Round One of the 2023 Championship Off Road Racing Series kicked off at the Roaring Lions Raceway in Antigo, Wisconsin. Despite cooler cloudy conditions, fans still packed the grandstands to watch a full day of racing. This year the track was run in reverse, challenging those drivers who have become too comfortable with the layout. Drivers had to be on their toe, gaining speed in corners and off jumps to give them a competitive advantage.
“Rowdy” Ryan Beat proved at the season opener his Pro-2 truck was dialed in for the season. Beat wasted no time leading the field through the first turn. Beat stayed clean the entire race. After struggling in 2022 with a handful of podiums but no wins, Beat is ready to prove he has what it takes to make it to the championship. Beat will be one to watch this season.
In the Pro-4 class, six trucks started the race. In the first lap, three immediately became casualties of racing. That left CJ Greaves, Adrian Cenni and Kyle Greaves to fight it out. Kyle was driving Johnny’s Pro-4. Johnny was hospitalized after a Friday qualifying crash. The latest word is Johnny is doing ok after posting a photo from his hospital bed. Meanwhile defending champion CJ and Cenni swapped lead positions for several laps with some exciting door to door racing. In the end CJ claimed the top spot on the podium.
Earlier in the afternoon, Kyle Greaves had already stood high atop the podium. Kyle patiently waited for the mandatory caution flag before striking. Kyle and Trey Gibbs spent the remaining laps battling for the lead. It wouldn’t take long for Kyle to find the perfect line that carried enough speed to make his lead stick all the way to the checkered flag. Gibbs would settle for second.
Other class wins went to Mark Steinhardt in Pro Buggy and Nick Visser in the now full field of Pro Spec trucks.
