Thornhill Racing Circuit opening race – Report

After months of anticipation, Thornhill Racing Circuit’s gates opened for the first time on July 4th as racers from USA, Mexico, and Brazil gathered to run the first competitive laps at the new facility for the Grand Opening presented by FTW, Avid, RC America, Xray, Hudy, Hobby Pro USA, Beta, and VP Powermaster. Practice on Friday afforded the first opportunity for racers to experience the magnitude of the nation’s largest track. Designed and built by Joey “The Dirt” Christensen, the track features big lanes as wide as 20′ with European-influencing sweeping turns and American-styled jumps. Lap times dropped throughout Saturday’s qualifiers as the traction improved and drivers began to master the unique layout. Josh Glancy would TQ both nitro buggy and truggy, while Jake Dellinger and Andrew Clark took TQ honors in E-buggy and Pro4, respectively. Glancy made the fastest circuit of the day, lapping the track in 44.6 seconds.

Sunday’s mains were filled with great battles on the track. Jake Dellinger and Brian “Smiley” Henn swapped the first and second spots in the Pro E-Buggy double A-mains, with the tie-breaker giving Dellinger the win. Third went to Isaac Price. In the Truggy A-main, Josh Glancy and Kurt Kellum took turns in front until mechanical failure sidelined Glancy. After patiently holding the 3rd spot for the first part of the race Cade Whitenton moved to the front to take the win ahead of Kellum and third place finisher Robbie Darby. Glancy would find redemption at the end of the day in Pro Nitro Buggy, where he led wire to wire for the win. Kellum took second after holding that position for the majority of the race, relinquishing it only briefly during a late-race charge from Dellinger who ultimately finished third. Pro4 was dominated by Andrew Clark, who took both mains ahead of Aaron Royston (2nd) and Noah Dickerson (3rd).

Source: Thornhill Racing Circuit