Ryan Nitzen | March 25, 2024
NGPC and former WORCS Champion Dante Oliveira became the third different winner in four rounds at this year’s very competitive Grand National Cross Country Series, holding off a race-long challenge by FMF/KTM Factory rider Johnny Girroir to win the Camp Coker Bullet GNCC held at Moree’s Sportsman’s Preserve in Society Hill, South Carolina, on March 24. Babbitt’s Online Monster Energy Kawasaki’s Grant Baylor was third, while his brother, Red Bear Rocky Mountain Kawasaki’s Steward Baylor, was a close fourth.
The West Coast’s Dante Oliveira (KTM) was the surprise winner at the Camp Coker GNCC in South Carolina.
By Shan Moore | Photos by Ken Hill
After battling with Girroir during the first few turns, Oliveira led the remainder of the three-hour event to take home his first-ever GNCC win. Girroir pushed Oliveira hard during the entire race and pulled to just under two seconds at the finish, making for an exciting finish. The fast and “less-than-technical” course suited Oliveira’s West Coast riding style perfectly.
Oliveira and Girroir mid-battle.
“Man, I heard from everybody, ‘Coker is your round, Coker is your round’,” said Oliveira. “So, I got out there and got a great start and put the hammer down. I charged where I could and just managed where I could. There were some sections where Johnny was definitely a lot quicker in the tighter stuff, but it was so hard to pass. There weren’t as many options as there usually are out here. So, I was able just to keep control in the tight stuff, and then every time it opened up, I’d just give it the beans and held on.
Girroir might’ve been quicker in the woods, but it was too tight to pass in most areas.
“It definitely feels good, but this style was kind of my style. It was just choppy, nasty, whoops. It feels great to come out here and get a win after being 12th place the last couple of rounds. I’m stoked with it. If I could go and get one at one of the nastier rounds, that would be sick. But I’m stoked with this now.”
Girroir stayed close for second.
Despite crashing three times on the opening lap, Grant Baylor was able to work his way through the pack to finish fourth overall on the track. However, he was bumped up to third when it was determined his brother, Steward, got off the course too far. “I kind of put myself in a hole on that first lap,” said Grant, speaking of his three mishaps, “The sad thing is, I got my best start of the year. I think I was feeling a little bit too comfortable and made a few mistakes, but I got myself together on that second lap.”
The faster conditions suited Oliveira’s west coast expertise.
Grant picked his way through the pack, and by the next-to-last lap, he was able to settle into fifth behind teammate Lyndon Snodgrass. When Snodgrass pitted, Grant was able to sneak by and put his head down to hold off the Aussie for fourth, which eventually turned into third.
Steward Baylor gave his Kawasaki too much throttle at the drop of the flag and stalled the green machine, leaving him in last place entering turn one.
XC2 Start.
“I got a little throttle-happy there on the start, pulling. I’ve got this bike firing good, and I think I just mis-timed it, and it stalled,” said Steward. “It was tough to pass today. Only a couple of guys let me get by. I wasted a lot of time riding trail-rider pace with the rest of XC1. If somebody is trying to race, normally, they let you go. But today, it was just following the leader. Not too much you could do out there.”
Angus Riordan was the XC2-class winner.
Lyndon Snodgrass (Kawasaki) was fifth overall, crossing the line just one-tenth of a second behind Grant. Landers Racing KTM’s Angus Riordan won the XC2 250 Pro division with a sixth overall.
“I got the holeshot in my class and led the first four laps,” said Riordan. “Then Grant got around me, and I sort of trailed him. He caught me a bit that last lap, and then I just put my head down. I got pretty mad at myself. He sort of caught him in the end there, and I could see he had made a few mistakes. Then he went down, and I just got him. I might have made a little bit of contact, but that’s racing. So, stoked.”
Brandy Richards got out in front and ran away with the Women’s Pro-class win.
Riordan’s Landers Racing KTM teammate Grant Davis was seventh overall and second in the XC2 250 Pro division, giving credence to the 1-2 he posted at the previous two rounds.
Coastal Racing GasGas’ teammates Ryder Lafferty and Jordan Ashburn were eighth and ninth overall, while Red Bear Rocky Mountain Kawasaki’s Thad Duvall rounded out the top 10.
Rachel Archer landed second after Korie Steede’s troubles.
In the FMF XC3 125 Pro-Am class, Jhak Walker grabbed his third win in a row and leads second-place finisher Dustin Simpson (Yamaha) by 23 points in the class standings. Dakoda Devore finished third and sits eight points behind Simpson in the standings.
Gutish found her way to the podium.
In the morning race, Rockstar Energy Factory Husqvarna Racing’s Korie Steede grabbed the holeshot in the WXC class. She led for the first two laps but started feeling pressure from FMF KTM Factory Racing/Landers’ Brandy Richards, who passed Steede on the third lap.
Richards held the lead from there, earning her second win this year in the WXC class. As the white flag flew, Steede tried to apply the pressure to Richards but ran out of fuel on the last lap and ended up ninth in class.
WXC Podium.
Rocky Mountain Red Bear Kawasaki’s Rachael Archer, who ran third for most of the race, capitalized on Steede’s troubles and took second. Sherco USA/Moose/Rachel Gutish Racing’s Rachel Gutish started off in seventh but made her way through the field to fill out the podium.
VIDEO | 2024 GNCC Racing Live | Round 4 – Camp Coker Bullet Motorcycles
Overall (Top 10)
- Dante Oliveira (KTM)
- Johnny Girroir (KTM)
- Grant Baylor (Kaw)
- Steward Baylor (Kaw)
- Lyndon Snodgrass (Kaw)
- Angus Riordan (KTM)
- Grant Davis (KTM)
- Ryder Lafferty (GG)
- Jordan Ashburn (GG)
- Thad Duvall (Kaw)
