the first lap and fall as far back as sixth for the next couple of laps. As the race wore on, DeLong continued to push forward to make his way up to fourth for the final three laps.
Earning fifth in XC1 at the sixth round was Babbitt’s Online/Monster Energy/Kawasaki Team Green’s Josh Strang. Strang would have his work cut out for him as he started back in seventh for the first half of the race. Strang would make his way to fifth on the sixth lap of the race and remain there for the remainder of the day.
After a great start to the day, AmPro Yamaha’s Ricky Russell found himself up in third and second for the first couple of laps. Unfortunately, right after the halfway point of the race Russell would fall back to sixth and remain there until the checkered flag flew.
Ashburn would suffer a mechanical issue after running at the front of the pack, and ultimately be scored seventh in the XC1 class, as Babbitt’s Online/Monster Energy/Kawasaki Team Green’s Grant Baylor was able to earn eighth in the XC1 class after only being able to battle for two laps in Indiana.
As the XC2 250 Pro line took off it was Liqui Moly Beta Factory Racing’s Jonathan Johnson grabbing the $250 XC2 Steel City Men’s Clinic Holeshot Award. It wouldn’t take long for Phoenix Racing Honda’s Michael Witkowski and AmPro Yamaha’s Liam Draper to get to the front of the pack and battle for that lead position. Witkowski would hold that number one spot on the opening lap, but Draper would soon make the pass for the lead and hold it for the majority of the race.
However, on the last lap of the race Witkowski would maneuver around Draper when a lapped rider was unable to get out of their way. Witkowski would cross the line .953 seconds ahead of Draper to earn his first XC2 win of the season. Draper would earn second on the day in Indiana. Phoenix Racing Honda’s Cody Barnes would round out the top three XC2 finishers as he made his way into third at the halfway point.
In the FMF XC3 125 Pro-Am it was FXR/X Brand Goggles/6D Helmet’s Dakoda Devore leading the majority of the race and crossing the finish line first to earn his first XC3 win of the season. Liqui Moly Beta Factory Racing’s Jason Lipscomb would battle with Devore for some part of the race, even holding the lead on the second lap of the day. However, Lipscomb would be unable to make another run for the lead as he came through three minutes behind Devore to earn second.
After a good start to the day by earning the $100 Lojak Cycle Sale’s XC3 Holeshot Award, Beaver Creek Cycles/Bells Electric/Wossner Piston’s Toby Cleveland would find himself having to make a long pit stop to work on the bike and battle back from ninth place on the opening lap. Cleveland would put his head down and push, making his way into third by the time the white flag was flying. Unfortunately, Cleveland would be unable to make a push for the front, but with a consistent finish, he continues to hold the lead in the points.
The Top Amateur honors went to Nicholas DeFeo who finished 16th overall on the day, while Joseph Cunningham came through 17th overall. Bolton Beroth rounded out the Top Amateur podium with a 19th overall finish on the day.
As the WXC line took off it was Trail Jesters KTM Racing’s Korie Steede coming away with the $100 Trail Jesters WXC Holeshot Award to start the day. However, it would not take long for AmPro Yamaha’s Rachael Archer to make the pass for the lead on the opening lap. Archer would put her head down and focus to place a gap over the rest of the field as she crossed the finish line with a six minute lead in the muddy conditions.
After grabbing the holeshot, Steede would find herself battling with GASGAS/Over and Out/RG Factory Racing’s Rachel Gutish for the first couple laps of the race. As the two-lap board came out, Steede would make her way into second and continue to battle on through the conditions for that second place position. Gutish would try to hold onto the third but would face a mechanical that would make her unable to cross the finish line for the fourth and final lap. V3 CDR/Garrison Tree Service/Focus X/Enduro Engineering’s Kayla O’Neill would capitalize as she ran fourth for the majority of the race, coming through unaware that she had earned her first-ever WXC podium finish with third on the day.
Earning the Youth Overall win at the Hoosier was YXC2 Super Mini Jr. competitor, Caleb Wood. This was Wood’s first youth overall win, and his fourth YXC2 class win of the season. Canyon Richards would come through to earn second overall, and first in the YXC1 Super Mini Sr. class. Richards has earned three wins in the YXC1 class after six rounds of racing. Austin Tsakanikas came through to earn third overall in the youth race, and second in the YXC1 class.
Coming through to earn third in the YXC1 class was James Jenkins as Mason Raynor and Jiggs Fustini rounded out the top three in the YXC2 class in Indiana. In the 85 Big Wheel (11-15) class it was Ryder Sigety coming through to earn the class win. Travis Lentz took home his sixth-straight win in the 85 (12-13) class, while Brody Boland earned the 85 (7-11) win.
In the 65 (10-11) class it was Beau Garetson earning the win, with Maverick Boyer taking home the 65 (9) class win. In the 65 (7-8) class, Tripp Lewis came away with the win at round six. Zoey Kimble would earn her first win of the season in the Girls Super Mini (12-16) class, while Sahara Robinson earned her fourth win in the Girls 85 (7-13) class. Earning her second win was Audrina Anello in the Girls 65 (7-11) class, while Crawfordsville’s own Talon Pike came away with the Trail Rider (7-15) class win.
The AMSOIL Moto Hero was awarded to Robbie Hechinger from Brownsburg, Indiana. Robby is a deputy for the Montgomery County Sheriff’s office in Crawfordsville, Indiana and has been on the force since 2014. He has been part of their K9 Unit since 2017, where he works with his K9 partner, Titan, who is an eight year old Belgian Tervuren. Robby has been racing dirt bikes for fun since 1996 and raced in the Warrior class on Sunday morning. Robby helps out at the Shaver family farm, and at their shop, Tom’s Marine Sales. He also works for the sheriff’s department at certain Ironman Raceway events. Robby was awarded a $250 AMSOIL shopping spree, a set of Kanati Truck tires courtesy of GBC, a Columbia Flag and Sign Co. American flag and gift certificate, along with a pair of 100% camo goggles.
The next round of GNCC Racing will take place on May 20-21 in Millfield, Ohio at Sunday Creek Raceway with the seventh round of racing, The Wiseco John Penton GNCC. For more event information, or to buy tickets online and pre-register for the event, click HERE.
Catch GNCC Pro ATV and Motorcycle Racing free via RacerTV.com all season long. Pro ATV Racing starts Saturday’s at 2pm ET, with the exception of Big Buck, Snowshoe and Ironman events where they will start at 1pm ET. GNCC Pro Motorcycle Racing will begin at 1pm ET on Sunday’s. Later in the year GNCC Racing will premiere on MAVTV with event highlight episodes.
For more information on the GNCC series, visit the official website at www.gnccracing.com or call (304) 284-0084. Join the conversation on the series Facebook page, follow us on Twitter and Instagram, and be sure to always hashtag #GNCC.
- Facebook: @gnccracing
- Instagram: @gncc_racing
- Twitter: @gnccracing
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AMSOIL Hoosier Results and Points Standings
Crawfordsville, Indiana
Round 6 of 12
Sunday, May 7, 2023
XC1 Pro Event Results:
- Jonathan Girroir (KTM)
- Steward Baylor Jr. (KTM)
- Benjamin Kelley (KTM)
- Craig DeLong (HQV)
- Josh Strang (KAW)
- Ricky Russell (YAM)
- Jordan Ashburn (HQV)
- Grant Baylor (KAW)
*Overall National Championship Standings:
- Ben Kelley (129)
- Craig DeLong (124)
- Steward Baylor (123)
- Ricky Russell (86)
- Grant Baylor (85)
- Jordan Ashburn (80)
- Josh Strang (79)
- Ruy Barbosa (71)
- Jonathan Girroir (69)
- Cody Barnes (65)
*Indicates that the Overall National Championship Standings will determine the 2023 National Champion.
XC2 250 Pro Event Results:
- Michael Witkowski (HON)
- Liam Draper (YAM)
- Cody Barnes (HON)
- Ruy Barbosa (HON)
- Ryder Lafferty (GAS)
- Jonathan Johnson (BET)
- Angus Riordan (KTM)
- Evan Smith (BET)
- Mason Semmens (KTM)
- Nathaniel Tasha (KTM)
XC2 250 Pro Series Standings:
- Ruy Barbosa (129)
- Cody Barnes (116)
- Angus Riordan (113)
- Ryder Lafferty (112)
- Liam Draper (109)
- Mason Semmens (96)
- Michael Witkowski (91)
- Lyndon Snodgrass (83)
- Evan Smith (82)
- Jonathan Johnson (71)
To get the latest GNCC Racing clothing and merchandise visit https://www.mototees.com.
How to Watch
Racer TV and MAVTV are the official homes for coverage of the Grand National Cross Country (GNCC) events. All 12 rounds, from the season opener in South Carolina to the finale, will air in taped-delayed telecasts on MAVTV, while Racer TV provides live streaming coverage of the 2 p.m. ATV and 1 p.m. motorcycle races from each event. Catch all the action at http://www.mavtv.com/ and http://www.racertv.com/.
About GNCC Racing
The Grand National Cross Country Series presented by Specialized, an AMA National Championship, is the world premier cross country racing series. Founded in 1975, the 12-round motorcycle and ATV championship and 9-round eMTB championship, is produced exclusively by Racer Productions. Cross-country racing is one of the most physically demanding sports in the world. The grueling two and three-hour GNCC races lead as many as 2,800 riders through racetracks 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., Central America, South America, Europe, Japan, Australia and New Zealand. GNCC Racing is televised live on RacerTV.com. For more information, please visit www.gnccracing.com.
About the American Motorcyclist Association
Founded in 1924, the AMA is a not-for-profit member-based association whose mission is to promote the motorcycle lifestyle and protect the future of motorcycling. As the world's largest motorcycling rights and event sanctioning organization, the AMA advocates for riders' interests at all levels of government and sanctions thousands of competition and recreational events every year. The AMA also provides money-saving discounts on products and services for its members. Through the AMA Motorcycle Hall of Fame in Pickerington, Ohio, the AMA honors the heroes and heritage of motorcycling. For more information, visit www.americanmotorcyclist.com. Not a member? Join the AMA today: www.americanmotorcyclist.com/membership/join.
Media Contact:
Kayla Bolton
(304) 284-0084
[email protected]