GNCC Round 1 Coverage: Big Buck

Round 1 is in the books.

The Progressive Grand National Cross Country Series (GNCC) presented by Specialized, an AMA National Championship, concluded day one of the season opener on Saturday, February 17, 2024. The VP Racing Fuels Big Buck GNCC saw an immense number of battles throughout the micro, youth, amateur and professional ranks yesterday to kick off the 2024 season.

As the green flag waved on the starting line it would be JMR/GBC/Elka/Moose Racing’ s Jarrod McClure getting his machine started first and into the first corner to earn himself the $250 Kanati Performance Tires XC1 Pro Holeshot Award. However, it would not take long for the defending champion, Phoenix Racing Yamaha’s Brycen Neal long to make his way into the lead. Neal would continue to push forward as the race wore on, extending the gap between himself and the competition to over a minute lead by the time the checkered flag flew.

Action Off-Road/GBC/BNR Motorsports’ Josh Merritt had a great start to the day as he was in contention for that holeshot award, however that would not deter him from battling at the front of the pack to start the season. Merritt would find himself second for the duration of the race, crossing the finish line behind Neal. WFR/GBC/Fly Racing/BNR Motorsports/Yamaha’s Walker Fowler worked his way back from a sixth place start to the day to round out the top three overall and XC1 Pro finishers at the VP Racing Fuels Big Buck GNCC.

Starting the year off strong with a top five finish was McGill Mafia/OBOR Tires/Moose Racing’s Adam McGill who came through to finish fourth overall on the day and in the XC1 class, and rounding out the top five overall finishers on the day was Hunter Hart Racing/Fly Racing/Ithaca Recreation Sport’s Hunter Hart who had to work his way back from an eighth place start on the opening lap of the race.

Action Off-Road/GBC/Houser’s Wyatt Wilkin found himself running ninth on the first lap so he would put his head down and push forward. Wilkin would end up making the necessary passes to finish sixth overall on the day. After earning the holeshot, McClure would be unable to hold onto the lead for long as Neal was hungry for that number one spot. McClure would continue to battle for the duration of the race, ultimately crossing the line seventh overall.

XC1 Pro rookie, BNR Motorsports/Fearless/Kenda Tires’ Steven Harrell would battle back and forth for the entire race, as he tried to work his way up from a mid-pack start to the day. Harrell would be unable to make up time and would eventually cross the line eighth on the day. Action Off-Road/AMSOIL/CB Racing’s Chris Borich and Action Off-Road/Maxxis/Fly Racing/Lonestar’s Austin Abney continued to race for the entire two-hours as they worked themselves into the top 10 overall finishing positions. On the final lap, Borich would make the pass for ninth overall while Abney would follow and make the pass to hold tenth overall on the day.

As the XC2 Pro-Am class took off it would be BNR Motorsports/Pierce Performance/GBC Tire’s Alex Thieman earning the $100 BNR Motorsports XC2 Holeshot Award to start his day. Thieman would have some competition from Phoenix Racing Yamaha’s Grayson Eller as Eller made the pass for the lead on the opening lap. Thieman would put his head down and push, making the move once again around Eller. Thieman would continue to hold the number one spot for the rest of the day, crossing the finish line with a 30 second lead. Eller would continue to battle, but would be unable to make another push for the lead as he came through second to start the season. Action Off-Road/Pierce Performance/Guts Racing’s James Glauda battled back and forth from the third to fourth place position for the duration of the race. Glauda would make a last lap pass for the final podium spot, crossing the line with just a little over 6 seconds separating the him and fourth.

Earning the Top Amateur honors in the afternoon race was Brody Lee who finished 21st overall and first in the College A (16-18) class. Kevin Yoho would come through 25th overall to grab second on the Top Amateur podium, as he also earned the win in Vet A (28+). Ty McGaughey would round out the Top Amateur podium as he finished 26th overall and second in College A (16-18).

As the 4×4 Pro line took off it would be Braden Reed capturing the BNR Motorsports 4×4 Pro Holeshot Award, but it wouldn’t take long for the defending champion to make his way around Reed and into the lead. Kenda/KMK/Ryco Electric’s Cody Collier would continue to hold the number one spot for the duration of the race, crossing the line to earn the first win in 4×4 Pro for the 2024 season. Pro Row 784/TMS/Edgewood/DeRisi Racing’s Brandon Frazier would continue to push for the entire race, but would be unable to make a pass stick on Collier. Frazier would finish second in the class and overall. SBR/Action Off-Road/DeRisi/HMF’s Haedyn Mickelson would also have a consistent race as he came through third on the opening lap, and would hold that position until he crossed the finish line at the end of the race.

Cole Lykins would come through to finish fourth overall on the day from the 250 All-Star (14-17) class, as he also earned his class win to kick off the 2024 season.

As the WXC racers took off it was Elioff Racing/BNR Motorsports/GBC Tire’s Jessica Elioff getting a jump off the line and earning herself the BNR Motorsports WXC Holeshot Award. However, she would have to battle JMR/Action Off-Road/GBC/Moose Racing’s Katelyn Osburn for the first couple of laps. Elioff would be able to make the move back into the lead on lap three and hold that position until she reached the finish line and saw the checkered flag, earning the first WXC win of the 2024 season.

Osburn Off-Road/Pierce Performance/Moose Racing’s Chloe Harper would find herself back in third for the majority of the race, but would make a pass for second as the two-lap board was out. Harper would be able to push until the finish line, coming through to earn second at the opening round in South Carolina. Hurricane Hannah/Fly Racing/OBOR Tires/HMF’s Hannah Hunter did not get the start to the day she hoped for as she came around sixth on the opening lap. Hunter would put her head down and continue to battle for the duration of the race. As the checkered flag flew, Hunter would come through to finish in the final podium position with a third in WXC.

The second round of the 2024 Progressive GNCC Racing Series will take place on March 2 and 3, 2024 in Palatka Florida with the Moose Racing Wild Boar GNCC at Hog Waller Mud Bog and ATV Park. ATVs and Micros race on Saturday and Motorcycles take to the course on Sunday. For more information on the Moose Racing Wild Boar GNCC, click HERE. To purchase online admission tickets for the event, visit https://www.tixr.com/groups/gnccracing.

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

VP Racing Fuels Big Buck Results and Points Standings
Union, South Carolina
Round 1 of 13
Saturday, February 17, 2024

XC1 Pro Event Results (Top 10):

Brycen Neal (YAM)
Joshua Merritt (YAM)
Walker Fowler (YAM)
Adam McGill (HON)
Hunter Hart (YAM)
Wyatt Wilkin (YAM)
Jarrod McClure (HON)
Steven Harrell (YAM)
Chris Borich (YAM)
Austin Abney (YAM)

*Overall National Championship Standings (Top 10):

Brycen Neal (30)
Joshua Merritt (25)
Walker Fowler (21)
Adam McGill (18)
Hunter Hart (16)
Wyatt Wilkin (15)
Jarrod McClure (14)
Steven Harrell (13)
Chris Borich (12)
Austin Abney (11)
*Indicates that the Overall National Championship Standings will determine the 2024 National Champion.

XC2 Pro-Am Event Results (Top 10):

Alex Thieman (YAM)
Grayson Eller (YAM)
James Glauda (YAM)
Tavin Cook (YAM)
Braxton Grosse (HON)
Tanner Walker (YAM)
Danick Paquin (YAM)
Dylan Walraven (YAM)
Alex Elioff (YAM)
Kenny Shick (YAM)
XC2 Pro-Am Series Standings (Top 10):

Alex Thieman (30)
Grayson Eller (25)
James Glauda (21)
Tavin Cook (18)
Braxton Grosse (16)
Tanner Walker (15)
Danick Paquin (14)
Dylan Walraven (13)
Alex Elioff (12)
Kenny Shick (11)

4×4 Pro Event Results (Top 10):

Cody Collier (CAN)
Brandon Frazier (CAN)
Haedyn Mickelson (CAN)
Branson Solesbee (CAN)
Braden Reed (CAN)
Jordan Phillips (CAN)
Austin J Parks (POL)
Robert M Smith (CAN)
Kaden Wharff (CAN)
Gavin Jenkins (CAN)

4×4 Pro Series Standings (Top 10):

Cody Collier (30)
Brandon Frazier (25)
Haedyn Mickelson (21)
Branson Solesbee (18)
Braden Reed (16)
Jordan Phillips (15)
Austin J Parks (14)
Robert M Smith (13)
Kaden Wharff (12)
Gavin Jenkins (11)

WXC Event Results (Top 10):

Jessica Elioff (YAM)
Chlow Harper (YAM)
Hannah D Hunter (YAM)
Katelyn Osburn (HON)
Andrea Rodgers (YAM)
Makenna Bruderly (YAM)
Morgam Solesbee (YAM)
Malia Crump (YAM)
Tori L Fryer (YAM)
Emily Wise (YAM)

WXC Pro Series Standings (Top 10):

Jessica Elioff (30)
Chlow Harper (25)
Hannah D Hunter (21)
Katelyn Osburn (18)
Andrea Rodgers (16)
Makenna Bruderly (15)
Morgam Solesbee (14)
Malia Crump (13)
Tori L Fryer (12)
Emily Wise (11)