GNCC Racing

Rockstar Energy Husqvarna Factory Racing's Thad Duvall Claims 2nd While Josh Strang Finishes 5th

Monday, October 30, 2017 | 12:50 PM

The final round of the 2017 GNCC season took place this weekend at Ironman Raceway in Crawfordsville, Indiana. The Rockstar Energy Husqvarna Factory Racing team was met with extremely cold weather, but near perfect course conditions due to the rain and cold temperatures throughout the week. The track was about 13 miles with lap times averaging 29 minutes long for the top contenders.

Rockstar Energy Husqvarna Factory Racing’s Thad Duvall claims second for the day and second overall in the points championship.
Rockstar Energy Husqvarna Factory Racing’s Thad Duvall claims second for the day and second overall in the points championship. Ken Hill

Avidly working on recovering from a previously sustained wrist injury, Thad Duvall would race this round in hopes of securing the second place overall in Championship points. As the start flag waved, Duvall struggled to get going and rounded the first turn around mid-pack where he would stay for the first mile before catching the pack in front of him. He charged forward, ending the first lap in a strong fourth place position. As lap two would down, he had moved into third but had some catching up to do to catch the leaders. By lap four he Duvall made the pass into second and set his sights on catching the leader, however, the gap remained the same until the end. He would finish the day in second, claiming the second place overall points for the 2017 GNCC season! 

“It felt great to take my FX 350 to another podium this weekend after missing the last three rounds due to injury. It’s been a long season of ups and downs, but this was my best season to date. Finishing 2nd overall in championship points is an accomplishment for me, and sets my goals even higher for 2018!” said an excited Thad Duvall.

Rockstar Energy Husqvarna Factory Racing’s Josh Strang finishes in 5th, and 10th overall for the season. 
Rockstar Energy Husqvarna Factory Racing’s Josh Strang finishes in 5th, and 10th overall for the season.  Ken Hill

Rockstar Energy Husqvarna Factory Racing’s Josh Strang had a quick jump off the line and almost claimed the holeshot around the first turn. From there, he worked hard to maintain speed but had dropped back into ninth place. As the race continued, Strang made some moves towards the front and by the final lap, he had moved right outside of the top five. With only four corners left in the race, Strang made a pass on two riders, securing fifth for the day.

Rockstar Energy Husqvarna Factory Racing’s, Pascal Rauchenecker, from the European SuperEnduro team made a guest appearance to race this round in the XC2 class. He rode with a lot of confidence getting a great start, and continuing that speed throughout the day. He would finish first in the XC2 class for the day! 

Rockstar Energy Husqvarna Factory Racing’s Pascal Rauchenecker from Europe claims first in the XC2 class.
Rockstar Energy Husqvarna Factory Racing’s Pascal Rauchenecker from Europe claims first in the XC2 class. Ken Hill

Ironman GNCC Final XC1 Results:

  1. Kailub Russell (KTM)
  2. Thad Duvall (HUS)
  3. Ricky Russell (YAM)
  4. Grant Baylor (HUS)
  5. Josh Strang (HUS) 

GNCC Overall National Championship Standings: 

  1. Kailub Russell (KTM) … 320 points
  2. Thad Duvall (HUS) … 227 points
  3. Ricky Russell (YAM) … 220 points

    10. Josh Strang (HUS) … 130 points