Rick Huseman, Toyo Tires® Win TORC Pro 4X4 Truck Championship

October 26, 2009

Rick Huseman, Toyo Tires® Win TORC Pro 4X4 Truck Championship

Kyle and Curt LeDuc Score First-Ever Son/Father Finish at Las Vegas



LAS VEGAS, NEVADA – Rick Huseman, driver of the #36 Monster Energy/Traxxas/Toyota/Toyo Tires® Tundra, won the Pro 4X4 Truck class championship for The Off-Road Championship (TORC) series at Las Vegas Speedway this weekend. Finishing second overall is Kyle LeDuc, driver of the #99 Rockstar/Makita/Ford Trucks/Toyo Tires F-150, making it a 1-2 finish for Toyo Tires in the Pro 4X4 Truck class championship in TORC. Both Huseman and LeDuc’s 900-horsepower trucks rely on 35X12.50R17 Toyo® Open Country M/T®-R tires for grip.



“I am really stoked to win this championship with Toyo Tires. It is great to finally get this,” said Huseman. “My Open Country M/T-R tires have been flawless all year, working better than any other tires. I am glad to be on Toyo’s.”



Huseman also captured seven ‘Oakley Bomb Run’ awards (fastest lap of the race) out of 16 races during the season and finished the season with 336-points. Prior to the 2009 season, Huseman finished in the runner-up spot in five short course off-road race championships. Last year, he was tied for the championship lead in CORR™ in the Pro 4™ class before the season was suddenly cut short just before its finale.



Kyle LeDuc, driver of the #99 Rockstar/Makita/Ford Trucks/Toyo Tires F-150, earned 322-points in the championship and captured four ‘Oakley Bomb Run’ awards, the next highest amount awarded in the class. During Round 15 on Friday night he led his father Curt across the finish line for the series' first-ever son/father 1-2 finish. Curt LeDuc’s Las Vegas podiums continued during Round 16 Saturday night as he wheeled his #43 Rockstar/Makita/Ford Trucks/Toyo Tires F-150 past the checkered flag for a third place finish.



“This was one of the worst race tracks we raced on all year, changing from wet to a dust bowl. It was hard to convert from wet to dry, but our Toyo Tires handled the job,” said Kyle LeDuc. “We (LeDucs) won a lot of races this year with our Open Country M/T-R tires.”



Also pursuing a championship in the Pro 2WD Truck class was Todd LeDuc, Kyle’s brother, with his #3 Rockstar/Makita/Ford Trucks/Toyo Tires F-150. Todd LeDuc finished with two solid fourth place finishes to close out the TORC series Pro 2WD Truck class championship in third overall. He also captured two ‘Oakley Bomb Run’ awards during the 2009 season.



“This has been an incredible year for Toyo Tires in TORC, scoring a 1-2 in the Pro 4X4 class championship and third in Pro 2WD,” said Stan Chen, manager of events and motorsports, Toyo Tire U.S.A. Corp. “We congratulate Rick Huseman for winning this long-deserved championship and the LeDuc family for their dominance throughout the season. We are proud that our Open Country M/T-R tires are the Pro 4X4 class champion.”



To learn more about the championship-winning race drivers from Team Toyo, and about the full line of products from Toyo Tires, log on to toyotires.com. Toyo Tires manufactures and distributes a complete line of replacement tires for high performance cars, luxury vehicles, light trucks and SUVs as well as tires for commercial trucks, buses and off-road and construction applications.