Polaris Industries Inc. (NYSE: PII), the leading manufacturer of off-road vehicles (ORVs), today announced a partnership with the Grand National Cross Country Series (GNCC) to sponsor GNCC’s newly-added Single Seat Class.

In January 2014, Polaris introduced the revolutionary 32 horsepower, single-seat Polaris ACE which was designed to combine the size and nimble handling of a Sportsman All-Terrain Vehicle (ATV) with the confidence and comfort of RANGER and RZR side-by-sides. The vehicle generated so much interest that six months later, the company introduced a second model with a 45 horsepower ProStar™ 570 engine. The ACE architecture appealed to a wide-variety of riders, including racers, which was demonstrated last fall when GNCC and Polaris offered an exhibition ACE Editor’s Race at the Ironman, in Crawfordsville, Indiana.

“GNCC is excited to introduce the Single Seat Class into our racing format,” said GNCC Director Tim Cotter. “When Polaris commits to something, they commit 100 percent and we have no doubt that the ACE is destined to be a main stay in off-road.”

The GNCC Single Seat Class will be available for single seat production models up to 570ccs, and engine and suspension modifications will be permitted. The vehicles will race on the UTV course but in a separate race from the UTVs.

“ACE inspires confidence, is comfortable and is incredibly capable making it a great option for the beginner racer, as well as a fun platform for the more experienced,” said Donna Beadle, race team manager for Polaris. “GNCC races offer the type of terrain where ACE shines and we look forward to working with them to promote the class.”

As part of the sponsorship, Polaris is offering racer discounts on select ACE vehicles to those racers who raced any vehicle in at least half of the races of a qualifying racing series in 2014, and intend to race full 2015 season in the Single Seat Class. For all other racers, Polaris will offer their Reimbursement Program for new 2014 or 2015 ACEs purchased after Sept. 1, 2014. Racers interested in this program will receive a $1000 reimbursement at the end of the season as long as they competed in more than half of the qualifying events. The reimbursement will be limited to the first 50 qualified submissions. More information and complete rules about Polaris’ Racer Discount and Reimbursement Programs can be found at www.polarisfactoryracing.com.

The first GNCC Single Seat Race will be at The General, March 14, in Washington, GA.