Fantastic Flashbacks--SCORE Baja 500, Parte Cinco

SCORE MEDIA CONTACT: Dominic Clark, dominic@score-international.com
May 25, 2020

Ivan ‘Ironman’ Stewart drove solo again in factory Toyota;
Hamel/Roeseler/Hunnicutt Jr rode Kawasaki to 1993 win

ENSENADA, Baja California, Mexico – (While the world continues its ferocious fight against the vicious virus called COVID-19, SCORE continues its preparation to launch its 2020 SCORE World Desert Championship with a special series of features called SCORE Fantastic Flashbacks—SCORE Baja 500, Part Five).
1993—‘IRONMAN’ CHRUSHES AGAIN
Ivan ‘Ironman’ Stewart, Alpine, Calif., added to his lasting legacy as the overall and unlimited Class 1 winner of the 1993 Tecate SCORE Baja 500 for his 13th class win in this race. He celebrated his 48th birthday they way he usually does in the race in Baja California, Mexico that started on Saturday, June 5. The race started for the third and final time in race history in Ojos Negros and finished for the third of five times in Santo Tomas. Ojos Negros is west of Ensenada and Santo Tomas, the wine country is south of Ensenada.
First motorcycle across the finish line in the elapsed-time race in 1993 was the motorcycle team of Danny Hamel, Boulder City, Nev., Larry Roeseler, Boulevard, Calif. and Ted Hunnicutt Jr, Thousand Oaks, Calif.
Competing in 23 Pro classes for cars, trucks, motorcycles and ATVs, there were a total of 198 starters and 110 finishers in the race, 55.6 percent.
2020—FAST FORWARD
With the 2020 season reduced to three races while the battle rages against Coronavirus (COVID-19), desert racers around the world are hoping to start the 2020 SCORE season at the legendary 52nd annual BFGoodrich Tires SCORE Baja 500, presented by 4Wheel Parts, in Baja California.
Launching its 47th season as the World’s Foremost Desert Racing Organization, the season-opening event of the three-race internationally-televised 2020 SCORE World Desert Championship has been moved to July 14-19 in Ensenada. Ensenada is a coastal city on the Bahia de Todos Santos area of the Pacific Ocean, 80 miles south of the U.S. border at San Diego.
Most the world’s best desert racers will be in action at this year’s celebration of one of the top 10 motorsports events in the entire world. All three 2020 SCORE races will be run on the northern part of Mexico’s magnificent Baja California peninsula for the fifth consecutive year.
Ensenada, the off-road racing capital of the world is the heart and soul of the SCORE Baja 500 as the popular summertime race will start for the 47th time there and finish for the 43rd time there.
1993—TOP FINISHERS
Earning his fifth consecutive Class 1 victory and third overall win in the Tecate SCORE Baja 500, Stewart covered the 437.2-mile course in his No. 100 unlimited Toyota SR5 in 10 hours, 10 minutes and 38 seconds, averaging 42.6 miles per hour.
Stewart finished seven minutes, 51 seconds on elapsed time ahead of Walker Evans, Riverside, Calif., in a Dodge.
Evans, racing to close the gap on Stewart, who was ahead of him on elapsed time, narrowly averted disaster when he rounded a corner and saw a non-race pickup truck headed right for him about five miles from the finish line.
Evans avoided a head-on collision, but nicked the other vehicle in a rear fender as they passed and cut down a tire. He stopped to change the tire and may have lost the race right there. He finished in 10:18:30 while averaging 42.41 mph.
A close third overall was the Ford truck of brothers Paul Simon and Dave Simon, both of Fallbrook, Calif., with an elapsed time of 10:21:21 and an average speed of 42.22 mph. Early in the race, Paul Simon was stopped for 18 minutes with an electrical failure. The trouble turned out to be a failed $10 switch.
In the 266.1-mile motorcycle race, the Kawasaki factory team of Hamel, Roeseler and Hunnicutt Jr ddefeated the Honda team of Chuck Miller, Huntington Beach, Calif., Mike Young, Rancho Cucamonga, Calif. and Dave Donatoni, Agoura, Calif., by nearly 18 minutes.
The fastest ATV in that 1993 race was ridden by the team of Doug Roll, Escondido, Calif. and Carmen Cafro, Fallbrook, Calif., on a Yamaha Banshee.
1993—MORE CLASS WINNERS
Many of the big names, besides Stewart and Hamel/Roeseler/Hunnicutt Jr, were in the winner’s circle with their class wins in the 1993 Tecate SCORE Baja 500.
In two of the more prominent classes, Steve Sourapas and his second driver Dave Richardson won Class 10 in their No. 1000 Chenowth-VW and motocross/supercross legend Rick Johnson drove in a truck for the first time, winning Class 8 in the No. 809 Nelson & Nelson Racing Chevy Thunder.
Among the other well known class winners in this race were John Swift, Oxnard, Calif. (Class 6-Ford Explorer), Scott Douglas, Ramona, Calif. (Class 7-Ford Ranger), Jerry McDonald, San Clemente, Calif. (Class 4-Cheverolet K-1500), Dan Smith, San Bernardino, Calif. (Class 3-Ford Bronco), Pancho Bio, Spring Valley, Calif. (Class 9-Tubular Design-VW), Chris Haines,Mission Viejo, Calif. (Class 40-motorcycle riders over 40 years old-Kawasaki) and Tim Morton, Solana Beach, Calif. (Class 21-motorcycles 125cc-250cc-Honda).
SCOREscope
2020 SCHEDULE
Here is the REVISED three-race 2020 SCORE World Desert Championship (as of April 29, 2020) schedule of events, for the fifth consecutive year all races will be held in Baja California, Mexico:
BFGoodrich Tires 52nd SCORE Baja 500, presented by 4 Wheel Parts--
July 14-19, Ensenada, Baja California, Mexico
34th SCORE San Felipe 250--
Sept. 22-27, San Felipe, Baja California, Mexico
BFGoodrich Tires 53rd SCORE Baja 1000, presented by 4 Wheel Parts
Nov.17-22, Ensenada, Baja California, Mexico
ABC TV AGAIN IN 2020
For the second straight year, the 2020 SCORE World Desert Championship will air on the ABC family of networks. The three-races air as one-hour specials on ABC TV’s World of X Games program with replays on ESPN2.
ABC first covered the 1967 and 1968 Baja 1000 races on the old ABC Wide World of Sports show with Jim McKay and again in the late 1980s with veteran motorsports journalist Sam Posey.
All of the SCORE race coverage shows also continue to air internationally in nearly 25 countries in Europe, Asia, Latin America and South America via syndication and ESPN International. The shows are co-produced by SCORE International and SoCal’s award-winning BCII TV.
SCORE SPONSORS…
Official SCORE Sponsors: BFGoodrich Tires-Official Tire and Race Title Sponsor, Monster Energy-Official Energy Drink, 4 Wheel Parts-Official Off-Road Retailer and Race Presenting Partner, Ford-Official Truck and SUV, King Shocks-Official Shock Absorber, Polaris RZR-Official UTV, RACELINE Wheels-Official Wheel, VP Racing Fuels-Official Fuel, Wide Open Excursions-Official Arrive and Drive Company, Crystal Bay Casino-Official Casino.
SCORE Official Partners: PCI Race Radios, The Satellite Phone Store, Instant Mexico Auto Insurance, Lucerna Hotel.
Additional SCORE Associate Partners: Baja California Secretary of Sustainable Economy and Tourism, XXIII Ensenada Municipal Government, XXIII Mexicali Municipal Government, Mexicali and San Felipe COTUCO, Cruz Roja Mexicana.
For more information regarding SCORE, visit the official website of the SCORE World Desert Championship at www.SCOREInternational.com.

CLASS 1--Ivan Stewart
CLASS 1/2-1600--Jim Fishback Sr./Frank Castro
CLASS 3--Dan Smith
CLASS 4--Jerry McDonald
CLASS 5--Conrad Diaz/Eduardo Ainslie
CLASS 5-1600--Danny Ledezma/Hector Ledezma
CLASS 6--John Swift
CLASS 7--Scott Douglas
CLASS 7S--Darren York/Doug York
CLASS 8--Ricky Johnson
CLASS 9--Pancho Bio/John Fisher
CLASS 10--Steve Sourapas/Dave Richardson
CLASS 11--Hector Sarabia
STOCK FULL--Gordon DiCarlo/Jeff Yocum
STOCK MINI--Michael Martin

CLASS 20--Robert Prayther/Joey Lane
CLASS 21--Tim Morton/John Flores
CLASS 22--Danny Hamel/Larry Roeseler/Ted Hunnicutt Jr.
CLASS 30--Brian Schmuckle/Todd McKay
CLASS 40--Chris Haines
CLASS 50--Bob Ashcraft/Sterling Varner

CLASS 24--Jeff Courts/John Courts
CLASS 25--Doug Roll/Carmen Cafro