holding on to claim his second
consecutive victory and the 70th
of his remarkable GNCC career.
Draper crossed the line sec-
ond, followed by Davis, Witkows-
ki, DeLong and Ashburn, whose
sixth-place finish was enough to
secure the 2026 championship.
Ironically, Russell's pass on
his own teammate ultimately
decided the title.
There had been no team
orders in the Yamaha pits, and
Russell admitted afterward that
he hadn't fully understood the
With just two miles remain-
ing, Draper, Russell and Davis
were running nose-to-tail, setting
up a frantic sprint to the finish.
Russell, fresh off his 69th career
GNCC victory at the Ironman two
weeks earlier, saw an opening
and made the pass on Draper.
The battle continued through
the final chicanes, with Russell
white-flag lap when Davis made
a costly mistake, running off
the course and surrendering the
lead to Draper. Russell, mean-
while, was right on Davis's rear
wheel and moved into second
with approximately 15 minutes
remaining.
Suddenly, the championship
was back in Draper's hands.
However, one final obstacle
stood between the New Zea-
lander and his first GNCC title,
and it happened to be his own
teammate.
ROUND 13 / NOVEMBER 8, 2026
NEWBURG, WEST VIRGINIA
OFF-ROAD I PROGRESSIVE GRAND NATIONAL CROSS-COUNTRY SERIES
P92
Russell's win ultimately cost his
AmPro Yamaha teammate Liam
Draper (198) the overall GNCC title.
Draper finished out the year one
point behind Ashburn.
