ESPN2 on Sunday airing 52nd SCORE Baja 500

SCORE MEDIA CONTACT: Dominic Clark, dominicc@score-international.com
November 5, 2020
Racing in San Felipe, Mexico

ESPN2 airing one-hour special this Sunday
on BFGooodrich Tires 52nd SCORE Baja 500

 

     ENSENADA, Baja California, Mexico—Coverage of the pandemic-abbreviated two-race 2020 SCORE World Desert Championship begins on ESPN2 this Sunday with the premier of multiple airings of the BFGoodrich Tires 52nd annual SCORE Baja 500, presented by 4 Wheel Parts.
The one-hour show will be broadcast on the World of X Games show on ESPN2 on Sunday (Nov. 8). Check local listings to confirm the time in your area.
Co-hosts of the World of X Games shows for this 2020 SCORE World Desert Championship season-opener are gregarious SCORE live streaming anchor Rat Sult and SCORE champion motorcycle racer Mark Samuels.
Co-producing the shows with SCORE is award-winning BCII TV of Los Angeles. Bud Brutsman is the executive producer.
BACK TO BAJA
San Felipe is the peaceful village on the Sea of Cortez, 125 miles south of the U.S. Border at Calexico, Calif. Both 2020 SCORE races are being held on Mexico’s magnificent Baja California peninsula for the fifth consecutive year. It was the first SCORE Baja race since last November’s SCORE Baja 1000.
Following the BioSecurity health protocols no spectators were allowed at the start/finish line area which was on the grounds of the luxurious El Dorado Rancho Resort just north of downtown San Felipe, Mexico. It was just the second time in race history that this popular event was held in San Felipe, the first being in 1989.
FINAL FLAG
When the final checkered flag fell, a total of 129 vehicles left the start line early morning on Sept. 26 with racers from 19 U.S. States along with host country Mexico, Bolivia, Canada, Denmark, Netherlands and New Zealand.
When the course closed at 4:06 a.m. PT on Sunday, there were 78 official finishers for a very high 60.47 percent finishing rate, especially considering the difficulty of the race course. The results were made official following complete data tracking review of the devices on each vehicle in the event on Sunday morning.
Competition included classes for cars, trucks UTVs, motorcycles and quads.
BIG BLUE M MACHINE
With a legacy started by the late family patriarch Corky McMillin, Daniel McMillin added to the Big Blue M rich history with his first career victory in the marquee SCORE Trophy Truck division for hi-tech, 950-horsepower unlimited custom trucks. Mark Racing earned two podium placements as Daniel’s brother Luke McMillin finished third overall and in SCORE Trophy Truck.
Running in a pack of five monsters of the desert for the majority of the race, the duo pulled away at the end. After penalties were assessed by SCORE adjusting the finishing times of nearly all finishers, McMillin/Smith earned a victory margin of five minutes, 34 seconds over the second-place truck. Daniel McMillin started the race and ran to race-mile 329 where Smith got behind the wheel and powered to the finish line at the El Dorado Ranch resort.
With his victory, McMillin also earned a US$25,000 contingency bonus from long-time SCORE sponsor and race title sponsor BFGoodrich Tires offered to the winner of this year’s race. The victory also marked the 33rd overall victory in this race for vehicles equipped with BFGoodrich Tires.
Besides his late grandfather Corky, Daniel McMillin’s champion family members include his brother Luke McMillin, who finished third overall and in SCORE Trophy Truck in this year’s race, his dad Mark McMillin, his uncle Scott McMillin, and his cousins Andy McMillin and Jessica McMillin. As a family, the McMillins now have earned a race-record 12 overall victories in the SCORE Baja 500.
THE PODIUM
The lead pack of five SCORE Trophy Truck warriors were in each other’s dusty tracks most of the race. Including in the group were D McMillin, Tim Herbst/Pat Dean, Dan’s brother Luke McMillin, brothers Alan and Aaron Ampudia along with Robby Gordon.
Joining Daniel McMillin, who has won in other classes in SCORE races, on the 52nd SCORE Baja 500 podium were Las Vegas’ Tim Herbst/Pat Dean and Daniel’s younger brother Luke McMillin, 27, who also lives in San Diego.
SAMUELS WINS OVERALL MOTO
Riding the No. 1x Honda CRF450X, Mark Samuels, 30, and his three-rider team and his three-rider team raced to the overall motorcycle victory for his ninth consecutive overall motorcycle win in the SCORE World Desert Championship and his fourth overall win in this race. The trio crossed the finish line in 10:50:11 at an average speed of 44.76mph.
Samuels split the riding with Justin Morgan, 30, Yucca Valley, Calif. who won his fifth overall motorcycle crown in the last six years in this race and Justin Jones, Murrieta, Calif. who won his second consecutive SCORE overall motorcycle title in this race.
Samuels started and quickly switched to Justin Morgan. Justin Morgan rode to race mile 236. Samuels rode from race mile 236 to race mile to 395. Justin Jones rode from race mile 395 to race mile 459. Samuels rode from race mile 459 to the finish.
With the victory, Honda motorcycles have now won an event-record 22 times in the SCORE Baja 500.
OVERALL UTV
Defeating 36 total UTVs to win the overall UTV win title and her Pro UTV NA (Naturally Aspirated) in this year’s race was Kristen Matlock, 39, Alpine, Calif., a racing mother of two and wife of PRO UTV FI star Wayne Matlock, who are from Alpine, Calif., with a winning time of 10:49:02 in her No. 1954 Polaris RZR XP4 1000. No stranger to the SCORE winner’s circle and podium, she amazingly once again drove solo to the victory.
SCOREscope
2020 SCORE SKED
BFGoodrich Tires 53rd SCORE Baja 1000, presented by 4 Wheel Parts—
November 17-22, Ensenada, Baja California, Mexico
2021 SCORE SKED
Here are the dates for the four-race 2021 SCORE World Desert Championship which will be held in Baja California, Mexico for the sixth consecutive year:
34th SCORE San Felipe 250—
February 9-14, San Felipe, Mexico
BFGoodrich Tires 53rd SCORE Baja 500, presented by 4 Wheel Parts—
April 14-18, Baja California, Mexico
2nd SCORE Baja 400—
September 14-19, Baja California, Mexico
BFGoodrich Tires 54th SCORE Baja 1000, presented by 4 Wheel Parts—
November 15-20, Baja California to La Paz, Baja California Sur, Mexico
ABC TV'S NETWORKS AGAIN IN 2020
For the second straight year, the 2020 SCORE World Desert Championship will air on the ABC family of networks. The two-races will air as specials on ABC TV Network’s World of X Games program.
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.