ROUND 2 RACE REPORT

US Sprint Enduro Round 2
Mac Daddy’s XC Paradise
February 21-22, 2026
Hephzibah, GA
Written By: Rachel Gutish
Photos by: Jade Barnes Casey Co.

This past weekend was round two of the US Sprint enduro series, at Mac Daddy’s XC
Paradise. It also served as the east coast ISDE qualifier for Team USA’s club teams. So
in addition to pro riders fighting for points and podiums, club team hopefuls from across
the country were present and fighting for a chance to represent their country later this
year in Portugal.
Just before the rider’s meeting on Saturday, the threatening clouds present all morning
finally opened up. What began as a steady drizzle turned into a deluge by test three – a
true test of rider’s skills in difficult conditions. Mac’s is a mixture of sand and clay, so
when wet, it becomes difficult to predict the traction. The speed at which the rain came
down just before test three quite literally flooded the property, leaving the track more
water than dirt by the end. The race was cut short due to the conditions, for a total of
three of the expected six tests.
Thanks to the heroic efforts of the US Sprint track crew, and the remarkable draining
properties of this particular venue, Day Two went much more smoothly. The cross test
tacked up into beautiful moto-track like dirt, and the enduro test, while rough, deep and
mostly a single rut, was thankfully free of puddles and bike-eating sinkholes. The Pro
and A level riders did eight tests instead of the usual six on Day Two, to compensate for
the shortened Day One.

PRO 1

In the Pro1 class, Grant Davis (FMF KTM Factory Racing ) took his first win of the season, beating his teammate Johnny Girroir (FMF Factory Racing KTM Factory Racing) by fifteen seconds, despite racing with a broken hand.

On the podium overall winner Grant Davis said “Yeah, I’ll take it with a broken hand!
Today I really sucked in the first test, was on the ground twice and lost a bunch of time,
and so then I was getting beat by a Pro2 rider here, 250 A kid in the GNCCs and
thought to myself, I have to figure this out! (laughs) Cody was really ripping at the end of
the day 2, the way he always does. I’m glad to have won one of these!”

Girroir was unable to provide a quote – after a bout of illness Saturday night, and racing
all day, he had nothing left for the podium. But that alone tells you everything you need
to know about his weekend, and about how tough of a competitor he is.

Cody Barnes (Liqui Moly Beta) seems to still be finding his place on the new ride, having returned to the Factory Beta team after a several-year stint on Phoenix Honda, though as the weekend went on, he got more and more competitive, winning several tests. However, it
was a case of too little, too late to climb out of third place. “Yeah.. I need to figure that
out, why I ride so much better at the end of the weekend than in the beginning. It’s still a
learning curve, changing bikes and teams. I am happy with my overall speed at the end
of the weekend, just need to figure out how to have that same speed in the beginning of
the weekend. But I can go fast when it’s rough and gnarly, so I guess that’s a plus
(laugh).

Davis, with individual day scores of 2-1, did make up some ground in the points
standings on Girroir after his 1-3 finish, but Girroir still goes into round three as the
overall points leader, with Davis in second and Barnes in third.

PRO 2

Pro2 rider Cooper Jones (KTM USA Orange Brigade) took a dominant win, going 1-1 and breaking into the top three overall. “It was a good weekend for me, ended up in the overall lead at one
point, but Grant [Davis] couldn’t let me beat him from Pro2, so he stepped it up
(laughs).”

Other than Jones, inconsistency was the story of Pro2 this weekend, with individual day
finishes all over the map – which does make sense given the massive difference in
conditions between the two days. Gavin Simon finished sixth on day one but moved into
second on day two. He cited setup changes as the primary difference. “I struggled a bit
day one. Usually I like slick, muddy stuff, but changed a few things and felt a lot better. I
was also really surprised at how good the track turned out today, it was sick!”
Third place finisher Jason Tino (FMF KTM Factory Racing ) had an especially good comeback story, finishing
7-3 but still taking third place in the combined results. As he said on the podium “I tell ya
what, this one almost feels better than a win, given how I was getting my teeth kicked in
yesterday and getting dead last, to clinching a podium spot today in the very last test!”

Race one winner Brody Johnson (RaceCraft Husqvarna) had a rough outing this weekend, finishing 5-4, off the podium both days. Jones, with his 1-1 finishes overtook both Jhak Walker and Johnson to take the series points lead. Johnson is now in second, with Walker in third.

WOMENS PRO

In the Pro Women’s class, Danielle McDonald (AmPro Yamaha), continued her 2026
winning streak, taking another US Sprint Enduro win, after just taking home the win at the
GNCC opener last weekend. “Another win, it was a good weekend! I really enjoyed the
tests, got a little wet but yeah, a good weekend”

Brandy Richards (FMF Factory Racing KTM) took home another second place finish, which was especially impressive considering that she was competing with a broken fibula. As she said,
talking about her situation “My goal here was to come here and get some points, stay as
close as I could to Danielle, and just get through it. The enduro test was hard, trying not
to dab my foot and just survive.”
Rachel Gutish (Rieju) made a guest appearance this weekend, doing some testing in
preparation for the upcoming EnduroGP season, and taking home a third place finish in
the process. Danielle, going 1-1, now has a twenty point lead over Richards with her 2-2 finishes.

PRO AM

In the Pro-AM class, Cole Whitmer (GasGas USA) took a comfortable win over Will
Sievenpiper (Kawasaki Racing) and Lane Whitmer (Enduro Engineering GasGas).

ISDE QUALIFIER

Of course, with this being the qualifier, we should also take a moment to talk about and
congratulate our qualified Team USA Club riders! In finishing order, the eight riders to
have earned a position on this year’s team are: Jhak Walker, Collier Martinez, Cole
Whitmer, Will Sievenpiper, Lane Whitmer, Colton Shields, Thorn Devlin, and Anson
Maloney.

FMF RACINGS Top Amateur was Brayden Baisley (YAM) 250A Class finishing 16th overall – in test 1 Baisley came out swinging and grabbed 6th overall among the top pros.

TOP 10 OVERALL FINISHERS

Grant Davis (KTM)
Johnny Girroir (KTM)
Cooper Jones (KTM)
Cody Barnes (Beta)
Gavin Simon (Husqvarna)
Jason Tino (KTM)
Brody Johnson (Husqvarna)
Jhak Walker (Beta)
Collier Martinez (Kawasaki)
Cole Whitmer (GasGas)

MEDIA: Picture Links for Round 2

Afternoon – RD 2 Sprint Enduro by Casey Co.

Youth – Rd 2 Sprint Enduro by Casey Co.

Mac Daddy’s U.S. Sprint Enduro 2026 round 2 – DirtBike Dream Photos

Round 3 of the 2026 US Sprint Enduro Series continues in Ninety – Six, SC at Rodgers Farm on March 21-22.