Draper Secures XC2 Championship at The Yamaha Racing Ironman GNCC
AmPro Yamaha Racing’s Liam Draper finishes a stellar debut season with the team by securing his first GNCC XC2 title at Ironman Raceway / Oct 24, 2023 /
AmPro Yamaha Racing’s Liam Draper sealed the deal on his first XC2 National Championship with a runner-up finish last weekend at the Grand National Cross Country Series (GNCC) season finale at The Yamaha Racing Ironman GNCC in Crawfordsville, Indiana.
Draper enjoyed a successful debut season with the team aboard the YZ250FX, earning three wins and a total of nine podiums in the XC2 250 Pro-Bike category. In addition to his championship in GNCC, the New Zealand rider has led the way in the AMA National Enduro Pro Series 250 class with five wins thus far in eight rounds. Draper heads into this weekend’s season finale in Stanton, Alabama, with a comfortable 16-point lead in the NE2 Pro Championship.
It was also a successful conclusion to the GNCC season for AmPro Yamaha Racing, which saw the team add a third title in the series to their tally in 2023. In addition to Draper’s XC2 National Championship, Rachael Archer secured her second-consecutive WXC Championship two rounds early. At the penultimate round, Ryder Sigety was crowned champion in the 85cc Big Wheel (11-15) class.
Donnie Luce – Amateur MX/ ATV / Off-Road Coordinator for YMUS“Liam’s XC2 Championship capped off another great season of off-road racing for the AmPro Yamaha Team. This was an extremely challenging season with very demanding course conditions that were thrown at the team, riders, and YZ250FXs over the 12 rounds. Each of them dug deep to make this championship possible, and getting to see them celebrate it together in front of the biggest crowd in off-road racing at The Yamaha Racing Ironman GNCC makes it that much more special.”
Randy Hawkins - AmPro Yamaha Racing Team Owner“Liam has worked hard, and Yamaha has a great motorcycle for off-road racing. With his work ethic, winning attitude, and his trusted Yamaha YZ250FX, I do believe there are more championships coming his way. We’re glad to have Liam as part of the AmPro Yamaha team and look forward to the future.”
Liam Draper - AmPro Yamaha Racing“Man, what a year! They say good things happen when you surround yourself with good people, and I cannot say enough about my team, my mechanic, my fiance Nikki, and my family at home in New Zealand and here in the U.S. I have to give a massive thanks to AmPro Yamaha for this opportunity. It`s definitely a dream come true!”
About Yamaha Motor Corporation, USAYamaha Motor Corporation, USA (YMUS), is a recognized leader in the outdoor recreation industry. The company`s ever-expanding product offerings include Motorcycles and Scooters, ATV and Side-by-Side vehicles, Snowmobiles, WaveRunner Personal Watercraft, Boats, Outboard Motors, Outdoor Power Equipment, Power Assist Bicycles, Golf Cars, Power Assist Wheelchair Systems, Surface Mount Technology (SMT) and Robotic Machines, Unmanned Helicopters, Accessories, Apparel, Yamalube products, and much more. YMUS products are sold through a nationwide network of distributors and dealers in the United States.
YMUS has a corporate office in California, two corporate offices in Georgia, facilities in Wisconsin and Alabama, and factory operations in Tennessee and Georgia. Additional U.S.-based subsidiaries include Yamaha Marine Systems Company (YMSC) with divisions Bennett Marine (Florida), Kracor Systems (Wisconsin) and Siren Marine, Inc. (Rhode Island), Skeeter Boats (Texas), with division G3 Boats (Missouri), and Yamaha Precision Propeller (Indiana).
