Off-Road Racing Debut at Crandon International Off-Road Raceway
Clemson University Student and Baja 500 winner Set for First Start in Nissan Frontier PRO Light with Chad Hord Racing
Clemson University student and reigning SCORE Lites Champion Rafael Navarro IV will make his debut in the Traxxas TORC Series this weekend, June 16 – 17, at Crandon International Off-Road Raceway in Wisconsin at the wheel of a Chad Hord Racing Nissan Frontier PRO Light.
Navarro IV, who turned 19 years-old-just last month, is making his first start of any kind in a PRO Light truck but brings extensive experience in the sport. Navarro also won in the SCORE Lites class in the 2011 SCORE Baja 500 in last year’s title-winning campaign.
“This weekend will be my first ever Traxxas TORC Series race in a Nissan Frontier PRO Light,” said Navarro IV, who is known in racing circles as “Cuatro” or “R4.” “I came up to Crandon this past weekend to test the brand new Nissan Frontier PRO Light that Chad Hord Racing has prepared. For my first time in the truck and racing at Crandon, I felt that the test went very well.”
In addition to his off-road buggy experience, Navarro also has several seasons in sports car road racing, including the Pirelli World Challenge Championships and Jetta TDI Cup. He began his racing career in off-road, however, and moved up to buggy categories after several seasons in off-road go-karts. The move to off-road trucks is a first but “Cuatro” welcomes the challenge.“Being a buggy guy, I was a little out of my element at the test, but I am very excited to learn everything I can and improve as a multi-discipline driver,” Navarro IV said. “I am very excited for the race this weekend after a strong test and I want to thank Nissan and Chad Hord Racing for giving me this great opportunity.”
Traxxas TORC (The Off Road Championship) Series events are televised on SPEED. The TORC series utilizes a variety of short-tracks and larger outdoor motocross-inspired courses with several different classes in action at each event. The PRO Light division is home to custom-built or standard manufacturer light duty two-wheel drive utility production vehicles available to the general public in the United States.
