LIVE! LUCAS OIL OFF-ROAD BAJA RACING - Estero Beach May 19-21, 2017

  Racing Results CLICKY***Via  Satellite at Estero Beach Resort -Bahia de Ensenada, BAJA-MEXICO'! 

KING of BAJA Estero Beach ShortCourse 2017 LIVE! 

 

   Via  Satellite at Bahia de Ensenada, BAJA-MEXICO'! 


Sunday Results;
 Pro 4 Unlimited

In the four wheel drive ranks, yesterday’s winner Kyle LeDuc sped into the early lead in the #99 Monster Energy/Toyo Tires Ford, chased in earnest by Doug Mittag, Greg Adler, Doug Fortin, and Rob MacCachren. A full course yellow fell on lap four after a rollover in turn seven ended Bradley Morris’ race with right front suspension damage. Another full course yellow followed almost immediately, as contact between Adrian Cenni and Eric Barron sent Barron off the track between turns one and two, and Barron sat at the track’s edge in hopes of getting another yellow thrown so that he could tack back onto the tail end of the field, rather than losing precious ground as the field drove away from him. Barron got his way, and on the restart lap, MacCachren got by Bryce Menzies out of turn four to move back up to fifth, with Menzies then passing MacCachren back, as well as Fortin, from turns one to two on lap six after Fortin slowed with an issue. Menzies got right up on Adler’s back bumper by the end of the next lap, and got by for third coming out of turn two on lap eight. Menzies then swapped out at the end of the rhythm section on lap nine, forcing Adler out of line, which allowed MacCachren to pass Adler in turn four for fourth. Adler then pulled off with overheating trouble on the next lap, and with on-track debris then forcing a full course yellow, it was now LeDuc, Mittag, Menzies, MacCachren, and RJ Anderson in the top five. Menzies got by Mittag at turn five on the restart lap, but with the two then making repeated contact between turns five and six, Mittag wound up spinning to a stop, broadside to the track, on the landing of the jump into turn seven. Miraculously, nobody hit Mittag, and as his truck was towed off under a full course yellow, Menzies, MacCachren, Anderson, and Barron all moved up to fill spots two through five. On the last lap, Anderson got a great drive out of the final corner, and made it a very close race to the line, with the drivers’ transponders actually showing them in a dead heat! However, MacCachren got the position, and up front, it was LeDuc who got the win and the sweep of the weekend. Menzies was second in the #7 Red Bull/BFGoodrich Tires Ford, with MacCachren third in the #21 Rockstar Energy Drink/Makita Ford, Anderson fourth in the #37 Rockstar Energy Drink/Polaris RZR truck, and Barron fifth in the #32 Icon Vehicle Dynamics/Mickey Thompson Toyota.

Pro 2 Unlimited Starting from the outside of the front row, Jerett Brooks made a cheeky move by chopping across Rob MacCachren’s nose into turn one, allowing him to seize the lead, and he held that lead through the end of the first lap, with Brian Deegan, MacCachren, Bryce Menzies, and Rodrigo Ampudia close behind. Menzies passed MacCachren at turn two to take over third on the second lap in his #7 Red Bull/Discount Tire Ford, before moving right up on Deegan in the same corner on the next lap as Deegan struggled a bit in the corner. Menzies then got by Deegan two corners later to move into second, before showing Brooks a fender in turn five on lap six. Menzies held off on the opportunity to take Brooks out, though, and as the Competition Yellow fell at the end of the lap, it was Brooks, Menzies, Deegan, MacCachren, and Ampudia in the top five. However, on the restart lap, Menzies made quick work of Brooks, getting by with a beautiful pass at turn four to move into the lead. Brooks’ right rear tire then went down coming into turn one on the next lap, forcing him into the Hot Pits for a change, and with MacCachren also pulling off almost immediately afterwards, it was now Menzies, Deegan, Ampudia, RJ Anderson, and Bradley Morris in the top five. Anderson nearly got by Ampudia at turn five on lap nine, but caught a rut and fell back just behind Ampudia once again. On the final lap, Anderson then got into Ampudia’s side pretty hard in turn two, which caused Ampudia to spin and drop to fifth, as both Anderson and Morris got by for third and fourth. Anderson received the black flag as he crossed the finish line, though, dropping him to the back of the lead lap. Up front, Menzies got the big win, ahead of Deegan in the #38 Monster Energy/Mickey Thompson Ford in second. After Anderson’s black flag, Morris took third in the #24 K&N/Kicker Ford, with Ampudia fourth in the #36 Monster Energy/Papas & Beer Ford, and Jeremy McGrath fifth in the #2 Maxxis Tires/Traxxas truck.

Pro Lite Unlimited After a very tough break yesterday, Ryan Beat was looking for redemption today, and would certainly have a good shot at it thanks to a pole starting position. Beat put that starting spot to good use, leading the way in his #51 Rockstar Energy Drink/Bilstein Shock Absorbers Chevrolet at the end of lap one, ahead of Jerett Brooks, Brock Heger, Hailie Deegan, and Christopher Polvoorde. Polvoorde over-rotated in turn two on the second lap, and Cole Mamer went off to the inside of the track with him, all of which allowed Ronnie Anderson to move up to fifth in the #52 Walker Evans Racing/South Point Chevrolet. From here, the top five drivers held their positions up to the Competition Yellow, which fell at the end of lap five. After the restart, Brooks moved up to put a serious challenge on Beat by the early part of lap seven, before a full course caution at the end of lap eight put a pause on the action after Ray Griffith had rolled over. Beat’s and Brooks’ battling had allowed Heger to close in on them in the race for the lead prior to the caution flag, but when racing resumed, Beat and Brooks again got away enough to make it more of a two-truck fight for the lead over the final two laps. In each of these last two laps, Beat seemed to struggle with the deep ruts in turn five, which allowed Brooks to gain momentum off the corner. Brooks carried that momentum down to turn seven, where he got very close to Beat on each of the last two laps (he even got alongside Beat’s inside door on lap nine), but each time, Beat managed to pull back ahead as the two sped up to the start/finish line. The two were very evenly matched, but Brooks drove Beat clean, despite several opportunities to take the leader out, and so Beat held off the hard-charging defending champion to grab the win. Brooks was a very close second in the #77 Rigid Industries LED Lighting/General Tire Nissan, while Heger was third in the #12 Icon Vehicle Dynamics/Ultra Xtreme Race Wheels Toyota, Deegan was fourth in the #38 Monster Energy/4 Wheel Parts Toyota, and Anderson was fifth.

Pro Buggy Unlimited Defending champion Darren Hardesty Jr. led the way in Pro Buggy Unlimited at the end of lap one in his #99 Bilstein Shock Absorbers/Racer X Motorsports Alumi Craft, ahead of Bud Ward, Kevin McCullough, Sterling Cling, and Trevor Briska. A full course caution flew at the end of that opening lap after Eliott Watson stopped in turn five, almost certainly in an effort to force that yellow and give himself a bit of extra time to get into the Hot Pits and change his flattened right rear tire. Watson got his way, and did manage to re-join the field on the lead lap, albeit well back, and up front, the top five drivers maintained their positions through laps two and three after the restart. On lap four, McCullough seemed to have popped his car out of gear in turn four, dropping him back to fifth, which allowed Cling and Briska to get past. Debris in turn seven then forced a full course yellow at the end of lap six, and on the restart lap, Watson was on the move, getting all the way up to fourth by the exit of turn two! McCullough still ran fifth, having also passed Briska, and on the following lap, both Watson and McCullough closed right in on Cling in the race for third. McCullough then got by Watson for fourth at turn five, with these three remaining very close on the following lap. On the final lap, McCullough passed Cling down the inside at turn two to grab third spot in his #62 DA8/Stapleton Roofing Foddrill, with Watson then passing Cling at turn four to move into fourth in his #3 Fox Racing Shox/BFGoodrich Tires Alumi Craft. In a last minute twist, Watson then won a surprise drag race to the line with McCullough, snagging third at the last second. Up front, Hardesty Jr. got the win, ahead of Ward in the #17 Ramona Tire/Slime Funco, Watson, McCullough, and Cling in the #77 Cling’s Aerospace/Five One Media Alumi Craft.

 

Saturdays Results;

After a cracking start to the season out in Chandler, AZ, the Lucas Oil Off Road Racing Series, presented by GEICO, has moved its way south for Rounds 3 and 4 of the 2017 championship. In sharp contrast to the desert heat of Chandler, AZ, this weekend finds the series seaside, as the lovely Estero Beach Resort hosts this weekend’s action within walking distance of the beach itself right here in Ensenada, Baja California, México. Drivers love the fast, flowing nature of this very unique track, but everyone fears the gruesome roost that also occurs here, which can instantly black out one’s forward vision, and cause real issues for things like radiators and air cleaners. This track presents a real challenge, and always seems to throw several surprises at the competitors, and today, those rules were no exception.

Pro 4 Unlimited Doug Mittag, driving the ex-Kyle LeDuc “Steelo” truck this season, sped into the early lead of this afternoon’s Pro 4 Unlimited race, ahead of Greg Adler, LeDuc, Carl Renezeder, and Doug Fortin at the end of lap one. On lap two, Fortin got by Renezeder between turns four and five to move up to fourth, with LeDuc also moving up one spot, past Adler, before the end of the lap. Lap five saw RJ Anderson then move past Renezeder at turn two to take over fifth, with the Competition Yellow then falling at the end of the next lap. At this point, Mittag still led the way, with LeDuc, Adler, Fortin, and Anderson rounding out the top five. On the restart lap, Fortin over-rotated at turn four and dropped back several positions, and the surrounding drivers shuffled their running order while trying to get past Fortin. The top three still held station at the end of the lap, but it was now Renezeder and Bryce Menzies in fourth and fifth, with these two then making contact on the next lap, causing Menzies to hit a tractor tire and come to a brief halt. A full course caution fell at the end of the lap when Menzies was still struggling to get moving, and meanwhile, Anderson moved back inside the top five thanks to Menzies’ misfortune. On the restart lap, Mittag landed hard off the jump into turn seven, flattening his right rear tire, and handing the lead to LeDuc in the #99 Monster Energy/Toyo Tires Ford. As Mittag’s pace slowed dramatically, he quickly fell out of the top five, and by the end of lap ten, it was Adler, Rob MacCachren, Eric Barron, and Adrian Cenni who ran behind LeDuc in that top five. On the final lap, MacCachren over-rotated in turn two while trying to miss Adler, who himself was starting to over-rotate, and MacCachren wound up nosed against a tire on the inside of the track. This helped those behind MacCachren to move up, and at the stripe, it was LeDuc who got his maiden win in his new “Evvo” truck, ahead of Adler in the #10 4 Wheel Parts/Odyssey Batteries Ford, Barron in the #32 Icon Vehicle Dynamics/Mickey Thompson Toyota, Adrian Cenni in the #11 Maxxis Tires/King Off-Road Racing Shocks Ford, and Bradley Morris in the #24 K&N/Kicker Ford.

Pro 2 Unlimited With a strong previous record here at Estero Beach, Jeremy McGrath was again looking for success here this afternoon, and he got his effort started the right way, leading the field in his #2 Maxxis Tires/Traxxas truck at the end of lap one. Brian Deegan ran second in the #38 Monster Energy/Mickey Thompson Ford, with RJ Anderson third, Rob MacCachren fourth, and Bryce Menzies fifth. On lap two, Menzies biked in turn one and dropped back to eighth, which promoted local favorite Rodrigo Ampudia to fifth. Patrick Clark, Jerett Brooks, and Menzies then all moved right in behind Ampudia, with Brooks and Menzies then getting by Ampudia at turn two on lap five. Up front, the top three were running very close, and at the Competition Yellow, it was still McGrath in the lead, ahead of Deegan, Anderson in the #37 Rockstar Energy Drink/Polaris RZR truck, MacCachren, and Brooks. After the restart lap, Menzies got past Brooks on the inside at turn two to take over fifth on lap eight, with Deegan then making a beautiful pass on McGrath down the inside at turn five to take over the lead. The top four drivers were now running very close, but when Anderson over-rotated after a little contact with McGrath in turn seven on the next lap, he spun and dropped back. Disaster then struck for Deegan, as a right rear flat severely slowed his pace, and sent him into the Hot Pits for a replacement. McGrath re-assumed the lead, with MacCachren, Menzies, Ampudia, and Anderson now filling out the top five. Anderson got by Ampudia on the inside at turn five for fourth on the penultimate lap, but after that, the top five held their positions. McGrath got the win, making him the third winner in as many rounds here in Pro 2 Unlimited, ahead of MacCachren, Menzies in the #7 Red Bull/Discount Tire Ford, Anderson, and Ampudia in the #36 Monster Energy/Lucas Oil Racing TV Ford.

Pro Lite Unlimited After sweeping the weekend out in Chandler, Brock Heger was once again out front early in his #12 Icon Vehicle Dynamics/Maxxis Tires Toyota, ahead of Ryan Beat, Hailie Deegan, Brandon Arthur, and Christopher Polvoorde at the end of the first lap. These five drivers held their positions over the first four laps, with Heger gradually pulling out a bit of a gap over his pursuers. On lap five, a mistake by Polvoorde allowed Ronnie Anderson to move up and make a pass for fifth in his #52 MavTV/Walker Evans Racing Chevrolet, just ahead of the Competition Yellow. On the restart lap, Arthur rolled in turn four, with Anderson also spinning off into the infield in that same corner. This brought out a full course yellow, and also shuffled the running order, with Jerett Brooks and Ray Griffith now sitting fourth and fifth for the restart. On the restart lap, Deegan and Beat made contact coming out of turn two, which sent Beat off into the infield. Beat was able to re-join the action, albeit well down the running order, and the talented young driver was certainly not happy. Griffith got by Brooks on this same lap, and by the end of the lap, it was still Heger in the lead, with Deegan now second, Griffith third, Brooks fourth, and Anderson fifth. Brooks got back by Griffith after some beating and banging at turn three on lap eight, while just ahead, repeated contact had taken its toll on Deegan, whose truck was now spewing steam from the radiator. Deegan kept her foot in it, though, and her truck made it to the finish, albeit visually quite a bit worse for wear. Griffith fell two spots to fifth on lap nine, and at the checkers, it was Heger who picked up his third consecutive win, ahead of Deegan in the #38 Monster Energy/Mickey Thompson Toyota, Brooks in the #77 Rigid Industries LED Lighting/Bilstein Shock Absorbers Nissan, Anderson, and Griffith in the #53 General Tire Ford.

Pro Buggy Unlimited In the open wheel division, Kevin McCullough came into this weekend looking for redemption after a tough weekend at his home track in Chandler. Winner of three of the four races held here previously, McCullough was again out front early this afternoon, leading the way in his #62 DA8/Stapleton Roofing Foddrill; points leader Eliott Watson ran second, with Darren Hardesty Jr. third, Bud Ward fourth, and Trevor Briska fifth. Briska over-rotated at turn two on the second lap, and unfortunately, Sterling Cling and Brady Whitlock piled into Briska, causing the latter two to suffer race-ending damage. Briska, however, was able to continue, but he’d lost his fifth place, which was now occupied by Matthew Brister. The incident brought out a full course yellow, and after the restart, the top five drivers held their positions through to lap six, when Briska got back inside the top five after passing Brister for fifth. Up front, McCullough was gradually pulling away, while just behind, Watson and Hardesty Jr. were locked in a solid battle for second. Further back, Ward dropped back to seventh, promoting Briska and Brister to fourth and fifth, but after that, the running order within the top five went unchanged. McCullough got a much-needed win, ahead of Watson in the #3 Fox Racing Shox/BFGoodrich Tires Alumi Craft, Hardesty Jr. in the #99 Bilstein Shock Absorbers/Off Road Warehouse Alumi Craft, Briska in the #59 MTRV8/Prolong Super Lubricants Funco, and Brister in the #5 LAT Racing Oils/King Off-Road Racing Shocks Funco.

 


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