RACE TIME: TEAM BABBITT'S

Round six of the AMA National Enduro Series took place over the weekend at the long-running Rattlesnake National Enduro in Northern Pennsylvania, where Team Babbitt’s/Monster Energy®/Kawasaki rider Grant Baylor continued to grow his points lead with a strong second-place overall finish.

Round nine of the Grand National Cross Country Series took place over the weekend at the famous Snowshoe Mountain resort nestled deep in the mountains of West Virginia, where XC-1 pilots Grant Baylor and Josh Strang battled their way through the mountains, mud, and rocks to top-ten finishes.

Round five of the AMA National Enduro Series was held over the weekend at the long-running Cherokee Enduro in Greensboro, Georgia, where Team Babbitt’s/Monster Energy®/Kawasaki racer Grant Baylor sliced his way through his competition and the tight Georgia pines under torrential downpours to pilot his KX™450X to victory.

Round eight of the Grand National Cross Country Series took place at the Matthew’s Farm, directly across the street from the iconic High Point raceway in southern Pennsylvania, under extremely dry and warm conditions. Premier class XC-1 teammates Grant Baylor and Josh Strang would overcome poor starts and visibility to take home top ten finishes aboard their KX™450X machines.

Round seven of the Grand National Cross Country Series took place at the Sunday Creek Raceway for the long-running John Penton GNCC, where heavy storms early in the weekend would once again leave treacherous conditions for Team Babbitt’s/Monster Energy/Kawasaki riders, Josh Strang and Grant Baylor, to contend with over the course of the three-hour event.

Round four of the AMA National Enduro Series took place over the weekend in the Appalachian foothills of Virginia, where Babbitt’s/Monster Energy/Kawasaki rider Grant Baylor overcame adversity to take a fifth-place overall finish to retain his points lead in the NE Pro 1 class heading into round five of the series next month.

Babbitt’s Online/Monster Energy®/Kawasaki Team Green™ took on the sixth round of the GNCC series over the weekend at the famous Ironman MX facility in western Indiana. Overnight thunder and hail storms on Saturday left the 10.5-mile track soaked with plenty of mud bogs and water crossings for the No. 17 of Josh Strang and the No. 314 of Grant Baylor to contest with while defending XC-2 champion Lyndon Snodgrass would unfortunately not be able to contest the race due to a lingering sickness.

Round Three of the AMA National Enduro Series took place over the weekend in the foothills of northwest Arkansas, close to the Buffalo River, where Babbitt’s Online/Monster Energy/Kawasaki’s Grant Baylor took the win in commanding fashion after nearly 60 miles of rocky, technical, and dry terrain.

Babbitt’s Online/Monster Energy®/Kawasaki Team Green™ was back to racing this weekend in the sands of Society Hill, South Carolina, for the 5th round of the 2023 Grand National Cross Country Series, where No. 314 of Grant Baylor would take a big win and his first aboard his Kawasaki KX™450X™. XC1 teammate Josh Strang would ride a solid race to take home a top-five finish, while XC2 pilot Lyndon Snodgrass would struggle to find his form, coming into the finish in the 13th position in the class.

Babbitt’s Online/Monster Energy®/Kawasaki Team Green™ returned to Grand National Cross Country racing over the weekend after a three-week hiatus at the Big Buck Farm in Union, South Carolina. After three hours of racing through the pines, both XC1 pilots, Josh Strang and Grant Baylor, as well as the defending XC2 champion, Lyndon Snodgrass, would finish the event with top-ten results.

Round Two of the AMA National Enduro Series was held over the weekend in the prairie-like terrain of Turkey, Texas, located in the northern part of the state. A small town of just over 300 people welcomed the reigning NE Pro 1 National Enduro Series Champion, Grant Baylor, to their small town to race on over 70 miles of classic Texas single track.

Round Three of the GNCC series returned to Aonia Pass MX in Washington, Georgia, for what turned out to be the most challenging race of the year thus far. A near-perfect track on Saturday would lead to adverse conditions just 24 hours later, with early morning rain storms soaking the 12-mile red clay track on Sunday. No. 17 Babbitt’s Online/Monster Energy®/Kawasaki Team Green™ rider Josh Strang would overcome the challenging conditions, piloting his KX™450X en route to taking his first podium of the year with a second-place finish.

Babbitt’s Online/Monster Energy®/Kawasaki Team Green™ riders returned to GNCC racing over the weekend at the second round of the series in the sands of Palatka, Florida. The only sand race on the series schedule always challenges the riders, and this year was no different, with high temperatures and a 14-mile track for the Kawasaki-mounted racers to contend with.

Babbitt’s Online/Monster Energy®/Kawasaki Team Green™ riders Josh Strang, Grant Baylor, and Lyndon Snodgrass returned to Grand National Cross Country (GNCC) racing after the off-season at the Big Buck Farm in Union, South Carolina.

The Babbitt’s Online/Monster Energy®/Kawasaki Team Green™ race team will return to off-road racing in 2023 prepared to take on the rugged terrain in the Grand National Cross Country (GNCC) series and the AMA National Enduro Championship.

Babbitt’s Online/Monster Energy®/Kawasaki Team Green™ rider Josh Strang capped off his long awaited return to racing with a commanding win at Saturday’s Full Gas Sprint Enduro (FGSE) at the Outback Motorsports Complex in Laurinburg, North Carolina.

SUMTER, SC – Team Babbitt’s Monster Energy Kawasaki rider Grant Baylor storms through the sands of Sumter, South Carolina, en route to claiming an overall win at the first round of the National Enduro Series (NEPG).

The Babbitt’s Online/Monster Energy®/Kawasaki Team Green™ race team will return to off-road racing in 2023 prepared to take on the rugged terrain in the Grand National Cross Country (GNCC) series and the AMA National Enduro Championship.

Foothill Ranch, Calif. (October 13, 2022) – After 12 rounds of action-packed off-road racing, Babbitt’s Online/Monster Energy®/Kawasaki Team Green’s Lyndon Snodgrass secured the 2022 Grand National Cross Country (GNCC) XC2 250 Pro Class Championship at the Buckwheat 100. Entering the penultimate round of the GNCC race series with the championship points lead, the Team Green rider from Australia captured the XC2 250 Pro Class title with a race-winning performance aboard his Kawasaki KX™250X.

MORGANTOWN, W.Va. (November 22, 2021) – After a record-breaking year, Racer Productions, producer of the Grand National Cross Country (GNCC) Series presented by Specialized, an AMA National Championship, is excited to announce the series schedule for the upcoming 2022 season.

The 2022 schedule is happy to welcome back many of its most seasoned venues, including Big Buck in Union, South Carolina; The General in Washington, Georgia; The John Penton in Millfield, Ohio; West Virginia’s popular Snowshoe GNCC in Snowshoe, West Virginia; and the Ironman finale in Crawfordsville, Indiana.

Just a few days ago, the storyline for the 2021 Grand National Cross Country (GNCC) Series was defined by a penalty handed out at the next-to-last round. A winner-take-all championship scenario between FMF KTM’s Ben Kelley and AmPro Yamaha’s Steward Baylor was spoiled via a four-point penalty for Baylor. Now Kelley had enough points to grab the title as long as he finished second if Baylor won the finale. This of course led to plenty of conjecture, drama, and controversy. But in the end, those few points didn’t matter at all. Mother Nature wreacked havoc on the final race, Sunday’s Yamaha Ironman GNCC, and everything turned crazy. As the riders sat on the starting line over a saturated race track, with rain still coming down, the scenario changed from “If Baylor wins can Kelley finish second” to “Can either rider even finish?”

Steward Baylor’s four-race win streak in the Grand National Cross Country Series is over, as is Josh Strang’s recent run of bad luck. Somewhere in the middle sits the ever-consistent Ben Kelley, who continues to lead the standings.

Strang took his Babbitt’s Online/Monster Energy/Kawasaki Team Green machine to the win after a hard-fought battle with Kelley that came down to the last lap. Kelley led as the white flag came out, but Strang made the move and they both pushed to the verge of exhaustion at the finish, with Strang emerging with the win by just six seconds. It was a hot and humid day and after three hours of racing, the leaders were spent.

“Oh man, it’s round seven now and I feel like I was capable of getting a win at the first round,” said Strang on RacerTV.com. “So to take seven races, I’m bummed out to say the least. The last two races haven’t been all that good for me, so to get a win today, I was pumped.

Stu Baylor’s comeback attempt in the Grand National Cross Country (GNCC) Series continues, now featuring four-straight wins. That’s just in GNCC, also, because Stu has spent his other weekend’s winning in AMA National Enduro and the U.S. Sprint Enduro Series. Baylor started the GNCC season in a huge hole after missing round one with injury, and struggling at round two with a clutch problem. It’s been all wins since, and after his fourth-straight over the weekend in Indiana, he knows the score.

“Five points,” he said, accurately calculating his deficit to series’ leader Ben Kelley.

On this day, Baylor’s stiffest competition down the stretch came from Kelley himself. After Baylor and his AmPro Yamaha teammate Layne Michael got out front early, Kelley put in a charge to get to second and bid for the win. Baylor had enough to hold him off.

Round five of the 2021 GNCC Racing season would see a return to Union, South Carolina’s Big Buck Farm for the Tiger Run GNCC. The Big Buck Farm hosted the season opening Big Buck GNCC back in February and for the first time ever would host two GNCC events in a single season. While the course and conditions were different from the opening round, the last name of the rider taking the overall win at the two events would be the same; except the first names would be different. Here are a few keynotes from the Tiger Run GNCC.

Society Hill, South Carolina—The 2021 Grand National Cross Country (GNCC) Series presented by Specialized, an AMA National Championship, concluded round four, FMF Camp Coker Bullet, of racing on Sunday, March 28. After a brief rainstorm with high winds, conditions drastically changed throughout the course.

Steward Baylor’s march back into the GNCC title contention continues, as the AmPro Yamaha rider won his second-straight race in the series after missing round one with injury, and suffering clutch problems at round two. This one wasn’t easy though as Stu Baylor and Josh Strang battled the whole time, all the way down to the last lap. The pair would begin to pull away from the rest of the pack, while swapping the lead position multiple times. Strang would lead the way as the white flag came out, but as they headed towards the finish line it was Stu Baylor coming through to earn his second-straight win of the year. Strang would finish second just three seconds behind Stu Baylor.

Washington, Georgia—The Grand National Cross Country (GNCC) Series presented by Specialized, an AMA National Championship, completed round three of the 2021 season in Washington, Georgia at Aonia Pass MX with The Specialized General. Throughout the weekend the series saw 2,060 entries across Motorcycle, ATV and eMTB racing.

As the race got underway it was Magna1 Motorsports/Husqvarna’s Jordan Ashburnjumping out to grab the $250 All Balls Racing XC1 Open Pro Holeshot Award, but as the pack of eager racers made their way to timing and scoring on lap one it was Coastal GasGas Factory Racing’s Ricky Russell holding the early lead.

As they headed out for their second lap AmPro Yamaha’s Steward Baylor was on a mission to get to the front. Baylor would put his head down and push from a seventh place start to take over the lead as they came through on lap two. Baylor would continue to push himself as he held the lead. As he made his way around for the white flag, Baylor had over a minute lead. Baylor remained focused and crossed the finish line after three-hours of racing to take his first overall win of the 2021 season.

Round two of the 2021 Grand National Cross Country (GNCC) Series presented by Specialized, an AMA National Championship, concluded with motorcycle racing on Sunday, March 7 in Palatka Florida. The world’s fastest off-road motorcycle racers would take to the sandy terrain of Florida at Hog Waller’s Mud. 

Getting a great jump off the line and earning himself the $250 All Balls Racing XC1 Holeshot Award was Magna1 Motorsports/Husqvarna’s Jordan Ashburn. After getting that early lead, Coastal GASGAS Factory Racing’s Ricky Russell would soon make a pass into the number one spot, holding onto it for the first two laps of racing.

Tulsa, OK (March 2, 2021) – The 2021 Kicker AMA Arenacross Series switched things up and headed outdoors for Rounds 7 and 8 of the series. The events were held at the East Bay Raceway Park in Tampa, Florida on this past Saturday and Sunday. The oversized arenacross track and full gates of top Arenacross and Supercross talent, in the pro classes, gave way to some of the best racing of the series thus far.

Phoenix Racing Honda Team's Kyle Peters finished the weekend with his unbeaten streak still in tact. He's now won 16 straight main events this series, and heads to Amarillo looking to finish the series with the streak alive, while clinching his second straight AMA National Championship title. 

Plenty of bench racing before the season began in regards to the vacant Grand National Cross Country (GNCC) Series throne. Kailub Russell had retired from the series after winning eight-straight titles, and there were many contenders for this year’s crown, including Steward Baylor. But few probably had Stu's younger brother Grant Baylor at the top of their list. While making his debut on the new KLM Milwaukee GasGas team, Grant notched the second win of his GNCC career, firing first in what promises to be a wild season.

Tulsa, OK (January 24, 2021) – The 2021 Kicker AMA Arenacross Series stopped in Guthrie, Oklahoma for rounds five and six of the series. The events were held at the Lazy E Arena on Friday and Saturday. The oversized arenacross track and full gates of top talent in the pro classes gave way to some of the best racing of the series thus far.

Phoenix Racing Honda Team's Kyle Peters managed to continue his win streak this weekend, remaining unbeaten at the top. Though with each passing round the feat is seeming to become a little tougher to accomplish. Team Babbitt's Monster Energy Kawasaki rider Mike Alessi is one of a few pressing to get that first win and knock Peters off the top of the podium. Alessi led for many laps during a few main events this weekend, showing he has skillset and ability to make it happen.

Tulsa, OK (January 10, 2021) – The 2021 Kicker AMA Arenacross Series opening weekend took place on Friday and Saturday with Rounds One and Two being held at the Mississippi Horse Park Arena in Starkville, Mississippi.

The opening rounds saw a lot of drama, a lot of action and a lot of new faces in the 250 Pro Sport and 450 Pro Sport classes. But three familiar faces dominated a lot of the weekend with privateers Kyle Bitterman and Gared Steinke getting podium finishes throughout the weekend, and Phoenix Racing Honda Team Rider Kyle Peters continued his 2020 dominance into the new year, sweeping the pro classes across the weekend.

Who is ready for Supercross to return?! With Covid-19 still playing a factor in the upcoming series, it's going to be another weird season. Hopefully things can return to normal and the fans can pack the stadiums to see their favorite teams and riders! Now with only a couple weeks between us and the first race, we should introduce you to our team! 

Isaac Teasdale joins our Babbitt's Monster Kawaski team, along with Mike Alessi, to compete in the 2021 Kicker Arenacross series! 

Mike Alessi, the most successful amateur motocross racer of all-time, with 11 career national championships at Loretta Lynn's, is joining the Babbitt's Monster Kawasaki team to compete in the 2021 Kicker Arenacross series! 

The 2020 Supercross season was a weird one. With Covid-19 stopping the races halfway through the season, Team Babbitt's riders perservered through a season no one could have ever predicted. 

Babbitt's is always proud to team up with Kawasaki!  Check out this Sponsor Spotlight that highlights our relationship in racing through the years. 💚 #teamgreen

Amarillo, TX (March 9, 2020) - The final round of the AMA Kicker Arenacross Series wrapped up in Amarillo, Texas this past Saturday.

Though Kyle Peters secured his win the weekend before in Salt Lake City (thus sitting out this event in Amarillo) the rest of the top five spots in the Pro Series were still up in the air and the racing was as exciting as ever in the final two races of the season.

Salt Lake City, Utah (March 2, 2020) - Rounds ten and eleven took place this past weekend at the Maverik Center in Salt Lake City, Utah.

Rounds eight and nine took place this past weekend at the Reno-Sparks Livestock Events Center in Reno, Nevada.

DENVER, CO (February 2, 2020) – The 2020 Kicker Arenacross series continued to provide fans with some exciting pro race action, this time from Denver Colorado. Rounds six and seven took place at the National Western Events Center.

GUTHRIE, OK (January 26, 2020) - Current series points leader, Kyle Peters, widened the gap between first and second place during Rounds four and five in Guthrie, Oklahoma. Peters won both the 250 Pro Sport and 450 Pro Sport classes on Friday and Saturday, sweeping the weekend.

KYLE PETERS IS VICTORIOUS IN HOBBS

And With a 450 Pro Sport Win, He Moves into First Overall

2020 Arenacross Series to Air on Fox Sports 2

TV Series premieres on Saturday, January 18th with Round One from Loveland

DEFENDING CHAMPION JACE OWEN WINS BIG IN LOVELAND

And Newcomer to Series Starts Strong, Narrowly Trailing Owen Overall

It's going to be an exciting race season, we are happy to announce that Babbitt's Online will partner with SGB Racing and Maxxis Tires for Supercross this year!

CONGRATS ARE IN ORDER FOR MICHIGAN TEAM GREEN RIDER - #70 JOHN GREWE 

Foothill Ranch, Calif. (August 5, 2019) – Kawasaki Team Green™ wrapped up the 37th Annual AMA Amateur National Motocross Championships at Loretta Lynn’s Dude Ranch, in Hurricane Mills, Tennessee with plenty to celebrate.

John Grewe once again won the Masters 50+ championship for the fourth consecutive year. Grewe also placed his Babbitt’s Online Kawasaki KX™450 on the podium with a second overall in the Senior 40+ class with 2-2-2 scores!

Foothill Ranch, Calif. (March 5, 2019) -Babbitt's Online/Monster Energy®/Kawasaki Team Green™ lined up this past weekend for the second round of the Kenda Full Gas Sprint Enduro Series at Moccasin Creek in Blackshear, Georgia. Defending series champion, Josh Strang took on the 12 different tests over the two days of racing and was able to land on the overall podium in second place

Foothill Ranch, Calif. (February 12, 2019) -  The Babbitt's Online/Monster Energy®/Kawasaki team made its off-road racing debut this weekend at the opening round of the Kenda Full Gas Sprint Enduro Series at the GTR Complex in Gaston, South Carolina. Defending series champion, Josh Strang took on the 12 different tests over the two days of racing and was able to land on the podium in second place overall.

 Foothill Ranch, Calif. (December 2, 2018) – Following the team introduction at the Grand National Cross Country (GNCC) banquet, Kawasaki Motors Corp., U.S.A. is pleased to introduce the Babbitt’s/Monster Energy®/Kawasaki Team Green™ effort that will field two XC-1 class riders in the 2019 GNCC and Full Gas Sprint Enduro Series. With this effort, Kawasaki will continue a long and successful racing relationship with Team Babbitt’s where they captured eight of the last nine AMA Arenacross Championships from 2010-2018. Joining the team aboard his all-new KX™450 motorcycle will be former GNCC XC-1 Champion and current Full Gas Sprint Enduro Champion Josh Strang.