Fowler and Borich Do Battle at John Penton GNCC

(Photo by Ken Hill)

After chasing Chris Borich all season, Walker Fowler finally took the checkers a couple of weeks back at the Limestone 100 GNCC. He’ll try to make it two in a row this weekend as the 2013 AMSOIL Grand National Cross Country Series heads to Millfield, Ohio for the Wiseco John Penton GNCC.

AmPro Yamaha‘s Fowler made a statement last round as he secured the Round 6 victory that also ended Borich’s five-race win streak in 2013. Fowler has been in contention for the lead all season long and the young gun looks to keep it rolling with two in a row this weekend.

Although Borich has the most wins this season, the Maxxis-backed rider hasn’t necessarily spent the most time out front. Reliable Tool Supply/Maxxis rider Chris Bithell has arguably led the most laps this season as he continues to fight for the overall win each round. However, Borich has the last-lap pass down to a science and the seasoned veteran knows what it takes to secure the win after two hours of racing. As the series reaches the second half of the schedule, strategy becomes even more crucial in winning a championship at the end of the season.

Bithell is the only rider inside the top three overall that has yet to secure a win, so there’s no doubt that the Pennsylvania rider will be looking for a first-time win this weekend at the John Penton GNCC.

Lonestar/Precision/ITP’s Adam McGill sits just behind Bithell in the championship standings, holding fourth place overall. McGill has struggled to get a podium finish at the last few rounds but you can never count the West Virginia native out when it comes to winning races. McGill finished second at the John Penton in 2012 and will be looking to redeem himself with a victory this year.

Only one point separates BNR’s Kevin Yoho and Waynesburg Yamaha’s Jeff Pickens for the fifth place position heading into Round 7. The Yamaha duo has battled back and forth all season long, bringing much excitement to the GNCC Racing fans. Pickens secured his first career podium at Round 5, putting in one of his best seasons to date.

And then there’s JB Offroad/ Can-Am‘s Jarrod McClure who sits five points behind in seventh place. The Ohio duo of Yamaha/GBC/HMF’s and Team Woodhead/DeRisi Racing’s Braden Henthorn sit eighth and ninth place respectively as the series heads to their home state this weekend.

(Photo by Ken Hill)

Rookie Brycen Neal, also an Ohio native, leads the way in the XC2 Pro Am class standings, edging out defending XC2 champ Patrick McGuire after six rounds of racing. Neal also holds an impressive 10th place in the overall standings, while McGuire sits in 12th respectively. After missing the last round due to injury, rookie Landon Wolfe heads into the weekend with third place in the class, while Fred Marley and Randy Hamilton round out the top five.

Youth ATV racing will take place Saturday at 8 a.m., followed by amateurs, 4×4 and Women at 10 a.m. and the top amateurs and pros at 1 p.m. Round 3 of UTV competition returns to the schedule this weekend, taking place on Saturday at 4:30 p.m. For more information on the series, visit www.gnccracing.com.

Tune into RacerTV.com on Saturday at 1 p.m. Eastern to catch GNCC LIVE coverage of the Pro ATV race from the Wiseco John Penton GNCC.