Fort Mill, SC – The Lucas Oil Off Road Racing Series (LOORRS) threw down for Rounds 3 and 4 in Chandler, AZ with Team GT dominating Pro-Lite competition. Friday night’s battle was one for the history books as Team GT member, Ryan Beat, captured his first Pro-Lite win as a driver/owner in the No. 51 Rockstar Energy/Lunarpages Dodge. Coming from the back of the pack, Beat had his General GRABBER’s hooked up while navigating his way to the top five by the second caution of the race. An incident on the final lap brought out a green, white, checkered scenario but it didn’t disrupt Beat’s rhythm. A misstep by leader, Brandon Arthur, combined with an artful pass by Beat, drove Beat right into victory lane.
“The race was more frustrating than I would have liked,” sited Beat following his win. “We started based on points so I was pretty far back. I got spun early and at that point just wanted a solid top-five finish.” Beat then found some speed in his truck and powered up to the front where he said, “I dove for it on Sheldon (Creed) going into turn one and made it stick then just drove on to the win. It was a lot of fun. I can’t thank my sponsors and everyone that has helped on this program enough. This is a huge confidence boost.”
“Congratulations to both Ryan and Jerrett on their wins,” said Travis Roffler, director of marketing for General Tire. “To sweep Pro-Lite for the weekend is a great accomplishment. We’ve introduced a new Pro-Lite tire and I think that has been a step in the right direction for the Pro-Lite program. We’ve been with Ryan since he started in LOORRS and to watch him grow as a driver and now car owner, makes me extremely proud. You’ll be hearing a lot more from him for years to come.”
About the new tires, Beat is a fan stating, “The new GRABBER has been great. It has better performance and grip and we barely have to groove it. We can pretty much go win with a tire right off the shelf which is great.”
When asked about the balancing act between driver and owner Beat said, “It’s been a lot of fun but a lot of work doing both.” He continued, “You want to preserve the truck as an owner and not have fix a wrecked truck every week. On the other hand, as a driver and a racer, you want to do everything you can to win. It’s definitely a fine line but I’m enjoying it.”
As for a championship Beat says, “Pro-Lite is a gnarly level and things happen fast.” He continued, “I know we’re a championship caliber team but that mishap on Saturday put us far back in points. That said, anything can happen in Pro-Lite. I know we’re a top three, four truck and I’m going to do what I can to get out there and win races and see what happens from there.”
In Round 4 action on Saturday, it was Team GT newcomer, Jerett Brooks, that emerged the victor in the No. 77 General Tire/Synergy Electric Nissan. Brooks battled Sheldon Creed for the lead for the duration of the race. While Creed put up a good fight, Brooks never gave up his persistence. Finally, on the last lap, Brooks put the moves on Creed in turn three to set him up for a race-winning pass in turn four. Brooks crossed the line to capture his first career win on General GRABBERS.
“Jerrett has been a great addition to Team GT,” Roffler said. “We see great things for him in the future and are thrilled to have him on the team.”
Also in Round 4 action, Carl Renezeder, showed true to form running up front for the duration of the Pro-4 race in the No. 17 Lucas Oil/General Tire Ford. After a fierce battle, and the dust settled, Renezeder captured a third-place finish.