San Diego, California (July 29, 2008) — Championship Off-Road Racing Series (CORR) arrived to San Diego, California for Rounds 7 & 8, marking the halfway point of the 2008 CORR season.  Record crowds of nearly 30,000 fans packed “The Quarry” to watch their favorite Monster Energy Motorsports superstars, including Johnny Greaves, Rick Huseman, Travis Coyne, Rodrigo Ampudia, Jeremy McGrath, Shannon Campbell and Casey Currie, who fed into the frenzy of the packed house.

“The Quarry” at Chula Vista International Raceway is a .84-mile purpose-built race course featuring high banked turns, six-foot high bumps along with a high-speed front stretch where trucks reached over 100 miles per hour.

Leading the elite Pro 4 truck field was Monster Energy’s Johnny Greaves driving the #4 Monster Energy/Potowatomi/Toyota Tundra race truck.  He dazzled the crowds on both Saturday and Sunday with his “Let It Rip,” driving style.  Greaves ran in the front of the field in both Pro 4 races over the weekend’s racing festivities. 

In Saturday’s Round 7, Greaves survived the initial mayhem on the front straight away and weaved his Monster Magic through the dirt while charging to the front of the pack.

 As the Monster Energy superstar raced down the front stretch, his fierce competitor driving the Red Bull Pro 4 race truck, cart-wheeled out of control in front of the packed grandstands.  Luckily, the driver was not injured in the wild crash. 

The race was restarted and Greaves charged to the front of the pack going door-to-door with Renezeder as the two dirt warriors raced hard to the midway competition yellow flag.  As the green flag dropped, Greaves put on a show battling hard in the last several laps as neither driver lifted from mashing the gas pedal.  In the end, Greaves put his Monster Energy Pro 4 on the podium once again, gathering up another “Deuce” on the podium.

“We had a good run and I thought we were going to be able to get inside the other guy and take the win, but he raced hard and we couldn’t get around him.  Racing in front of thousands of screaming fans is great and we’re happy to be on the podium,” remarked the Wisconsin-native, as he sipped his icy cold Monster Energy drink.

Mexico’s Rodrigo Ampudia carried the Monster Energy flag in Pro Lite truck division as he captured yet another podium finish.  The young superstar from Ensenada, Mexico fought off 28 racers before he took third place in a tough battle.  “We love to race and racing so close to home where all of our family and friends can come out to be part of our team is great.  Our entire team rocked the Monster Energy in the Papa’s N Beer pit.  The Monster Vision VIP Lounge was directly between us and Johnny Greaves so it was like one huge Monster Energy party. We had a great racing weekend and we’ll be back for more in a few weeks,” said the Monster Energy superstar.

Motocross icon, Jeremy McGrath finished with a top five in Saturday’s Round 7 after coming from the back of the pack of 23 CORR Pro 2 race trucks.  McGrath, who took a podium position in Pomona, California six weeks ago, raced strong in his #15 Monster Energy race truck.  “We had solid racing this weekend and we’re happy to get out of here with minimal damage.  We’re coming on strong, so look for us the rest of the season.”

Sunday’s first ever live CORR television broadcast, which aired on NBC Sports, was headlined by Johnny Greaves driving the familiar Monster Energy Pro 4.

That was until disaster struck in the final lap. 

Greaves fought off all the challenges from the rest of the Pro 4 field and after 14 laps of leading, the race field was slowed for the yellow caution flag due to a crash that sent two trucks to the pits with damage beyond repair. 

That set up a green-white-checkered flag race to the finish.  As the tension in the stands built, the drama began to unfold. 

The green flag dropped and Greaves shifted through the gears and jumped to the front of the pack leading through the first two turns and simply schooling the field as he did all race long. 

Sliding sideways into Turn 2 at 85 miles per hour, the Monster Pro 4 charged out of the turn and straight up the steep face of Turn 3 when something went awry. 

The Monster Energy Pro 4 drove up the steep embankment out of the fast line where it was obvious to everyone that he had just suffered some sort of mechanical failure.

Greaves explained,”We had a great restart and we held the fast line through Turn 2 accelerating towards the top of Turn 3. I started cranking on the steering wheel and the truck didn’t want to turn at all. We lost the power steering belt and the wheel was ripped out of my hands. We served up the last lap on a silver platter, about the same as the Monster Girls serving up “Loca Moca” in the Monster Vision VIP Lounge.  It was a good race, as we led from the start until we served up the win, we came up just a bit short at the end,” said a dejected Greaves.

The cheering crowd of nearly 15,000 fans was stunned as the groans and moans replaced the intense cheering in the stands.

The Monster Energy attention immediately focused on Rick Huseman driving the #3 FABTECH/Toyo Tires/Monster Energy Pro 4.  Huseman wheeled his hotrod Pro 4 through the massive bumps and steep inclines that “The Quarry” at Chula Vista International Raceway is well known for.

Huseman ran solid in the top five for the majority of the race and as the green flag dropped on the restart he charged into a top three spot.  When Greaves suffered his race ending mechanical issue, Huseman set his sights on the top spot, but was unable to catch the leader before the final checkered flag waved.

With a big smile and wearing his Monster Energy hat, Huseman climbed from his race truck and said, “Wow, what a day!  That was an incredible race and that was quite the show from inside the truck.  The FABTECH/Toyo Tires/Monster Energy Pro 4 really worked well today.  We spent some time after Saturday’s race evaluating how we could get faster and we worked hard towards perfecting this truck.  We were about a second off of the leader and I was really digging hard in the corners trying to catching Douglas, but it just didn’t work out.  Nonetheless, finishing second is great.”

Greaves ended up finishing in 9th position overall in the Pro 4 elite field, while Rick Huseman drove to an impressive second place among a full field of CORR Pro 4 race trucks. 

Showcasing the ultimate in off road racing motorsports, MONSTER Vision arrived to “The Quarry” at the Chula Vista International Raceway and rocked the 30,000 spectators that filled the grandstands.  With the stands filled to capacity, there was a Monster Energy buzz that filled the pits for the two day off road racing festival. 

Monster Energy brought in the most state-of-the-art VIP Lounge trackside affectionately named, “Monster Vision,” which was absolutely the best seat in the house.  Wahoo’s Fish Taco’s catered food and VIP’s were served their favorite flavor of Monster Energy drinks.  The two-story entertainment center hosted the VIP’s of off road motorsports and no one left Monster Vision without a smile on their face.

Positioned at the edge of the final turn of the track, Monster Vision was the centerpiece of all the trackside attractions and was no doubt the best seat in the house.
    
Rounds 7 & 8 were broadcasted live from trackside.  Saturday’s racing action was broadcasted on Speed TV and Sunday’s race action was live on NBC Sports TV. 
A 1 ½ hour long television show is scheduled to be broadcasted in selected markets.  Check your local listings for the broadcast schedule in your area.
    
Next up are Rounds 9 & 10 of the 2008 CORR Series, to be held August 16-17 at the Los Angeles County Fairplex in Pomona, Calif.

 

2008 CORR Series
Round 7 & 8, July 26-27—Chula Vista International Off-Road Raceway—San Diego, Ca

Saturday (July 26) Round 7 Results
Class - Pos. No.- Driver- Hometown – Vehicle

Pro 4 (14 Laps on .84-mile course)
2nd 4 Johnny Greaves, Abrams, WI, Toyota Tundra
7th 3 Rick Huseman, Riverside, CA, Toyota Tundra
8th 5 Travis Coyne, El Centro, CA, Ford F150

Pro 2 (14 Laps on .84-mile course)
     5th  15 Jeremy McGrath, San Francisco, CA, Ford F150
     6th   4  Johnny Greaves, Abrams, WI, Toyota Tundra
     8th  36 Rodrigo Ampudia, Mexico, Ford F150

Pro Lite (13 Laps on .84-mile course)
     3rd 36 Rodrigo Ampudia, Mexico, Ford Ranger
    24th 5 Shannon Campbell, Gilbert, AZ, Ford Ranger
    26th 2 Casey Currie, Anaheim, CA, Nissan

 

Sunday (July 27) Round 8 Results
Class - Pos. No.- Driver- Hometown – Vehicle

Pro 4 (16 Laps on .84-mile course)
2nd 3 Rick Huseman, Riverside, CA Toyota Tundra
7th 5 Travis Coyne, El Centro, CA, Ford F150
     9th 4 Johnny Greaves, Abrams, WI, Toyota Tundra

Pro 2 (14 Laps on .84-mile course)
     5th 36 Rodrigo Ampudia, Mexico, Ford F150
    19th 15 Jeremy McGrath, San Francisco, CA, Ford F150
    DNS   4 Johnny Greaves, Abrams, WI, Toyota Tundra
     

Pro Lite (13 Laps on .84-mile course)
    8th     2 Casey Currie, Anaheim, CA, Nissan
   13th   5  Shannon Campbell, Gilbert, AZ, Ford Ranger
   16th 36 Rodrigo Ampudia, Mexico, Ford Ranger