Fowler Comes From Behind to Win John Penton GNCC

Walker Fowler worked his way through the pack to earn his fourth win of the season at the Wiseco John Penton GNCC, round eight of the 2015 AMSOIL Grand National Cross Country Series presented by Maxxis.

Fowler (N-Fab/AmPro Yamaha/Maxxis/Lonestar) currently holds the second place position in the points championship, and now sits 22 points behind CST/PirateMX.com/LSR/DeRisi/Tireblocks/SG’s Adam McGill. McGill didn’t have the start he was looking for. He was involved in a crash in the first turn and headed into the woods deep in the XC1 Pro ATV pack.

Chris Bithell grabbed the holeshot and held the lead for the first two laps.

Bithell Racing/Maxxis/Precision’s Chris Bithell earned another $250 AMSOIL Holeshot Award, and led the pack into the woods. Bithell held the lead for the first two laps of the race before falling to the pressure of Fowler, and suffering a mechanical issue on lap four causing him to drop back to 12th for the remaining laps.

Fowler pulled away from the rest of the XC1 Pro pack, holding the lead for the last half of the race and taking the checkers after five laps. McGill crossed the finish 31 seconds after Fowler in second place, followed by Maxxis/B.Neal Motorsports’ Brycen Neal. Neal started the race in about sixth, and worked his way through the pack, ultimately passing Team Maxxis’ Chris Borich on the last lap.

Walker Fowler celebrates his win at the John Penton GNCC.

Showhauler/Maxxis/Cycle Barn’s Landon Wolfe had his best finish of the season with a fourth in XC1. Wolfe started the race in seventh and worked his way through the pack coming from sixth to fourth on the last lap. Borich would crossed the finish line in fifth after working his way up from an eighth place start. It appeared Borich had some difficulties on the last lap, dropping two positions before the checkered flag.

Fasttrax/Wolf Racing’s Brian Wolf had a great jump off the line and started the race in second place. Wolf ran up front throughout the first half of the race before swapping positions back and forth with GBC/Yamaha/HMF’s Johnny Gallagher. Gallagher finished the race seventh in XC1 and eighth overall.

Maxxis/BNR/Moose’s Josh Merritt, JMR/ATVRiders.com’s Jarrod McClure and BNR/GBC’s Kevin Yoho round out the XC1 Pro top 10.

Cole Richardson earned his seventh win in eight races in the XC2 Pro Am class.

In the XC2 Pro Am class, N-Fab/AmPro Yamaha/Maxxis/Lonestar’s Cole Richardson continued his dominance with his seventh win of the season. RYCO Racing’s Cody Collier had another impressive ride in Ohio, finishing second in XC2 and 11th overall. Coastal/Waynesburg Yamaha’s Blake Tornes had his best finish of his season with a third in the XC2 and a 14th overall.

The 2015 AMSOIL Grand National Cross Country Series resumes June 20 and 21 with the AMSOIL Snowshoe in Snowshoe, WV.

Wiseco John Penton GNCC XC1 Results

Overall National Championship Standings