2014 GNCC Racing Series Round #13 - Ironman GNCC Crawfordsville, IN October 15, 2014

ATV Part Plus/Can-Am's Bryan Buckhannon announced at the end of last season that he would probably be retiring from quad racing and focus on SXS racing instead. Fortunately that did not come to pass and Buckhannon showed his true championship spirit to claim the inaugural 4x4 Pro championship.

Bryan Buckhannon won the GNCC Racing Pro 4x4 Class Championship

Buckhannon had a good points lead heading into the final round, and only needed to finish the race to clench the championship, but Buckhannon wanted to put on a good show for the final round and that is exactly what he did.

Buckhannon didn't get the start he was looking for, but the heavy lap traffic worked to his advantage and by the second lap, he had caught up to Kevin Trantham and Robert Smith. The three riders battled for the entire race and in the end, Buckhannon crossed the finish line in the number two spot with the 2014 4x4 Pro Championship.

Bryan Buckhannon finished second at the Ironman GNCC

“It was a great battle out there. We had a great time. All of us led at some point and it was just a whole lot of fun. I was ready to retire last season but then they created the 4x4 Pro class and I knew the competition was stepping up and I had to go out there and try to win it. We have a great program with Can-Am and I am really happy to give them another championship,” said Buckhannon.

Robert Smith has been a fierce competitor all season long, with two class wins and all but one finish inside the top five. His consistency and determination gave his a third place finish for the final round and put him in the number three spot in the points chase.

Robert Smith battles for position through one of the many high-speed field sections

“This was a good way to end the season. We had a really good battle going between the top three out there and it was a lot of fun. I would have like to take the win, but I am pretty happy with third. We have a solid program in place and I have the speed to run with the top guys so next season we are going to step it up even more and go for that championship,” said Smith.

Robert Smith rounded out the GNCC Racing Pro 4x4 Podium in third