2016 GNCC Racing Series Round #12 - Powerline Park St. Clairsville, OH October 1, 2016

As the famous "10 seconds" was called and the green flag waved it was Fowler who had the quick jump to earn the $250 Wiseco XC1 Pro Holeshot Award. The lead would be exchanged between Fowler to McGill only three turns into the race when Fowler made a small mistake.

GNCC Racing Pro XC1 ATV Podium (left to right) Walker Fowler (2nd), Adam McGill (1st), Chris Borich (3rd)

The 1 p.m. pro race was the first race of the day to encounter the infamous Powerline Park mud hole jump. Once McGill landed he found himself in an unfavorable position, but quickly recovered to maintain the lead. As the remainder of the class filed through each had their struggles, but remained focused on trying to get around McGill.

"The first lap was pretty sketchy because we just didn't know what was out there," said McGill. "Both Walker and Chris were taking it really easy on the first lap and I didn't really want to lead, but I ended up just going for it."

McGill held onto the lead as they checked through timing and scoring for the first time, but he was feeling the pressure from Maxxis/Fly Racing/HMF/Ye Olde Cycle Barn/Suzuki's Chris Borich and Fowler who were right on his rear wheels. Fowler's hard hit on the mud hole jump resulted in a loss of goggles, and the Ohio native decided to pit on the first lap for a new pair of goggles.

Adam McGill had one of his best races of the season, where he lead majority of the time and ultimately crossed the finish line first.

Once he had clear vision Fowler caught back up to McGill and Borich and made the pass for the lead as the two-lap card was out. Even though the race had a new leader, the intensity remained the same where McGill was eager to take back the lead and Borich was looking to do the same.

With only one lap to go Fowler made the decision to pit for gas. He began to pull out before the pit stop was fully completed and this small mistake opened up the perfect opportunity for McGill to slide back into the lead position.

"We ran the whole first lap without goggles, and I just tried to ride through it," said Fowler. "We elected to pit at the end of the first lap and try to use a pit strategy. Overall it was a struggle throughout the day, but it feels good to get this second championship after putting in so much work this season."

Walker Fowler secured the 2016 National Championship.

The top three contenders were wheel-to-wheel for the remaining last lap, where Borich continued to apply pressure as Fowler tried to sneak a wheel in on McGill in the open field section. Throughout the entire two-hour race McGill, Fowler and Borich were never more than three seconds apart even as the crossed and saw checkered flag.

McGill's impressive performance earned him his fifth overall win of the season, and while he may remain the runner-up in the championship standings this finish provided that McGill remains a top candidate for the season finale in just three weeks. Borich, who is still looking for his first win of the season, will also be ready for the Ironman GNCC.

"We were a lot better than last week," said Borich. "We have been trying new things, and we had some problems at the Mountaineer Run GNCC, but we came back and regrouped. Obviously we didn't win, but this was a big confidence booster so we are ready to play."

As the 2016 season comes to a close, Borich spent much of the race proving that he will be a threat throughout the final race.

The overall podium was made up by McGill, Fowler and Borich. Fowler's podium finish vaulted him to the top and allowed him to secure the coveted National Championship at the penultimate round of the 2016 season. Fowler's teammate, Cole Richardson, finished just off the podium in fourth after working his way from the back of the pack at the beginning of the race. JMR/ATVriders.com/DWT's Jarrod McClure rounded out the top five overall.