Russell Celebrates 25th Career Win at Steele Creek

Cycle News Staff | March 30, 2015
Kailub Russell

Kailub Russell took his third consecutive win of the season at the FMF Steele Creek GNCC in North Carolina. Photograhy by Ken Hill

The 16th running of the FMF Steele Creek GNCC took place on Sunday at the beautiful Steele Creek Campground, where Kailub Russell saw his third straight victory of the 2015 AMSOIL Grand National Cross Country Series presented by Maxxis, an AMA National Championship. Russell extended his points lead in the XC1 Pro class to earn his 25th career win in front of a hometown crowd in Morganton, North Carolina.

N-Fab AmPro Yamaha’s Jordan Ashburn put himself into the early lead after grabbing the $250 All Balls Racing Holeshot Award but Russell quickly made his way to the front on the opening lap. The two-time GNCC National Champion created a gap on the rest of the field early on, leaving the field behind him to once again battle for second place.

AirGroup/Rockstar Energy/Husqvarna’s Ryan Sipes jumped into second on the opening lap, with Ashburn and his AmPro teammate Daniel Milner right in the mix. Rocky Mountain ATV/MC KR4/FAR’s Thad DuVall also put himself into a favorable position off the start, positioning his Rocky Mountain ATV/MC KR4/FAR Husqvarna with the front-runners early on to engage in a battle for the podium.

Start of the Steele Creek GNCC

Jordan Ashburn (3) grabs the holeshot off the start of the XC1 class. Photography by Ken Hill

Eventual second-place finisher Josh Strang had another consistent performance, but definitely had his work cut out for him after getting tangled with another rider just after the start. The Rockstar Energy Husqvarna Factory Racer got knocked to the back of the pack, but set to work making his way back up through the pack.

JCR Honda’s Chris Bach made an early run for the podium, but it was DuVall who surpassed both him and Ashburn to take over second place as the race neared its halfway mark. Strang had successfully navigated his way through the pack by that point, and joined DuVall in what turned out to be an exciting battle between the two Husqvarnas.

Russell kicked it into high gear in the final moments of the seven-lap race as the Factory FMF/KTM rider finished over two and a half minutes ahead of Strang, who came in second. DuVall finished just twenty seconds behind Strang to round out the top three overall for the day.

XC1 Pro rookie Grant Baylor made a jump in the championship standings on Sunday with an impressive come-from-behind performance to land fourth overall. Baylor began the day just outside the top ten as he pushed his way through the pack all afternoon, ultimately landing just outside the overall podium in his third full-time race in the premier class. Baylor’s AmPro Yamaha teammate Jordan Ashburn was able to maintain his top-five running from the afternoon, securing fifth overall.

Steele Creek GNCC podium

XC1 Podium: (left) Josh Strang, Kailub Russell, (right) Thad DuVall. Photography by Ken Hill

The XC2 Pro Lites battle heated up at the third round as DirtWise/Maxxis/KLIM’s Jason Thomas emerged victorious. Thomas began the day with the $100 Hot Cams XC2 Pro Lites Holeshot Award and the early lead in the class. Thomas had early competition from the usual suspects like Rocky Mountain ATV/MC KR4/FAR’s Nick Davis and Moto-Tech/KTM’s Trevor Bollinger, but as the race wore on the top three began to spread out.

Thomas and Davis came together about halfway through the race, causing both riders to go down just after the finish line. With Bollinger in the lead, RideMPS.com/AMSOIL/Honda’s Layne Michael made his way past the downed riders for second, and the lead duo got back up and began charging once again.

However, Davis ran into a mechanical issue that would ultimately remove him from the race and any chance at salvaging points. Thomas went on to capture his second straight XC2 victory of the season, with Michael holding on for second and Bollinger, a Morganton, North Carolina native, capturing a third-place finish in front of his home crowd.

The 1 p.m. race was broadcast LIVE in its entirety on RacerTV.com and can be viewed as an archived video now online by visiting the GNCC LIVE page on RacerTV.com.

The 2015 AMSOIL Grand National Cross Country Series resumes April 11 and 12 with the VP Racing Fuels Big Buck GNCC in Union, South Carolina.

 

XC1 Event Results:

1. Kailub Russell (KTM)

2. Josh Strang (HSQ)

3. Thad DuVall (HSQ)

4. Grant Baylor (YAM)

5. Jordan Ashburn (YAM)

6. Steward Baylor (KTM)

7. Daniel Milner (YAM)

8. Russell Bobbitt (KTM)

9. Ryan Sipes (HSQ)

10. Tyler Medaglia (HSQ)

 

GNCC Overall Points Standings:

1. Kailub Russell (90/3 wins)

2. Josh Strang (75)

3. Thad DuVall (60)

4. Grant Baylor (44)

5. Jordan Ashburn (44)

6. Jason Thomas (38)

7. Chris Bach (37)

8. Nick Davis (28)

9. Tyler Medaglia (26)

10. Craig DeLong (25)

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