Red Bull & Menzies Motorsports win back-to-back TRAXXAS TORC Championships!!!
Posted on Saturday, October 06, 2012
LANCASTER, Calif. (Sept. 30, 2012) – There was Red Bull and Menzies Motorsports mania in the AV with a slew of victories along with numerous Oakley Bomb awards. This weekend was in remembrance of the Huseman bother’s Rick and Jeff., as PEAK presented The Huseman Cup. Menzies Motorsports came to the last stop on the TRAXXAS TORC Series with one thing on their mind, championships. Specifically, repeating their championship performance from 2011. The sunseems to follow the series as of late as well as the heat. Both Ricky Johnson and Bryce Menzies have been hot coming into the final stop at Antelope Valley Fairgrounds.
Johnson won his last two races with one of them being the AMSOIL Cup in Crandon, Wisconsin, which is a dream come true for the Motorsports Hall of Famer. “’I’ve seen the pictures of all thegreats that have worn this wreath at Crandon over the years and I’ve always, always wanted to wear it, seeing guys like Walker Evans, Jack Flannery and Curt Leduc. “ said Johnson. RJ continued his trend of standing atop the podium with two more first place finishes in rounds 13 & 14 in the AV. Starting in the front row in round 13, Johnson never looked back. This victorymarked the 9th of the 2012 TRAXXAS TORC Series for Johnson, which all but sealed up the series championship. RJ set a new record atop the podium for the longest “thank you” session that spanned from sponsors to family. Johnson got emotional when asking the crowd to give his rival Johnny Greaves a round of applause for driving his late best friend Rick Huseman’s PRO 4 after heblew an engine early in the day. Ricky Johnson is a notoriously tenacious racer on the track but a truly compassionate individual away from the dirt.
Bryce Menzies started the weekend qualifying third in the PRO 2 class which left him in a difficult position with fellow PRO 2 driver and points leader Rob MacCachran on the pole. Coming into the final weekend Menzies found himself a mere 6 points behind MacCachran after qualifying. Menzies had his work cut out for him to make up the points necessary to win the championship. After battling with Jeff Kincaid in the opening laps it came down to Menzies and MacCachran in the battle for the championship. Menzies came away with the victory in his Ram powered PRO 2 hooking up on the Lancaster clay with his BFGoodrich tires. After this victory Menzies found himself 1 point behind of MacCachran for the series championship. The pressure was on Menzies going into the final race of the season, the drama is building and it is sure to be a battle to the finish.
Johnson came into the final race with a clear conscience, leaving the final race to be a fun run of sorts. Starting mid pack, Johnson steered clear of contact and made his way to the front following a caution after Adrian Cenni rolled heading into turn 1. After Johnson obtained the lead it was much like the previous race, he checked out on the field. This was Ricky’s 3rd straight victory to finish out the series strong. This is Johnson’s 2nd straight PRO 4 title and 3rd straight TORC title including his 2010 PRO 2 championship. RJ is starting to run out of room to store all of his trophies; an issue most of his competitors wish they had.
The PRO 2 class was the last of the day and you could feel the tension in the air. With a 1-point differential between Menzies and MacCachran, it came down to 12 laps. Both drivers started in the same row, which added to the suspense. When the green flag waved they were off, with MacCachran getting the early edge. Menzies ran a close second behind MacCachran for the first 4 laps until MacCachran hit a K rail a ripped out a lower left trailing arm. Menzies took the lead and in turn seized the championship! “I can’t believe it, I don’t even have words right now. Back to back PRO 2 championships, it’s crazy! This is just a testament to our team and all the hard work we have put in; it’s a pretty awesome feeling” said Menzies. Menzies hoped to carrythis momentum into The Huseman Cup
As PEAK presented The Huseman Cup, it started with an emotional opening ceremony as they had Rick’s wife and son at the finish line with Rick’s son ending the ceremony by exclaiming “Start your engines”. The lineup was set up for PRO 2’s to take off 12.5 seconds before the PRO 4 class.Chad Hord took the hole-shot and the early lead ahead of Menzies and MacCachran. Menzies battled with Hord for the early lead until he spun out after hitting a pothole. Meanwhile Ricky Johnson was charging ahead passing PRO 2’s and battling with Kyle Leduc. Johnson would eventually pass Hord for the overall lead for the remainder of the race. Johnson was ecstatic to get his second cup victory of the season. “To have my name as the first winner of that trophy means a lot,”said RJ.
Menzies Motorsports took a clean sweep of the competition this weekend going five for five. Capturing two championships back to back for the Red Bull team broke the so-called “curse” of carrying the number one plate. Menzies Motorsports would like to send a special thanks to the TRAXXAS TORC Series on putting on a first class series. Thank you to all of the Red Bull/Menzies Motorsports selfless volunteers and team members for such a special season. Next up for the Menzies Motorsports crew is the SCORE Baja 1000; until then, enjoy these victories and work to keep the trend going.
Visit us on our Facebook page: www.facebook.com/menziesmotorsports
Twitter: www.twitter.com/menziesracing
Like us on Instagram: MenziesMotorsports