2016 WORCS UTV Racing Round #10 - Buffalo Bills October 22, 2016 Primm, NV

Mystik’s Mickey Thomas was in just his second year of WORCS competition. He finished second in points despite planning not to compete full time this year. He also competed this year in the Lucas Oil Truck Series. Interestingly, Thomas used an engine borrowed from Chris Mills after having engine trouble in practice.

Addict Racing's Mickey Thomas attempted to close the gap on Haagsma in the lead as the pair ran away from the pack

“We missed the championship by one point, and it’s a bummer, but my hat is off to Haagsma,” said Thomas. “He had to win that race and he did. I was trying my best to pick up some time here and there, but I just couldn’t get it done. Second place in WORCS isn’t bad in our second season. We had planned to just run the trucks this year, but we kept pouring some time into this and it turned out well. I’m happy I stayed with it.

Owen Motorsport's Mickey Thomas finished in the 2nd spot, which dropped him to just one point of the WORCS SxS Pro Championship

“I was chasing my first win today and didn’t get it,” added Thomas. “It kind of makes me want to come back next year. We weren’t planning on it, but we’ll see.”

FOX’s Ryan Piplic rebounded from a hard shunt in the Unlimited race to net his third podium of the season in Pro. Piplic finished fourth in points behind Cody Bradbury. Bradbury also crashed in the Unlimited race and was just released from the hospital prior to the Pro race. He cruised to a sixth-place finish.

Ryan Piplic rounded out the WORCS Pro SxS Podium, which earned him 4th in the points championship

“I knocked myself silly in the Unlimited race, so I’m really happy with the way the day turned out in the Pro Class,” said Piplic “I started second behind Haagsma. I paced him for the first lap. Then I backed off to play it more conservatively. They were running so hard I was expecting them to break, but they were on a mission. My plan backfired. I had some ups and downs this year, but I was really consistent when I kept the car together. All of my sponsors: Polaris, Fox and everyone else made my program what it is.”

CST’s Beau Baron finished fourth in the race, cementing his fifth-place spot in final points. He got close to Piplic, but nearly crashed trying to make a pass, so he chose a more conservative pace.

CST's Beau Baron finished in fourth place, which earned him 5th in the Points race in the Pro Class

“I almost made a couple of mistakes trying to pass him, so I backed it down and kept my car in one piece,” said Baron. “It was nice to brush some things off, and have a good weekend. It’s been an up and down season as far as the SXS goes. It was good to just get through a weekend. I’ll be doing WORCS for the next two years in both Pro classes for sure. So many things happen, that I’d like to come out with a win and it helps to run both classes. It’s a lot more work, but you also get twice as many chances. I want a chance at the title.”

Jeff Obering started on the second row and battled through traffic to notch his second top five in a row. Immediately after the race, he headed out to Arizona to compete in the Lucas Oil Shootout where he unfortunately got a flat tire.

Jeff Obering rounded out the top five in the Pro SXS Class

“It was a good year,” said Obering. “Consistency is still a key factor. I had a couple of races where I finished toward the back. I’m really excited to finish out this year strong. There are a lot of fast guys out there, so starting on the second row makes it difficult to get up front. Getting into that clean air is great. That’s really where I made some good passes.”