Bryce Menzies had one goal after coming within one lap of putting his Mopar® Ram Truck in victory lane on Friday with the Traxxas TORC (The Off-Road Championship) Series at The Dirt Track at Charlotte in Concord, N.C., and that was to win on Saturday in the finale of the two-night event. Menzies did exactly that, leading wire-to-wire in PRO 2 to score his first career TORC win in just his fifth career start.
“Mopar is proud of Bryce on his win tonight at Charlotte,” said Pietro Gorlier, President and CEO of Mopar, Chrysler Group’s service, parts and customer-care brand. “Mopar power under the hood of the dependable Ram kept Bryce up front and made him the driver to beat. Mopar and Ram continue to be the winning combination in TORC this season.”
“It’s still early in the season, but to be leading the TORC manufacturers’ championship, while consistently finishing on the podium speaks to the winning combination of Ram Trucks and Mopar power,” said Fred Diaz, President and CEO Ram Truck Brand and Chrysler de Mexico. “I can’t say enough about our teams. These guys bring their A game every time they race. The TORC Series fields all-star talent at every round. But our Ram Truck teams are the MVPs. Hats off to Bryce. It’s been an exciting weekend both for our Ram Truck teams and our loyal owners who came out to Charlotte to cheer the guys on.”
Menzies led the first 20 laps in the opener in PRO 2 on Friday, before a mechanical failure ended his night just as he was about to take the white flag, with fellow Mopar Ram Truck driver Rob MacCachren slipping by to snag the win. Menzies started second on Saturday night and took the lead at the start from Chad Hord, who was on the pole.
Menzies quickly pulled away in the early going and had a sizeable lead when the mandatory competition caution flag waved at the halfway point of the 22-lap contest. Menzies used a strong restart to hold the top spot and methodically began to pull away as MacCachren battled Hord for the second spot. Menzies led 42 of the 44 laps of feature racing competition on the weekend in PRO 2.
“The Ram Truck with Mopar power under the hood, definitely got us out front,” said Menzies. “We came out last night and led the whole race and had a mechanical problem at the end. My crew did a great job. They worked until 4:30 in the morning and gave me another great truck. My whole family is out here this weekend and this is great.”
MacCachren, who won each of the first three races of the season in PRO 2, driving a Mopar Ram Truck, ended up second. The veteran gained a significant amount of ground on Menzies over the final two circuits of the 22-lap event. MacCachren has finished on the podium in four straight races to open the 2011 season.
Ricky Johnson, who won the opener on Friday night in PRO 4, brought his Mopar-powered Ram Truck home second in the finale at Charlotte, after a thrilling last lap battle with Johnny Greaves. Johnson was the leader with two laps to go, as the pair made contact and both had to get on the brakes very hard, gathering it back in and keeping both trucks going. The duo ran the final two laps side-by-side, with Greaves edging Johnson on the last lap.
Andrew Caddell put in one of the drives of the night in his Mopar-powered Ram Truck in PRO Light. The native of Graham, Wash. took the lead on the opening lap and was out front when he rolled over. Caddell was able to keep going, falling back to fifth at this point, when contact on the very next lap dropped him to the rear of the field. Over the second half of the race, Caddell charged back through the field to finish second, to earn his third straight podium in PRO Light.
Luke Johnson finished fifth in a Mopar-powered Ram in PRO Light, with RJ Anderson 10th. Samuel Hübinette, who has won twice this season in his Mopar Ram Truck in PRO Light, was battling for fourth early in the race, when he got upside down, ending his night.
Next up for the Traxxas TORC Series are Rounds 7 and 8 at Bark River (Mich.) Raceway, August 13–14.
