Global RallycrossGRC Lites

Foust masterclass fails to prevent third Speed title

1 Mins read
Credit: Louis Yio/Red Bull GRC

A dominant weekend in Los Angeles from Tanner Foust failed to prevent Scott Speed from claiming his third consecutive Red Bull Global Rallycross championship crown.

Foust won all three of his heats, and a semi-final, whereas Scott’s only triumph came during his semi-final, despite his impressive LA record of four wins from six previous starts at the venue.

Like every race prior, Foust got away well in the final, leading into the first heavy braking zone. Speed meanwhile was shuffled down to fourth behind Patrik Sandell and a fast-starting Cabot Bigham, while also facing heavy pressure from Steve Arpin in fifth.

Up front, Foust controlled the pace of the race, managing the gap to Sandell. Meanwhile, Speed couldn’t find a way past Bigham until lap seven of the 10 lap race when the Bryan Herta Rallysport driver slipped wide at the final turn, leaving the door open for Speed.

That would prove to be the first in a series of moves that would give Speed a podium that had been looking somewhat unlikely after the opening lap. On the final lap, Sandell ended up losing second place to Speed as Volkswagen Andretti Rallycross secured yet another one-two finish.

Foust’s win was the 16th of his career and means he once again is holder of the record for most wins in the series.

Also on the final lap, Arpin made his way past a slowing Bigham for fourth, but those positions ended up being switched post-race due to a penalty for Arpin for contact with Sebastian Eriksson on the opening lap.

Outside the top five Mitchell deJong won a tight intra-team battle with Olsbergs Honda team mate Sebastian Eriksson, while Austin Dyne was the final finisher in eighth place.

Chris Atkinson had a tough end to the weekend retiring from the final halfway through, while Oliver Eriksson also made an early exit from the season finale.

Speed’s championship win means he’s the first ever three-time Red Bull GRC champion – Credit: Louis Yio/Red Bull GRC

In Red Bull GRC Lites, Conner Martell marked a remarkable return from the injuries he sustained in Seattle by dominating the whole weekend and winning the final ahead of Californians Alex Keyes and Christian Brooks.

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Dominik Wilde is a professional motorsport and motoring writer that has covered events in both the UK and USA. His main focus for the Checkered Flag is covering Americas Rallycross and Nitro Rallycross.
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