pulled the hat trick with three
overall wins.
Sunday's spotlight turned to
the Pro Expert classes (250 and
Open) and special intermission
races for amateur and minibike
riders, and rain fell all afternoon,
making for treacherous conditions
that emphasized a good start and
keeping your goggles clean.
The first Open A moto saw
Ricci Randanella get out front
early and try to open a gap on
the field. Bryton Carroll and Phil
Nicoletti kept Randanella in sight
while battling it out themselves.
As the rain intensified and the
track grew slippery, the gaps
among the three racers grew
and shrank throughout the moto.
At the finish, Randanella took
the win, followed by Carroll and
Nicoletti, setting the stage for
moto two. Moto two again saw
Randanella and Carroll get out
front early. This time, Nicoletti
was caught up in an early crash
and had to fight his way through
the pack to finish on the overall
podium. Randanella and Carroll
battled up front, with Carroll tak-
ing the lead, while Nicoletti used
his years of Northeast mud-riding
experience to charge through the
field. Carroll held off a late charge
from Randanella to take the
moto and overall win. Randanella
finished second in the moto and
overall, while Nicoletti came back
to fifth in the moto to claim the
final overall podium spot.
In 250 A action, 2025 Iron-
man Classic winner Trinnytie
Batchelor grabbed the holeshot
and rode to a convincing wire-
to-wire win. Gavin Betts finished
second, with Michael Gurda,
Cory Carsten and Ty Wozney
rounding out the top five. The
second moto was quite different.
Batchelor crashed during the
second Open A moto, ending his
day and opening the battle for
the 250 A overall. Randanella sat
out the first 250 A moto to focus
on the Open A class, but after
two strong motos, he lined up
for the afternoon's final race. A
holeshot and a wire-to-wire win
made that decision worthwhile.
Although he wasn't in conten-
tion for the overall, the moto win
was a good way to finish his day.
With Batchelor and Randanella
each missing a moto score,
consistency paid off. Gavin Betts
used 2-2 finishes to claim the
overall win. Carsten's 4-3 fin-
ishes earned him second overall,
while Gurda's 3-6 scores secured
the final podium spot.
Between the motos, the crowd
enjoyed a series of special inter-
mission races, long a part of the
Race of Champions weekend. In
2026, the prestigious Ironman
Classic, sponsored by Motor-
cycle Mall of Monmouth, went to
Hudson Vagele. Other highlights
included Kameron Buckman tak-
ing the win in the 65cc Kessler
Cup, sponsored by Crossroads
Powersports; 2024 and 2025
Kessler Cup winner Forrest
McPherson winning the 85cc
Top Gun Mini Cycle Shootout,
sponsored by Montgomeryville
Cycle Center; Liam Doebly win-
ning the Pags Powersports Fast
50s; Jayson Labouef winning
the 125cc All-Stars moto; and
Phil Nicoletti being named the
inaugural King of the Vets, spon-
sored by Mt Holly Powersports.
Scott Lukaitis
OPEN A (Top 3)
1. Bryton Carroll (Yam)
2. Ricci Randanella (Kaw)
3. Phillip Nicoletti (Hus)
250A (Top 3)
1. Gavin Betts (Yam)
2. Cory Carsten (Suz)
3. Michael Gurda Jr (Tri)
VOLUME 63 ISSUE 40 OCTOBER 6, 2026 P53
Wet weather
plagued the race but
didn't dampen the
enthusiasm of the
racers or crowd.
