Russell takes Unadilla GNCC win, Australia's Strang third
KTM rider Kailub Russell has taken his fourth consecutive AMSOIL Grand National Cross Country race win at Unadilla Raceway in New Berlin.
Aussie Josh Strang took a podium finish at the Unadilla GNCC.
KTM rider Kailub Russell has taken his fourth consecutive AMSOIL Grand National Cross Country race win at Unadilla Raceway in New Berlin.
The 10th of 13 rounds saw close to 2,000 competitors take part, though it was Russell who grabbed the spotlight as he moved into the XC1 series championship lead.
Previous ladder leader Charlie Mullins secured the early holeshot and was quickly joined by fellow KTM rider Jonathan Girroir at the front of the field.
Soon Mullins and Russell would move clear, with Aussie Josh Strang pitting his Rocky Mountain ATV/MC Kawasaking against the Honda of Thad DuVall and KTM of Chris Bach in a contest for third.
While DuVall eventually dropped out of the order with mechanical problems, his placed was quickly filled by Rory Mead, who came from the rear of the top 10 to trouble the podium contenders.
Kiwi Mead made his move but Strang had his measure, re-passing the KTM rider with two laps to go. Strang bought into the leaders’ battle once more, sitting side-by-side with Mullins and Russell into the final series of turns.
Russell had favourable track position and ended the three-hour marathon just ahead of Mullins, with Strang strong in third.
The result reverses the XC1 series lead in favour of Russell, who is now five points clear of Mullins. Strang is third, but a considerable margin off the top two.
Husqvarna rider Andrew DeLong made a solid return from injury to top the XC2 Pro Lites division and take a credible fifth outright in the field.
DeLong moved clear of his closest rivals early on when a number of them became mixed up in a first-turn pileup.
He was joined at the head of the XC2 pack by GEICO Honda motocross frontrunner Zach Osborne, who applied the pressure for the race duration but would ultimately finish second.
Kawasaki rider Scott Grills avoided the chaos and rode a consistent race to lock down third for the race.
Grant Baylor retained the Lites class points lead despite only finishing fourth after he too went down on the opening lap.
He still holds a substantial buffer over second-placed Jason Thomas, who suffered a number of mechanical issues and languished in 22nd for the round.
The GNCC series continues on 21-22 September with the Car-Mate Gusher GNCC, round 11 of 13.
2013 Grand National Cross Country Series
Round 10 – Unadilla
XC1 event results:
1. Kailub Russell
2. Charlie Mullins
3. Josh Strang
4. Rory Mead
5. Jordan Ashburn
6. Jonathan Girroir
7. Chris Bach
8. Ricky Russell
9. Thad DuVall
10. Takeshi Koikeda
XC1 championship standings (after round 10 of 13):
1. Kailub Russell 260
2. Charlie Mullins 255
3. Josh Strang 174
4. Chris Bach 172
5. Thad DuVall 169
6. Paul Whibley 143
7. Jordan Ashburn 139
8. Takeshi Koikeda 125
9. Adam Bonneur 120
10. Rory Mead 119
XC2 event results:
1. Andrew DeLong
2. Zach Osborne
3. Scott Grills
4. Grant Baylor
5. Shane Hufford Jr
6. Jesse Groemm
7. Ian Blythe
8. Jason Klammer
9. Layne Michael
10. Sam Evans
XC2 championship standings (after round 10 of 13):
1. Grant Baylor 227
2. Jason Thomas 190
3. Andrew DeLong 151
4. Shane Hufford Jr 131
5. Layne Michael 104
6. AJ Stewart 102
7. Travis Coy 98
8. Scott Grills 97
9. Zach Nolan 96
10. Michael McGinnis 92
Overall national championship standings:
1. Kailub Russell 250
2. Charlie Mullins 248
3. Chris Bach 163
4. Josh Strang 143
5. Thad DuVall 140
6. Paul Whibley 127
7. Grant Baylor 119
8. Jordan Ashburn 106
9. Jason Thomas 106
10. Andrew DeLong 77
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