Pro Motorsports’ Win Best in the Desert Vegas to Reno
Matt & Jeff Hancock Win BITD Vegas to Reno & Pro ATV Championship

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Tempe, AZ (8/20/2015) - Pro Motorsports’ Jeff Hancock, fresh out of the hospital after a bout of meningitis, teamed up with his brother, Matthew, and won the Best in the Desert General Tire “Vegas to Reno”, which was their fourth victory of this season, the duo only to start the Henderson 250 to clinch the 2015 BITD Pro Quad Championship.

The grueling 545-mile race was run over the desert between Beatty, NV just outside Las Vegas to Carson City, just south of Reno and is considered to be the longest off-road race in America. This year’s course was a tough one, featuring a racing surface punctuated by rocks, as well as large silt beds. With dry weather in the area, dust was also a problem.

Brothers Matthew Hancock & Jeff Hancock earned their fourth win of the Best in the Desert season with another win at Vegas to Reno

In addition, Jeff Hancock hadn’t ridden in nearly two weeks while he was hospitalized and only got out just a few days before the race. “I just tried to stay hydrated because I wasn’t even sure I could still ride,” said Jeff Hancock. “I did the first 30 miles and I felt good enough to help out my brother.”

“I didn’t know what he was going to be able to do,” said Matt Hancock. “So we didn’t really have a game plan and we winged it. I went in the mindset of riding the whole thing by myself.”

Despite battling with meningitis & staying in the hosptial before the race, Jeff Hanock put in a solid run with his brother to earn the 2015 BITD Pro ATV Championship

The brothers both had problems early in the race, but made up time in the pits. In addition, they both helped motivate each other as only two competitive brothers can do: “Jeff got on the bike and he made up some time. Seeing him make up that time really motivated me, so when I got back on, I pushed really hard,” said Matt Hancock.

“It worked out perfect for us,” said Jeff Hancock. “I ran 30-50-mile sections and was able to ride my butt off. This allowed us to close the gap and we caught the leaders in the pits. We both had really solid rides.”

Pit strategy paid off in the end. Their ace pit crew handed Matt Hancock the lead at pit 13 and the pair rode to victory, nearly eight minutes ahead of the second-place team.

“Jesse and Kenny with Tire Blocks along with Nick Nelson came out to help us out in the pits,” said Matt Hancock. “Obviously, you had to have your pit strategy right. We took second and the lead in the pits and this is a testament to the great work of our pit crew.”

The Hancock brothers took over the lead at Pit 13& built an 8 minute lead over the second place team by the finish

Tires also helped the pair. Many competitors experienced multiple flats on the rough surface. The Hancocks used the same set of Maxxis Tires outfitted with Tire Blocks for the entire event without any issues, which saved them some valuable time in the tight race to the finish.

“The Sparks Honda ran flawlessly today,” said Matt Hancock. “The Elka Shocks worked great. We were able to push all day without really getting tired. The Maxxis tires and Tire Blocks were the perfect combination. A lot of others had trouble with tires, and we ran the same set of tires the whole race and had no problems.”

ELKA's Matthew Hancock

The victory was Jeff Hancock’s first in this event, making it that much sweeter: “This is amazing. I couldn’t ask for better teammate than my brother,” said Jeff Hancock. “I’ve been trying to win the Vegas to Reno race for the last 10 years. So it was amazing to win it with my brother.”

The next race for the Best in the Desert Racing Association for the quad classes  is the Henderson 250 in December where the Hancock brothers will merely need to take the start to clinch the championship.

Matt Hancock 2015 Sponsors:
Hancock Racing, Can Am, Maxxis Tires, LKH Farming, Elka Suspension, ROLL Design, Curtis Sparks racing, FLY Racing, FASST Co., K&N Filters, Method Wheels, IMS Products, Tire Blocks, Leatt, Works Connection, Gaerne Boots, Hinson Racing, Sunstar Sprockets, ATVRiders.com, Precision Stabilizers, RPM Dominator Axles, Fourwerx Carbon, Precision Nutrition Plus, Baldwin Motorsports, OURY Grips, JR Publications, Finish Line Signs, PowerMadd, Matrix Racing Products, Streamline Brakes, CV4 Products & TCS Motorsports