Day one and round one of the three-day Nitro Rallycross Arizona doubleheader has passed. Pastrana emerged victorious after a full day of racing.
Battle Bracket Seeding Heats
Heat One
Heat one would see Kevin Eriksson in pole position. Followed by Travis Pastrana, Fraser McConnell, Oliver Eriksson, Austin Cindric and Oliver Bennett. Travis Pastrana would take the heat win. After beating Kevin Eriksson by 0.574 seconds. Oliver Eriksson would come in third, 0.384 seconds behind Kevin.
Heat Two
Heat Two would see Kris Meeke start in the pole position. Meeke would be followed by Conner Martell, Robin Larsson, Andreas Bakkerud, and Chase Elliott. Robin Larsson would win the heat. Beating DRR JC teammate Andreas Bakkerud by 0.690 seconds. Chase Elliott would come in third, 2.856 seconds behind Bakkerud.
Battle Bracket Round One
Round one of the Battle Bracket would see Fraser McConnell square off against Kris Meeke. Conner Martell squares off against guest driver Austin Cindric and Oliver Bennett squares off against Chase Elliott. Travis Pastrana, Andreas Bakkerud, Robin Larsson, Oliver Eriksson and Kevin Eriksson would get a bye round as a result of the Battle Bracket Seeding Heat.
Fraser McConnell Vs. Kris Meeke
Fraser McConnell came into round five looking to carry momentum from round four which he won. Unfortunately, Kris Meeke would end McConnell’s Battle Bracket early. By beating McConnell by 0.550 seconds to move on to round two.
Austin Cindric Vs. Conner Martell
Austin Cindric would come into his first-ever Nitro Rallycross Battle Bracket looking to do well and make a good impression. Unfortunately, the experienced Conner Martell would end his chances early. By beating Cindric by 2.492 seconds to move on to round two.
Chase Elliott Vs. Oliver Bennett
Chase Elliott would come in looking to have a good result in his second-ever Nitro Rallycross event. Unfortunately, Elliott would be knocked out of the Battle Bracket after a DNF. Thus handing Oliver Bennett the win.
Battle Bracket Quarter Final
Round two of the Battle Bracket would be our first taste of the top drivers. As they would all have a bye-round in round one. Travis Pastrana would face off against the returning Kris Meeke. Andreas Bakkerud would square off with Oliver Eriksson. Robin Larsson would face off against Conner Martell. Finally, Kevin Eriksson would face off against Oliver Bennett.
Kris Meeke Vs. Travis Pastrana
Kris Meeke would come into round two with a slight advantage over Travis Pastrana. As Meeke has raced four more laps on the track than Pastrana. Unfortunately, this extra track time didn’t help Meeke. As Pastrana would beat him by 12.344 seconds to move onto the semifinals.
Andreas Bakkerud Vs. Oliver Eriksson
Andreas Bakkerud and Oliver Eriksson would both come into the race cold and without the four extra laps of experience. Meaning they started on an even playing field. Andreas Bakkerud would beat Eriksson by 0.951 seconds to win the heat.
Robin Larsson Vs. Conner Martell
Much like Meeke, Martell would come into the quarter-finals with an extra four laps of experience. Unfortunately for Martell, he would have a worse result than Meeke. As Martell would DNF without even finishing a lap. Thus handing Robin Larsson the round win and a ticket to the semifinals.
Kevin Eriksson Vs. Oliver Bennett
Kevin Eriksson and Oliver Bennett would face off in the final race of the Battle Bracket quarter-final. Robin Larsson would beat Eriksson by 1.184 seconds to move onto the semifinal.
Battle Bracket Semi-Final
With wins in the quarter-final Travis Pastrana, Andreas Bakkerud, Oliver Bennett and Robin Larsson would move on to the semifinals. Pastrana would face off against Bakkerud as Bennett would face off against Larsson.
Andreas Bakkerud Vs. Travis Pastrana
Andreas Bakkerud would face off against reigning Nitro Rallycross Champion Travis Pastrana in the semifinal. Pastrana would edge out Bakkerud to win the semifinal. Beating Bakkerud by 0.498 seconds to move onto the Battle Bracket final.
Robin Larsson Vs. Oliver Bennett
Oliver Bennett would square off against Robin Larsson for a shot at the Battle Bracket finals. Robin Larsson would originally win the event after Bennett would DNF less than a lap in. But in a weird turn of events, Bennett would proceed to the final. This would come as a result of Larsson being disqualified from the race due to contact.
Battle Bracket Final
The Battle Bracket final would see Travis Pastrana face off against Oliver Bennett. Travis Pastrana would take home the Battle Bracket win. After beating Bennett by 1.361 seconds.
Group E Heats
Heat One
Heat one would see Oliver Bennett start in the pole position. Followed by Robin Larsson, Kevin Eriksson, Conner Martell, Fraser McConnell, and Chase Elliott. Kevin Eriksson would take the heat win to advance directly to the finals. Beating Robin Larsson by 0.105 seconds. Fraser McConnell would come in third, 0.770 seconds behind Larsson.
Heat Two
Heat two would see Travis Pastrana start in pole position. Followed by Andreas Bakkerud, Oliver Eriksson, Kris Meeke and Austin Cindric. Travis Pastrana would win the heat to advance directly to the final. Beating Kris Meeke 1.536 seconds. Kevin Eriksson would place third, 0.885 seconds behind Meeke.
Group E Semifinals
Semifinal One
Semifinal one would see Robin Larsson start in the pole position. Followed by Oliver Eriksson, Chase Elliott, Austin Cindric and Oliver Bennett. Robin Larsson would take the semifinal win to advance to the finals along with Oliver Eriksson. Larsson would beat Oliver Eriksson by 0.854 seconds. Austin Cindric would come in third finishing three laps behind Eriksson as Cindric would only race a single lap.
Semifinal Two
Semifinal two would see Kris Meeke start in pole position. Followed by Fraser McConnell, Andreas Bakkerud, and Conner Martell. Kris Meeke would take the semifinal win to advance to the finals along with Fraser McConnell. Meeke would beat Fraser McConnell by 1.024 seconds. Conner Martell would come in third, 0.787 seconds behind McConnell.
Group E Last Chance Qualifier
The LCQ would see Conner Martell start in pole position. Followed by Austin Cindric, Andreas Bakkerud, Chase Elliott and Oliver Bennett. Conner Martell would win the LCQ to advance to finals along with Andreas Bakkerud. Martell would beat Andreas Bakkerud by 1.214 seconds. Oliver Bennett would come in third, 2.380 seconds behind Bakkerud.
Group E Final
The finals would see Travis Pastrana start in pole position. Followed by Kevin Eriksson, Robin Larsson, Kris Meeke, Oliver Eriksson, Fraser McConnell, Conner Martell and Andreas Bakkerud. Travis Pastrana would win the final to take home his second Nitro Rallycross event win of the season. Pastrana would beat his Vermont Sportscar teammate Conner Martell by 0.4 seconds to win the race. Andreas Bakkerud would come in third, 1.292 seconds behind Martell.
My name is Joe Moore. I am a writer for Belly Up Hockey, Belly Up Racing, and Belly Up Sports. You can find me on Twitter.
