Can-Am Sweeps Ironman Podium and Wins GNCC XC1 Championship
- Updated: October 28, 2014
The No. 8 Can-Am Maverick 1000R piloted by Kyle Chaney finished eighth in the XC1 Modified class at the AMSOIL GNCC finale in Indiana to earn the first GNCC side-by-side championship for Can-Am.
Kyle Chaney won the 2014 XC1 Modified SxS championship, Marcus Pratt took home the XC2 Limited SxS title, both in Can-Am® Maverick™ 1000R side-by-side vehicles, and Bryan Buckhannon captured the 4×4 Pro title on his Renegade® 800R X® xc at the pinked-out AMSOIL Grand National Cross Country series finale in Crawfordsville, Ind. Can-Am Racers posted podium sweeps in both the premier 4×4 Pro and XC1 Modified SxS classes at the Ironman event, concluding the year in dominating fashion.
“This particular GNCC season was amazing because we won every class where our team-supported racers competed in,” said Jeff Leclerc, Racing Project Leader, Can-Am. “Kyle Chaney put together a very consistent season, easily winning the XC1 Modified class in his Maverick 1000R. Bryan Buckhannon simply outran the competition on his way to winning the inaugural 4×4 Pro division, a class that saw us take the top three spots. Factor in our other titles and the podium sweeps at Ironman and we put a big exclamation point on 2014 – our best season ever.”
Kyle Chaney, and co-pilot Chris Bithell, earned three wins and four total podiums in six rounds of side-by-side racing to win the GNCC XC1 Modified SxS class championship with his Can-Am Maverick 1000R.
Can-Am Maverick racers swept the podium at the Ironman GNCC. Zac Zakowski (ZMS / Can-Am), Tim Farr (JB Racing / Can-Am) and Larry Hendershot Jr. (JB Racing / Can-Am) finished second, first and third, respectively.
The Ironman GNCC finale, one of the most popular and well-attended events on the annual 13-race schedule, was held on nearby farmland, complete with hills, creeks, mud, woods and a man-made MX course outside of Crawfordsville. Along with it’s dramatic championship story lines, Ironman is also hugely popular for its proximity to Halloween and because participants and fans wear pink to promote breast cancer awareness.
With a 28-point lead heading into the final round, Kyle Chaney (Chaney Racing / Turnkey UTV / JB Racing / Can-Am) simply needed to finish in order to capture the XC1 Modified class championship, but he did much better than that. The Ohio native finished a very solid eighth in a field of almost 40 side-by-side vehicles, coming from 14th after lap one, to capture the first GNCC side-by-side racing title for Can-Am. He ended up winning by 24 points over second place.
“It still hasn’t sunk in yet that we got the championship. It’s still unbelievable. I knew I would win it some day, I just needed a good team behind me to make it happen and that’s what Can-Am and the JB team has provided,” said Chaney. “This set up worked well for us this year and we will be going with the same one next season.”
Chaney wasn’t the only Can-Am Maverick 1000R racer making news at Ironman, as JB Racing / Can-Am driver Tim Farr (with co-pilot and GNCC WXC champion Angel Knox) won the final round to move into third place in the final class standings. Farr earned his third podium of the year and was joined on the class and overall podiums by ZMS / Can-Am racer Zac Zakowski and Hendershot Performance / Can-Am pilot Larry Hendershot Jr. Maverick 1000R drivers earned five of the top eight finishes in the XC1 Modified class. Can-Am also scored the XC2 Limited SxS class crown, as Marcus Pratt (Team Jack’s II / Can-Am) earned enough points at the Ironman GNCC to grab the season championship.
For more information on 2014 Can-Am racing, the contingency program and all amateur racer support programs, please visit www.can-amxteam.com.
