Ensenada, Baja California, Mexico – Brandon “The Stinger” Arthur had to dig deep at rounds 7 and 8 of the Lucas Oil Off Road Racing Series at the Estero Beach Resort in Ensenada, Baja California, Mexico. Estero Beach is totally unique in the Lucas Oil Series. The track is right next to the Pacific Ocean, you can hear the waves crashing on the beach when the sound isn’t drowned out by crashing trucks and high horsepower engines on the track. Brandon had his own wake-up call during practice on Friday when he got out of shape. Luckily his instincts kicked in and he avoided a crash. He survived with no damage to the Competitive Metals, Toyo Tires, Pro Traffic Services, HRT Motorsports, Method Race Wheels, Magnaflow, Aeromotive Fuel Systems, F&L Racing Fuel, Impact, FOX, Heatshield Products, Maxima Racing Oils, FiberwerX, Summers Brothers, Wirefab, ECP Powder Coating, Bink Designs, Axis Rod Ends, Redline Performance Pro Lite and got his own divot on the track.
Brandon Arthur, Competitive Metals, HRT Motorsports Pro Lite, Toyo Tires, Bink Designs, Maxima Racing Oils
“Saturday we qualified 2nd but just did not have a truck to win the race,” said “The Stinger,” “We held our own in the race, having a good battle with Jerett Brooks. We came home with a third place podium for the day. Great results considering we missed the set up a little bit.” The track was dry on Saturday due to the hot weather they have had in Ensenada. Every track on the Lucas Oil schedule has its own unique character. The loose soil at Estero Beach gets pushed around and develops deep ruts and holes on the surface. Brandon’s years of desert racing experience come in handy, he felt right at home in the rough stuff.
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After round 7, the team made some tweaks to the set-up in order to handle the dry, rutted course. The next day, the track was 180 degrees different. The water that the track crew had been laying down started to hold. It was still rough, but had turned to slick mud. “Sunday we qualified 5th and got lucky with an invert of 6,” said Brandon, “We had the lead in turn two but then blew the corner in 4 and went back to second.” Turn 4 was Brandon’s nemesis on Sunday. On the next lap he came in too hot again and spun out in the mud. “I dropped all the way back to 10th place or so and had to dig deep to make my way up to the top 5. Ryan Beat’s crash brought out the yellow flag and bunched up the field. We kept the charge to the front going and won the drag race with Brock Heger down the front straight on the last lap to get our second 3rd place podium for the weekend.”
Holding off Brock Heger in both rounds 7 and 8 further solidifies Brandon’s second place position in the season long points standings; Heger is in third. The battle continues when the series heads to Glen Helen Raceway on July 23rd and 24th. To get the latest info on Brandon’s racing go to: http://brandonarthurracing.com/ There you will find the latest news, photos and videos of Brandon’s accomplishments in the Lucas Oil Series and other select off-road events.
Photography By: Bink Designs