CRANDON, Wis., – America’s biggest weekend of short-course off-road racing – the annual Labor Day Weekend World Championships at Crandon International Off-Road Raceway – will end in a decidedly bigger crescendo as Traxxas TORC Series presenting sponsor AMSOIL has announced it is expanding its purse in the namesake AMSOIL Cup to honor the company’s 40th anniversary (1972-2012).

Last year at Crandon it was the AMSOIL-sponsored PRO 2WD of Chad Hord (BOSS Snowplows/Nissan) who captured the $25,000 first-place AMSOIL Cup prize. And should Hord be able to repeat this year, he’ll walk away with a cool $40,000 – courtesy of AMSOIL, the recognized innovator and industry leader in synthetic lubricating oils.

“Crandon on Labor Day is the absolute pinnacle of short-course racing in the U.S, and AMSOIL is proud to be a big part of the festivities with the AMSOIL Cup race – which this year boasts a $40,000 winner’s purse to make it one of the richest short-course races of all-time,” said AMSOIL Race Program Manager Jeremy Meyer. “The anticipation alone for the third annual AMSOIL Cup is going to be off-the-charts.”

Founded in 2010, the AMSOIL Cup pits the top TORC PRO 2WD trucks against the premier PRO 4×4 class in a 10-lap battle in which the PRO 2WDs get (roughly) a 12-second head start on the faster-cornering PRO 4×4 trucks. Scott Douglas (AMSOIL/Borla Exhaust/BFG) won the inaugural AMSOIL Cup, with Hord winning last year’s race.

Foreshadowing the excitement in store for the fans attending Crandon’s fall AMSOIL Cup event was the recent Chairman’s Cup race held at Crandon’s season-opening Brush Run (June 16-17). The barnburner of a contest saw Ram/Mopar’s factory PRO 2WD racer Rob MacCachren reign victorious, albeit surviving a furious charge from PRO 4×4 racer Adrian Cenni (RealTree Energy). Cenni dashed his chances at victory when he blew out a rear tire after leaving the track following a 100 mph straightaway, having made up the start handicap and placed himself on MacCachren’s tail.

Added Crandon’s Cliff Flannery: “AMSOIL’s generosity to the sport of short course off-road racing is well-known throughout the industry and Crandon is pleased to have partnered with AMSOIL over the years. Drivers come from all over the country to race our fall event at Crandon and the $40,000 AMSOIL Cup race now stands as the largest purse in off-road racing. Our thousands of fans at Crandon will be in for a real treat watching those guys go all out in chasing those dollars!”

For more information, visit TORCracing.com.