Shan Moore | August 26, 2019
Grant Baylor is on a roll. No one has been able to stop him in the last two rounds of the 2019 Kenda AMA National Enduro Championship, presented by Moose Racing. After winning Little Racoon National Enduro in Wellston, Ohio, August 25, the Tely Energy Racing KTM rider now has back-to-back wins and three wins in the last four rounds. But more impressively, he also has won all six tests in the last two rounds. That’s 12 test wins in a row! A national enduro record no doubt.
Grant Baylor Tops Little Racoon National Enduro
Grant took control of this weekend’s race by winning the opening test of the day by six seconds ahead of his brother and teammate Steward Baylor. Grant would stretch his lead with each successive test until he finished the race with a 1:30.312-minute advantage over Steward for the win.
Steward has been solid and fast, finishing second in three of the last four rounds, with a win two rounds ago in Georgia. He still holds a 36-point lead in the series standings with four rounds remaining, but with his brother running away with the rounds, his main focus has switched to the championship.
Evan Smith managed to sneak a peek into the top two when he beat Steward in the fifth test of the day. However, the Husqvarna/ Max Motorsports/FXR Racing-backed Georgian took a nasty crash in the final test and rounded out the podium in third.
After struggling through a couple of races, GasGas North America’s Thorn Devlin put together an impressive performance to finish fourth.
Rounding out the top five was Beta USA’s Mike Witkowski.
Tely Energy Racing KTM’s Liam Draper was nursing a cracked pelvis from a crash at the Tennessee Knockout the previous week, but still managed sixth overall and first in the NE Pro2 division.
Former national enduro winner and extreme off-road ace Nick Fahringer brought his Sherco in for seventh overall. Meanwhile, Tely Energy Racing KTM’s Ron Commo III grabbed eighth just 2.841 seconds ahead of Alex Teagarden (Hsq). Commo and Teagarden also finished second and third, respectively, in the NE Pro2 class.
Michael Pilar was 10th overall and first in the AA class on a Yamaha.
Amazingly, eight-time National Enduro Champ Mike Lafferty rode a KTM 790 Adventure R to 10th overall in the AA class.
The Women’s Elite race was a battle between Mepmx/Fly/Grizzly Peak/Traveler’s Rest Speedway/KTM’s Mackenzie Tricker and Rockstar Energy/Husqvarna/Moose Husqvarna’s Tayla Jones, with Tricker getting the win by 9.880 seconds ahead of Jones.
Kelsey Pacholke finished third on a Husqvarna.
2019 Kenda AMA National Enduro Championship, presented by Moose Racing
Round 6
Wellston, Ohio
Little Racoon National
Results: August 25, 2019
OVERALL
- Grant Baylor (KTM)
- Steward Baylor (KTM)
- Evan Smith (Hus)
- Thorn Devlin (GG)
- Mike Witkowski (Bet)
- Liam Draper (KTM)
- Nick Fahringer (She)
- Ron Commo III (KTM)
- Alex Teagarden (Hus)
- Michael Pillar (Yam)