Grant Grabs Great Start

Southwick, Mass. ~ Josh Grant is fast. The 19-year-old Team AMSOIL/Chaparral/Honda rider can flat out fly. More importantly, he does from the start of the race and doesn't let off the gas until the checkered flag drops. He's already grabbed two holeshots during the early-goings of the AMA Outdoor Nationals. Heading into round four in Budds Creek, Md. last weekend, all he needed was to get on a podium. Not to worry. He didn't have to wait long. Remember, he's fast.

After four rounds of the world's largest motocross series, Grant has quickly positioned himself as a contender. The young rider has become one of the main competitors in the extremely competitive 125cc class. On any given day, anyone can win a race. That proved true at Budds Creek.

The Maryland track is a rider favorite on the AMA circuit. It's one of the hardest tracks to tame. You never know how it's going to act. The track was in stellar riding condition over the weekend. A mixture of sawdust and sand made for great racing as riders had several lines to choose from. Grant, onboard his Honda CRF250R, was able to find the right line during moto one. After a strong start, the Riverside, Calif. native put in consistent laps and powered his way to a solid fourth place finish.

The second moto would prove to be Grant's official coming out party. He took the confidence from his first run and quickly grabbed the holeshot. He wouldn't let up on the throttle or the competition as he led from start-to-finish for his first career AMA National Moto win. The win also allowed Grant to jump from seventh to third in the overall point standings.

Superstar Kevin Windham also knows a little bit about third place finishes. The Mississippi native rolled into Budds Creek third overall in the point standings. He needed another strong weekend to catch the leaders. K-Dub set the tone for the entire AMSOIL/Chaparral/Honda team by posting two strong finishes on the fast track. Windham grabbed two fourth place finishes on his Honda 450 CRF 4-stroke. His fourth overall for the day meant Windham holds onto third overall in the 250cc point's race.

Round five of the AMA Outdoor Nationals will be held July 2-3 in Buchanan, Mich. You can catch all of the 2005 Motocross Series on the Outdoor Life Network. Last weekend's 250cc race will air on June 25 at 4 p.m. EST and the 125 class on June 30 at 5 p.m. EST.

On The Road Again

Solon Springs, Wis. ~ Brady Smith's short home stand is over and the crew has a little bit of work to do on the #2 Monte Carlo after last weekend's racing. The Solon Springs, Wis. driver started off at his home track in Superior, Wis. on Thursday night in the $5,000 to win PolyDome WDRL Late Model Series.

Smith was working his way to the front of the pack in his heat race when he was nudged, causing the car to spin out. He would have to start at the back of the back on the restart. There was too much ground to cover and not enough time left, meaning Smith had to win his consolation race to transfer into the feature. Smith rolled off 20th for the main and quickly charged his way to the front. The young late model driver wound up finishing ninth after the checkered flag had fallen over the field.

The action quickly turned to the Cedar Lake Speedway in New Richmond, Wis. on Friday and Saturday (AMSOIL is the "Official Oil" of the Cedar Lake Speedway). The annual 'Masters' weekend was on tap and a $10,000 payday was on the line each night.

On Saturday, Smith finished one spot out of a transfer position in both his heat race and the consolation event. He was forced to take a provisional and rolled off 23rd for the 50-lap affair. In a race that featured only one caution flag, Smith showed off his speed and advanced all the way up to the ninth position.

Smith enjoyed a much better racecar in Saturday's portion of the 'Masters', but his finish was not indicative of that. He ran second in his heat race, but was involved in a lap one incident when outside pole sitter Justin Fegers spun out in front of the field. Smith was caught up in the incident and was forced to retire his racecar for the evening. He wound up 23rd in the final rundown.

"We had a pretty decent car all weekend, but lady luck was not on our side,"
said Smith. "We got tapped in our heat at Superior on Thursday and that put us in a hole for the rest of the night. Then on Friday at Cedar Lake, we could have used a few more cautions to help us get to the front. On Saturday, I felt like we had a great car, but got wrecked on the first lap. Those things happen, but it would have been nice to post a solid finish in front of all the great fans at Cedar Lake. Hopefully, our string of bad luck will end and we can run up front this weekend."

The Brady Smith Racing team will compete in a pair of exciting Dirt Late Model events this up-coming weekend. On Friday, Smith will be in action at the famed Belleville High Banks in Belleville, Kan. The following night, "The Deuce" will invade the Junction Motor Speedway in McCool Junction, Neb.

Back On Top

St. George, Utah ~ How do you get a truck down a 15-foot vertical cliff and land on four wheels? Ask UROC Modified driver Brad Lovell.

"I let Roger line me up from down below, wait for the front to drop, and mash the gas pedal!"

To say that this weekend's rockcrawling course set up by United Rockcrawling and Off-Road Challenge (UROC) was heavy on drop-offs is an understatement.

Brad added, "The truck can not exist at those angles, you only have a split second to get down the wall before you are on your lid."

Lovell Rock Racing entered the event still looking for a win after second and third place finishes earlier this season. The brothers worked well together on the first couple of courses and pulled away from the rest of the pack. However, a tie with reigning champion Dean Bulloch stymied their lead. The intensity rose on the second day of competition. That's when Bulloch turned up the heat on the defending champions by crawling up a wall that few super-mods had ever made. The nearly impossible climb did not shake the Lovell's, who handily repeated the feat.

"We told him he was crazy," said Roger Lovell. "Once we saw that he made it, I almost choked. We had no choice but to attempt the same."

The two teams remained neck-to-neck going into the finals. Neither team could establish much of a lead during the day as they both had flawless performances. The Lovell's did manage to gain a small lead of five points going into the finals. Roger guided Brad through the first climb, missing a cone by less than an inch while the truck dangled from the rock. They narrowed their lead to only two points before crashing down an undercut ledge, claiming victory.

The win puts Lovell Rock Racing just two points out of the series lead and 14 points ahead of third place. The team is well within striking distance with two events left in the 2005 season. Watch for another strong finish from the team as they travel to Portland, Ind. for the fourth UROC Pro Event, July 8-9.

Rinker Returns

Bay City, Mich. ~ Terry Rinker is set to return to his favorite course this weekend. The Tampa, Fla. native has won twice at the annual "River Roar" in Bay City, Mich. Rinker also had an unforgettable crash in 2004 at the Champ Boat Series event.

Rinker currently sits first overall in the Champ Boat point's race after winning the first two rounds of the season. He was the 2003 champion and finished third in 2004.

Creeping Into Crandon

Crandon, Wis. ~ The AMSOIL/Kumho Super Team will be back in action this weekend at the world-famous Crandon Raceway in upstate Wisconsin. Rounds five and six of the Championship Off-Road Racing series will help separate the contenders from the pretenders.

Steve McCrossan, Mike Oberg and Dan Vanden Heuvel will be on hand as the look to add to their podium count in 2005. Two weeks ago in Antigo, Wis., both McCrossan and Oberg made the podium in their respective classes. Racing gets underway on Saturday.