Lucas Oil Off Road Series - McGrath Leads Stronghold Motorsports To Take Round Four Podium

Riverside, April 20, 2011) - Overcoming a mid pack starting position, Jeremy McGrath fought his way towards the front while holding off a host of challengers to capture a second place finish in Round 4 of Lucas Oil Off Road Racing Series Pro 2 Unlimited action in Surprise, Arizona. McGrath's strong showing, his second podium in just four rounds of racing, places him among the elite in his quest for the Pro 2 Unlimited title. Sunday's jubilation provided redemption for the team as a combination of a violent crash during practice and hard contact during the race led to a disappointing third round of racing just the day before. Saturday's crash into a solid concrete barrier at speed, caused significant damage to the truck, presenting the crew with the monumental task of making major repairs just hours before the main event.

Jeremy McGrath #2 Pro 2 post race CBS interview

"After qualifying Saturday, the Stronghold Team worked so hard getting this #2 Pro 2 truck back together and ready to race," said McGrath after Sunday's event. "We ran pretty well in Round 3 but this is a deep field with a lot of fast guys and everything has to be on point to run at the front. Our crew worked their butts off to give me a great truck and we fought hard today. Finishing the weekend strong says a lot about these guys and how much they put into this program. This really was a team effort."

Although short course off road racing attracts audiences with its unique form of no holds barred, fender to fender action, the nature of the sport took its toll on the #54 Pro 2 of Rob Naughton on Saturday as his truck was spun and damaged in the second turn of the first lap by a competitor. Naughton and his crew quickly brushed off the incident to focus on repairing the truck to compete in Sunday's Round 4.

Naughton PR Rounds 3-4 2011

While McGrath parlayed a disappointing Saturday, Round 3 event into Sunday success, his Stronghold Motorsports teammate, Naughton, also ran towards the front for virtually the entire race on Sunday only to find himself a victim of aggressive competitors after a restart late in the afternoon. Working his way through the field, Naughton joined McGrath in the fray as both drivers fought for a podium finish. Unfortunately, it was Naughton, running in 4th position at the time, who got collected as another driver spun and the throng of Pro 2 trucks stormed by. As he and the Stronghold Team left Arizona disappointed with the results, Naughton remains a strong candidate to challenge for the Pro 2 title.

Steele PR Round 4 2011

2010 ProBuggy Champion, Cameron Steel continued his transition into the highly competitive ProLite truck field with a pair of top five finishes for the weekend. Steele, showing that he is a force to be reckoned with in the class, was just four tenths of a second from taking the top spot during Friday's qualifying session. While his results from both rounds of racing were identical, Steele's increased comfort level in the truck was on display in Sunday's action as he continuously challenged for positions before a late race spin took him out of podium contention. Brandon Bailey earned his third top ten ProBuggy finish of the year in Saturday's Round 2. Sunday, Bailey was consistently running fast laps but contact with another driver put him deep in the field and resulted in his first finish outside the top ten this season.

Bailey PR Rounds 3-4 2011

Returning from Surprise, Arizona, Stronghold Motorsports now begins preparations for Rounds 5&6 of the Lucas Oil Off Road Racing Series at their home track at Glen Helen Raceway in San Bernardino, California. With Glen Helen Raceway just a few short miles from Stronghold Motorsports Headquarters in Riverside, the team is hard at work focused on achieving significant results in front of their home crowd.