Ashburn explained a crash that changed his day.

“Down in that soupy hole down here, I tried to take an inside and there were some roots in the water I didn’t see,” he said. “Knifed the front and just nearly face planted in that water. I tried not to take my hands off the bars, I didn’t want to ruin my gloves. I had just passed Stu and I gave him a position back. Tried to get back to the lead but it was a challenge.”

AmPro Yamaha’s Liam Draper was fourth overall and third in the XC1 class for 350s and 450s.

The XC2 (250) racers have been pressing for the overall race wins and title all season long, and this time it was Australian Gus Riordian’s turn to lead that group, winning the class and taking third overall.

"I’m stoked to grab the XC2 250 Pro win!" said Riordian, who is third overall in series points. "I knew all the results would be pretty close at the end there for the overall, but we were all riding super-fast. I had a couple of crashes during the first two laps and then getting towards the end there, I really dug deep. I thought to myself, ‘I haven’t come this far to let it go,’ and just charged forward at the end for the win. We put in a lot of work between the last round and now, did some testing to dial the bike in even further, and managed to get it done.”

Phoenix Racing Honda’s Cody Barnes took second in XC2 and fifth overall. As for Grant Davis, who is leading the XC2 standings and is second in overall points, he took third in XC2 and sixth overall this time.

Grant Davis: "Today was a bit disappointing. I got the holeshot and was riding pretty smoothly, but then had a crash on lap one, and a bunch of people got around me, meaning I had some real time to catch up, which I did through the rest of the race. I was on Gus at the end there, but some late-race dramas hampered my result, and in the end we were able to salvage a third-place.”

GNCC overall points leader Ben Kelley had his first bad day of the season, taking 11^th overall.

“It was a tough race in the mud of Ohio today," said Kelley. "I didn’t get a good start, but did my best to make some passes while trying to figure out the track. It was a bit of a fight with the bike and track today, with super-slippery conditions and thick mud in sections. I managed to ride parts of the track good, but struggled badly in others. Couldn’t put it all together and find a flow, although we’ll come out swinging at the next one.”

Also, eight-time GNCC Champion Kailub Russell took a major points hit when he tweaked the front end of his bike in the race, resulting in an extended pit stop to change a front wheel. Later, a broken front brake would knock him out of the race completely.

The full report from the GNCC Series is below.

Kenda Tires Powerline Park: Motorcycle Race Report

Baylor Victorious in the Ohio Mud

ST. CLAIRSVILLE, Ohio – The Progressive Grand National Cross Country (GNCC Racing) Series presented by Specialized, an AMA National Championship, continued racing with slick, muddy conditions on Sunday, May 4 in St. Clairsville, Ohio with the Kenda Tires Powerline Park GNCC.

As the afternoon race got underway, Rocky Mountain Red Bear Kawasaki Team Green’s Steward Baylor got off to a good start, earning himself the $250 Landers KTM XC1 Open Pro Holeshot Award. Baylor would continue to lead the opening lap, but soon Flatrock Motorclub GASGAS Factory Racing’s Jordan Ashburn would make his way up to battle with Baylor for the remainder of the race.

Ashburn would physically hold the lead on the second and third laps of the race, while Baylor battled back and would be able to make the pass back into the lead with one lap to go. As the two headed out on the last lap, Baylor would continue to push ahead of Ashburn but as they made their way towards the finish line Ashburn would close the gap until a mistake right before the finish line put him out of contention on making the pass for the win.

Baylor would cross the line to earn his second overall win of the season, while Ashburn came through to finish second overall just 13 seconds off of Baylor.

XC2 250 Pro class competitor, FMF KTM Factory Racing Lander’s Angus Riordan would have to work his way up through the pack after he started back in fourth on the opening lap. Riordan would continue to push, making the move into the XC2 lead for the last three laps. Riordan would continue to push forward and as he crossed the line would finish third overall in race, while earning his class win.

AmPro Yamaha’s Liam Draper had a consistent day through the slick, yet tacky conditions throughout the Ohio course. Draper would hold the third place position in the XC1 Open Pro class for the duration of the race, ultimately crossing the line third in his class and fourth overall on the day.

Finishing fifth overall was XC2 250 Pro racer, Phoenix Racing Honda’s Cody Barnes. As the race got underway Barnes would find himself holding the lead on lap two, but he would soon face a battle with Riordan for that number one spot. After battling off and on, Barnes would cross the finish line to finish second in his class.

FMF KTM Factory Racing Lander’s Grant Davis would earn the $150 Landers KTM XC2 250 Pro Holeshot Award to start his day, and he would battle within the top three in the XC2 class for the majority of the race. Coming to the finish line, Davis would be unable to make any further passes and would finish third in XC2 and sixth overall on the day.

Coming through to take seventh overall, and fourth in XC1 was Liqui Moly Factory Beta Racing’s Josh Strang. Strang would have a steady day as he continued to battle inside the top five throughout the duration of the race. Rockstar Energy Factory Husqvarna Racing’s Craig Delong would make his way up to fifth in XC1 and eighth overall on the day after starting back in tenth place position.

Rocket Racing/Bonecutter Off-Road’s Brody Johnson would battle back to earn fourth in the XC2 250 Pro class, while finishing ninth overall on the day at round six. After leading early on in the race, Rocky Mountain Red Bear Kawasaki Team Green’s Joshua Toth would cross the line fifth in XC2, and he would round out the top 10 overall finishers of the day in Ohio. It was a rough day for the overall points leader as FMF KTM Factory Racing’s Ben Kelley finished eleventh overall.

In the XC3 125 Pro-Am class it was Marionville Powersports/Hinson/Fly Racing’s James Jenkins earning the $100 Lojak Cycle Sales XC3 125 Pro-Am Holeshot Award, however the Bonecutter Off-Road/GASGAS-backed rider, Jonathan Johnson was right there to overtake the lead on the opening lap. Johnson would not look back for the rest of the race as he continued to push. Johnson would come through to earn second-straight win in the XC3 class.

Marionville Powersports/XC Gear/Moose Racing’s Huck Jenkins would make a last lap pass to takeover second from Isaiah Brown. Jenkins would hold on to second as he crossed the finish line, with Brown holding third and rounding out the top three XC3 finishers of the day.

The Kenda Tires Powerline Park Top Amateur honors would go to Chase Landers who battled throughout the day to finish 14th overall and earn the 250 A class win. Joseph Cunningham would be second on the Top Amateur podium with a 15th overall finishing position and a second place finish in the 250 A class. Cole Whitmer rounded out the top three Top Amateurs as he came through 16th overall, while also earning the Open A class win.

As the morning race got underway and the WXC line took off, it was Rocky Mountain Red Bear Kawasaki Team Green’s Rachael Archer grabbing the $100 Landers KTM WXC Holeshot Award. Archer would continue to lead the way for the duration of the race, crossing the line with over a two-minute lead on her fellow WXC competitors.

Gary Fridley would come through to earn second overall on the day and take home the Super Senior A (45+) class win, while Colton McQuarrie came in third overall in the morning race and also took his 150 B Schoolboy (12-17) class win in Ohio.

Enduro Engineering-backed Shelby Turner would battle back-and-forth with Phoenix Racing Honda’s Tayla Jones throughout the race. Turner would be able to make the pass stick and hold on to finish second in the WXC class, while Jones rounded out the top three WXC finishers at the Kenda Tires Powerline Park GNCC.