Baylor Tops Hoosier GNCC
F
MF/KTM Factory rider Johnny
Girroir led every lap except
the one that mattered at Hoosier
GNCC in Crawfordsville, Indiana,
March 27-28, as Red Bear Rocky
Mountain Kawasaki's Steward
Baylor passed Girroir on the
final lap of the race to claim his
second win in a row, charging
from the back and using a smart
pit strategy to do so. In fact, the
extremely rough, seven-lap race
came down to pit strategy and
avoiding pit snafus.
To start the race, Girroir
grabbed the holeshot, and except
for a couple of turns where Beta
USA's Evan Smith took the lead,
Girroir pulled out to as much as a
15-second lead ahead of Bab
-
bitt's Monster Energy Kawasaki's
Lyndon Snodgrass and Coastal
Racing GasGas' Jordan Ashburn.
Baylor was fifth and, on a run,
passing where the rutted track
would allow. At one point, Girroir
held a 22-second lead.
It was obvious that Girroir was
putting on a sprint while Baylor
got up to speed.
On lap two, Rockstar Energy
Husqvarna's Craig DeLong and
Phoenix Honda Racing's Mike Wit
-
kowski moved into the battle for
second as Girroir sped away. Also,
on lap two, all of the Pro riders pit
-
ted for fuel, except for Baylor, who
held an ace up his sleeve, deciding
to pit on lap three, moving him into
second behind Girroir. Although he
still had to pit later, with the clean
air in front of him, he hoped to
gain ground on Girroir.
At the halfway point, it was
all Girroir, Baylor and DeLong.
Baylor and DeLong went at it for
a few laps, their battle pushing
them up to within 10 seconds
of Girroir. Meanwhile, Witkowski
and Ashburn had their own battle
going for fourth.
Baylor came in for a splash-
n-go on the final lap, allowing
DeLong to pass him, but Baylor
WIND
IN THE
P42
Steward Baylor made
up some ground in the
GNCC Championship after
winning in Crawfordsville.
PHOTOS: MACK FAINT