LOORS: Team LeDuc Racing Phoenix event summary

Rockstar Energy Drink / Makita Tools Team LeDuc Racing Dominates The LOORS Competition And Captures Rockstar Energy Lucas Oil Off Road Challenge Cup

The Rockstar Energy Drink / Makita Tools short course racing team of Curt, Kyle, and Todd LeDuc came to Firebird International Raceway for the season finale of Lucas Oil Off Road Racing (LOORS) short course racing with a score to settle. By their own admission, Rounds 13 and 14 of the short course series in Las Vegas did not go as well as they had hoped. Lesser teams might let this affect them mentally, but the Rockstar Energy Drink / Makita Tools team drew upon their years of experience and came to Phoenix with renewed purpose.

It didn't take long for the team to reach the podium, as Kyle finished second in the final Pro 4 Unlimited race of the season. Kyle battled at the front of the pack for the entire race in his No. 99 Rockstar Energy Drink / Makita Tools Ford F-150. His father Curt was not far behind, running as high as third place, but brake issues forced Curt to run a more conservative pace than he would have otherwise, resulting in a fifth place finish out of a field of 14 trucks for the race on Saturday, and also fifth for the season. Kyle's podium finish allowed him to move past Carl Renezeder and take second place for the 2010 season in the highly competitive Pro 4 Unlimited class.

His seat time in Pro 4 also gave Kyle an advantage over the competition when he strapped into the No. 24 Super Lite truck on the all-new track at Firebird International Raceway. The track featured several high speed sections with spectacular jumps, as well as a table top rhythm section and a dual split line. Kyle started at the back of the pack in the SoCal Super Trucks / Bully Dog Super Lite truck and methodically picked off the competition as the race progressed, utilizing lines that a less skilled driver would never see on the track.

In the final race of the night, Todd LeDuc took to the course in his No. 8 Rockstar Energy Drink / Makita Tools Ford F-150 intent on victory. Unfortunately his motor had other plans, and catastrophic engine failure took Todd out of the race on the first lap. "I am grateful that we have such great sponsors," Todd commented. "Our team was up until one in the morning with our Matika tools in hand changing not only the engine but the transmission, overdrive, and rear ring and pinion as well. Basically I had a whole new drivetrain for the cup race, and Rockstar Energy Drink kept us going throughout the weekend."

When the sun came up on Sunday, over $100,000 was up for grabs in no-holds-barred cup races. Kyle LeDuc was the first to cash in for the Rockstar Energy Drink / Makita Tools team with a convincing win in Super Lite for the second day in a row! While other drivers succumbed to the pressures of the biggest race of the season, the LeDucs were clearly in their element. Alll of this was just a prelude to the grand finale of the seaon though: the Rockstar Energy Lucas Oil Off Road Challenge Cup.

The Rockstar Energy Lucas Oil Off Road Challenge Cup saw all three members of the Rockstar Energy Drink / Makita Tools team on the track together for the only race this season. Being in a Pro 2 Unlimited, Todd LeDuc started half a lap ahead of his brother and father and battled with Bryce Menzies and Carl Renezeder in spectacular racing action that brought the packed stands to their feet. Carnage was abundant in the race, with Curt LeDuc being amongst the casualties with a blown engine. Meanwhile, Kyle LeDuc was picking his way through competitors in the same methodical manner he had displayed all weekend. When the dust settled, Kyle had taken home his third win of the weekend with his brother Todd close behind in fourth place. Kyle not only won three of his four races, with the help of his Dart Machinery engine he also set the fastest lap time of the entire weekend at a blistering 99 miles per hour!

-source: team leduc