Renezeder wins third Lucas Oil Challenge Cup

The "special" race, where points don't count nor matter, no championship is affected and big money is on the line, is a tried-and-true formula used throughout motorsports. What makes short course different is its penchant for putting similar-but-different vehicles on the track at the same time, penalizing the faster of the two, and letting them have at it.

That's the recipe for the Lucas Oil Challenge Cup, which has ended the Lucas Oil Off Road Racing Series season since the series' inception. While most classes have their own races, the four-wheel-drive Pro 4s and two-wheel-drive Pro 2s race together, with the faster Pro 4s starting about 30 seconds behind the Pro 2s. And, just for grins, the top 10 in points in each class are inverted, so the season champ starts five rows deep within their class.

• Lucas Oil Off Road champions crowned Saturday at Lake Elsinore

So, for a top Pro 4 driver to win this thing, he must pass a bunch of trucks in his own class before working his way through the entire Pro 2 field. It seems impossible, but that's the way it usually works. The Pro 4s have more line choices than the Pro 2, and it's a lot easier for a Pro 4 to pass a Pro 2 than it is for even a Pro 2 to pass another Pro 2.

One driver, who happens to race both the rest of the season, seems to have mastered this particular motorsports exercise better than any other competitor, and he did it again on Sunday at Lake Elsinore Motorsports Park. The season over and nothing left on the table, Carl Renezeder (LEFT, and ABOVE, leading Eric Fitch) won his third Challenge Cup title in seven years.

Like the other drivers who had both classes of truck in the stable – Bryce Menzies, Rob MacCachren and Brian Deegan – Renezeder's Lucas Oil/General Tire Ford Pro 4 was his weapon of choice, which should make it clear which class the drivers feel has the edge.

Todd LeDuc brought the Pro 2 trucks, and thus the whole field, to the green flag. Todd led for a bit, but soon it was a battle between Pro 2 rookie Eric Fitch and veteran Rodrigo Ampudia, slugging it out for the lead.

"That was an intense battle, to say the least," Fitch said. "I'm glad I could walk away with no contact between us. We drove each other clean, and that was awesome."

The Pro 4s were charging, with Eric Barron at the point, but with both Kyle LeDuc and Renezeder making their way through the pack. LeDuc's charge was put on hold when he rolled at the exit of Turn 2 and watched the field go by before he could get going again. Of course, those who have watched Kyle LeDuc slice through a field of Pro 4s knew he would be back in the hunt in no time.

As the race progressed, a key component required for the Pro 4s to turn the chase into a battle was missing – a caution period. RJ Anderson provided one when he rolled to a stop on the front straight. The Pro 4s were now right on the tail of the Pro 2 field, and the war was on.

LeDuc was now up to Renezeder and chasing, which proved helpful when Pro 4 leader Eric Barron caught a rut, leaving Renezeder with nowhere to go, and sideways. LeDuc actually helped him straighten out, and the pair headed through the top Pro 2s.

First up was Robby Woods, who had proved very fast the day before in the season finale, leading until he had a flat. Woods and Renezeder have a history of on-track clashes, but both Renezeder and LeDuc got by him cleanly with a low-line move at Turn 3. Then they moved Ampudia back two positions, immediately after he lost the lead to Fitch. By the end of lap 10, both lead Pro 4 drivers were at the front, and LeDuc was hounding Renezeder. When LeDuc passed him and then he lost his brakes, Renezeder thought second was the best he might possibly do; but then LeDuc spun, and Renezeder was back out front and headed for a $30,000 payday.

"Today [the key] was definitely patience," Renezeder said. "Taking my time, staying out of trouble, letting my truck do its thing when it needed to do it. There at the end, I lost my brakes about three laps from the finish. I was like, 'OK, we're in for second today.' Then Kyle had a problem too. Today was our day."

Fitch ended up second, the first Pro 2. It was his first time on the podium since switching from Pro Buggy in 2014.

"I couldn't be happier, coming out here, running my first season in Pro 2 and being able to put it on the box at the end...it's the cherry on top," Fitch said. Woods finished third, partial redemption for victory lost to a flat tire the day before.

Pro Lite put on an impressive show, and it wasn't all about the racing, although a truck on fire making passes for podium positions certainly adds to the spectacle. With the top 10 in points inverted, Cole Mamer and Jeff Hoffman started up front. Mamer asserted himself toward the front in short order, where he began to look rather comfortable. But three drivers were working their way through the field. Brandon Arthur was up to third from his seventh-place starting position by the end of the second lap. Newly-crowned champ RJ Anderson, in his final Pro Lite race, was coming up as well, bringing runner-up Jerett Brooks with him.

Arthur made his way to second before lap 6 and began his run at Mamer. By this time , Anderson's truck began to smoke, although the cause wasn't quite yet known. Soon enough, though, it was clear that the trouble was with the right rear brakes. When a caution came out and the field slowed, it became a full-on fire (ABOVE). It was going to take more than that, though, to stop Anderson.

Arthur (LEFT) took the lead on the 12th lap, with Anderson now in third, his right rear wheel now fully engulfed. Even then he passed Mamer in the final turn with two laps to go. His flaming tire had had enough, however, and it gave up as he landed off the second tabletop on the front straight. Mamer was an unfortunate bystander, nosing into the back of Anderson's truck and getting stuck there for a moment.

That left Arthur to cruise to the win in his Competitive Metals/Toyo Tires Chevrolet, followed by Doug Mittag and Hoffman.

"I was worried about RJ catching up to us with the battle I was having with Mamer," Arthur said on the podium. "We were running a good pace, and luckily I was able to get by him without too much damage being caused. I was stressing for a while starting back that far, but we pulled it off."

In Pro Buggy, Taylor Atchison (BELOW) started fourth but made his way to second immediately. He battled with Elliot Watson for a bit before claiming the top spot. He motored on to the victory in his Tonka Off Road/AMA Plastics Alumi Craft, his first in Pro Buggy, followed by Dave Mason and newly minted champ Garrett George.

Lucas Oil Challenge Cup Winners:

Pro 4/Pro 2, Carl Renezeder
Pro Lite, Brandon Arthur
Pro Buggy, Taylor Atchison
Mod Kart, Ronnie Anderson Jr.
1 Kart, Luke Knupp Jr.
2 Kart, Cole Keatts