Americans – on the whole – notoriously could care less about the World Rally Championship, but Global RallyCross is doing its part to bring a unique form of rally racing to the U.S. Over the weekend the Global RallyCross Championship was held in Colorado, pitting some of the best names in rally racing against each other in tight and technical courses.
Things had generally been going well for Tanner Foust and his Ford Fiesta all-wheel drive car, having taken first at Super Rally on the second of three days of racing, that is until the last millisecond of day three’s race.
Foust had been battling fiercely for second place throughout several laps with Michael Jernberg, ultimately resulting in a spectacular wreck as both cars leapt for the finish line, leaving Foust’s Fiesta smashed, backwards and off the course at the finish line.
(More after video – accident takes place at 5:15)
Because of the location of the crash, the finish was later reviewed by GRC officials who had to determine if Foust’s Fiesta had crossed the finish line before being pushed off course. Ultimately, officials gave the second place finish to Tanner “Golden Child” Foust.
Who cares about Global RallyCross anyway?
For those of you who cheated and went straight to the crash – go back and give the start of the race a chance, too. Global RallyCross is quite a unique, fast-paced form of rallying that requires a very different set of skills from the traditional WRC-style events. WRC may not tickle your fancy, but who knows, GRC just might.
Others may be curious what happened to the Fiesta that jumped out in front after the very first turn of the race, never to be seen again after 2:00 into the video. That car was being piloted by race winner Marcus Grönholm, who had taken second behind Foust on day two.
One more reason why GRC is a big deal, aside from what was at stake in the GRC championship, the event was also known as “Last Chance,” referring to a chance to earn an invite to X-Games 17. That motivation meant drivers had a lot more at stake than simply winning the races being held this past weekend.
