Pre-running opens Saturday for 54th SCORE Baja 500

SCORE MEDIA CONTACT: Dominic Clark, Dominic@SCORE-International.com
May 20, 2022
Race week—June 1-5

BFGoodrich Tires 54th SCORE Baja 500 presented by 4 Wheel Parts
Pre-running opens Saturday on 463.72-mile course;
Racers to date from 30 U.S. States and 13 countries

 


ENSENADA, Baja California, Mexico – With momentum building at an increasingly rapid pace, re-running opens at 8 a.m. PT Saturday in the official race course for next month’s internationally-televised BFGoodrich Tires 54th SCORE Baja 500, presented by 4 Wheel Parts.
THE SCOOP
To be held June 1-5 in Ensenada, Baja California, Mexico, the 463.72-mile race will start/finish and colorful pre-race activities are returning for the first time in four years to the heart of Ensenada at the iconic Riviera del Pacifico Cultural Center and the adjacent fantastically fan-friendly Boulevard Costero.
Ensenada, ‘The Off-Road Capital of the World’, is located 80 miles South of the U.S. Border near San Diego.
Entries from all across the United States and around the world are expected as online registration continues for Round 2 of the four-race 2022 SCORE World Desert Championship.
With nearly 275 entries expected, 45 competition classes are offered for Pro and Sportsman cars, trucks, UTVs, motorcycles and quads. To date, there are 249 total entries from 30 U.S. States, U.S. Territory of Puerto Rico and 13 countries. Joining the USA in the field so far are racers from host country Mexico, Argentina, Bolivia, Brazil, Canada, Costa Rica, Denmark, Ecuador, England, France, New Zealand and Peru.
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. The race will be televised on a delayed basis as a one-hour special on the ESPN2 World of X Games programming. It is scheduled to first air at 9 p.m. PT on Sunday, Aug. 7.
The race show on ESPN2 is co-produced by SCORE International by the award-winning BCII TV of Los Angeles. Intro announcer for the race show will be Off-Road Motorsports Hall of Fame Inductee and SCORE champion desert racer Cameron Steele who will again pull double duty racing in the marquee SCORE Trophy Truck class as well in his No. 16 Desert Assassins Monster Energy Ford Raptor.
All four 2022 SCORE races are being held on Mexico’s magnificent Baja California peninsula for the seventh consecutive year.
SCORE, the World’s Foremost Desert Racing Organization, is celebrating its 49th season in 2022.
PRE-RUNNING
Official practice, or pre-running, on the official 463.72-mile race course for this year’s BFGoodrich Tires 54th SCORE Baja 500, presented by 4 Wheel Parts will begin at 8 a.m. PT on Saturday, May 21 starting at race mile 33.82 and finishing at race mile 430.78. The section from the start to rm33.82 section will be open only from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. PT on Thursday (June 2) Outbound ONLY and Friday (June 3) Inbound ONLY.
The official SCORE Racer Brief, Penalty brief, course map and GPS files are available on the SCORE website under race info/SCORE Baja 500.
COURSE PREVIEW
     With pre-running opening on Saturday, SCORE President/Race Director Jose A. Grijalva has put together another memorable race course to challenge the world’s best desert racers. The final distance is 463.72 miles.
It will be starting and finishing for the first time in four years (since 2018) on fan-friendly Blvd. Costero adjacent to the Riviera del Pacifico Cultural Center in the heart of Ensenada. Pre-race Contingency will also be held on Blvd. Costero on Friday, June 3 from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. PT.
The course will run in a clockwise direction out of and back to the start/finish in Ensenada, traveling through such noted areas as Cordillera de Molina, Coabuso, La Ventana, El Chinero, Mikes Sky Ranch, La Lagrima and Ojos Negros.
The course will have two complete stop physical checkpoints, 175 total virtual checkpoints and 10 speed zones for a total of 34.59 miles.
Checkpoint 1 will be located at race mile 240.07 (San Matias Pass) and Checkpoint 2 will be at rm360.64 (El Alamo access road).
All Sportsman classes, Class 11 and Class 7SX will run a reduced course of a total of 452.92 miles.
It runs in a clockwise direction West past Ojos Negro then up Northwest and then south down the middle and then up the middle of the Pacific Coast side of Baja California. The course goes east through Ojos Negros and then begins its Northwest journey just before the El Alamo road crossing, then through Rancho Tres Pinos. It then loops through Laguna Salada to El Chinero, across the top of Diablo Dry Lake. At the San Matias cutoff, it goes up around Mike’s Sky Rancho, Rancho Simpson, Rancho Tepi and down through Leandro Valle to continue North at Valle de Trinidad. The course then runs North past Jamau, looping up and past Santa Catarina and up the legendary Goat Trail then down and across the El Alamo road crossing around by El Pedregoso, La Lagrima, Rancho Palacios and up North past Los Encinos northeast up to Ojos Negros and back through Piedras Gordas to the finish line.
Commenting on this year’s race course, Grijalva said, “Overall, this year’s SCORE Baja 500 course will be slower and a bit more technical than most years. We have several new or seldom-used areas that are part of this race course. The desert sections on Laguna Salada and Diablo Dry Lake will be fast and we have minimum highway speed zones compared to previous courses for this race. The racers will definitely be tested as they push to the finish line.”
DOUBLE DIGITS
The race includes 33 entries to date in the marquee SCORE Trophy Truck division (Including six SCORE TT Legend vehicles for SCORE Trophy-Truck drivers over 50 years old), the marquee racing division for high-tech, 1000-horsepower unlimited custom trucks.
Besides SCORE Trophy Truck, the other Pro four-wheel classes with double figure entries to date and their totals are Trophy Truck Spec with 31 entries, Pro UTV FI with 25 entries, Class 10 (24) and Pro UTV Stock (10).
Among Pro two-wheel classes, leading the entry count so far is Pro Motorcycle Ironman (solo riders) with 10 entries. Among the Sportsman two-wheel classes, leading the entry count to date is SPT Moto with 10 entries.
START ORDER/DRAW DEADLINE
All entries received and paid in full by today (May 20) who didn’t race or were non-finishers in San Felipe, will be part of a drawing to determine the remainder of the start order within each class. The draw results will be posted on the SCORE website at 5 p.m. PT on Friday, May 27.
Up until 5 p.m. PT on May 27, entries will be accepted in person at the SCORE Ensenada office but those entries received after today, May 20, will not be included in the start draw. Late, on-site racer registration will be held on Wednesday, Thursday and Friday (June 1-3) and will be given the next available start position within their respective classes.
ON-SITE RACER REGISTRATION
Being held in the Salon Rojo at the Riviera del Pacifico Cultural Center in Ensenada, regular on-site and late racer registration will be held on Wednesday (June 1) from 2 p.m. to 8 p.m. PT, on Thursday (June 2) from 8 a.m. to 4 p.m. PT and on Friday (June 3) from 8 a.m. to 4 p.m. No new entries will be accepted after 7 p.m. on Wednesday (June 1), 3 p.m. PT on Thursday (June 2) and 3 p.m. PT on Friday (June 3).
GREEN FLAG—JUNE 4
The motorcycle and quad classes will start at 4 a.m. PT Saturday (June 4) while the car, truck and UTV classes will begin their journey starting at 9 a.m. PT. SCORE Trophy Truck, TT Legend, Class 1, Trophy Truck Spec and the Pro Moto Unlimited classes will start one vehicle every 60 seconds race while all other classes will start one every 30 seconds.
While the fastest vehicles in the elapsed-time race are expected to finish in approximately nine hours, all vehicles will have 20 hours from the time each starts to become an official finisher in the historic race.
SCORE LIVE
There will be extensive live streaming from pre-race contingency (June 3) and the start/finish line compound broadcasting the start, live action around the course and finish line interviews.
Popular Rat Sult is in his seventh year as primary host and lead announcer of the SCORE live streaming which will also air on the SCORE TV app. Sult will be assisted again by the veteran voice Dave Arnold.
GRAND MARSHAL: ‘IRONMAN’
When it comes to desert racing there is only one ‘Ironman’ standing at the top of the list of solo drivers/riders. San Diego’s iconic Ivan ‘Ironman’ Stewart has accepted SCORE’s invitation to be the Grand Marshal for the upcoming BFGoodrich Tires 54th SCORE Baja 500, presented by 4 Wheel Parts.
The legendary ‘Ironman’ will be celebrating his 77th birthday on June 4, the day that this year’s SCORE Baja 500 will start. Being the Grand Marshal is just some more icing on his championship cake.
Racing since 1973, Stewart, who retired in 2000, joined the Toyota factory team in 1983 for Cal Wells at Precision Preparation Inc. (PPI). He had a total of 84 career off-road race victories in stadium, short course and desert.
The legendary Stewart has been inducted into the Off-Road Motorsports Hall of Fame (2006), the San Diego Hall of Champions Breitbard Hall of Fame (2009) and the Motorsports Hall of Fame of America (2020).
GRAN HISTORIA
This year’s SCORE World Desert Championship includes another special tribute to the iconic SCORE Baja 500.
The SCORE Baja 500 is one of the top motorsports events in the world. It was started originally in 1969 by the NORRA organization. After NORRA was removed from Baja after the 1972 race, the local Baja Sports Committee produced the 1973 event. Mickey Thompson and his SCORE International organization were invited by the Mexican government to take over the event starting in 1974. Sal Fish ran and later owned and produced the SCORE Baja 500 for 39 years until he sold SCORE in December of 2012.
The first Baja 500 organized and produced by SCORE was held on July 26, 1974 in Ensenada as the first of nearly 160 SCORE Baja races.
This year’s SCORE Baja 500 will start for the 48th time in Ensenada and finish for the 44th time in Ensenada.
BFGOODRICH TIRES UNMATCHED
BFGoodrich Tires, the official tire of SCORE for 46 years, received two awards for the 2021 SCORE World Desert Championship. BFGoodrich Tires was honored after the 2021 season as the SCORE Contingency Company of the year for the 31st time as well as being voted the SCORE Pit Support Team of the Year for the 33rd time.
BFGoodrich Tires has been the choice of 34 of the 53 overall winners of the popular SCORE Baja 500 and 32 of the 54 overall winners of the legendary SCORE Baja 1000. BFGoodrich Tires is also the title sponsor of both of the iconic races again in 2022.
BFGoodrich Tires also has been the choice of 29 of the 35 overall winners of the SCORE San Felipe 250, all three SCORE Desert Challenge races, the lone SCORE Challenge of Champions in San Felipe, the one SCORE Baja Sur 500 and one of the two overall winners in the SCORE Baja 400.
This year’s SCORE San Felipe 250 overall victory by San Diego’s Luke McMillin marked the 100th BFGoodrich Tires SCORE Baja overall race win.
BFGoodrich Tires has posted a contingency bonus for the overall winner of this race of US$20,000.
PRESENTING SPONSOR
Presenting sponsor for this year’s BFGoodrich Tires 54th SCORE Baja 500 is 4 Wheel Parts, the Official Off-Road Retailer and Race Presenting Partner of SCORE and the SCORE World Desert Championship.
SCOREscope
2022 SCHEDULE
Here are the remaining three dates in the four-race 2022 SCORE World Desert Championship which is being held exclusively in Baja California, Mexico for the seventh consecutive year:
BFGoodrich Tires 54th SCORE Baja 500, presented by 4 Wheel Parts—
June 1-5, Ensenada, Baja California, Mexico
3rd SCORE Baja 400, presented by VP Racing Fuels—
September 13-18, Ensenada, Baja California, Mexico
BFGoodrich Tires 55th SCORE Baja 1000, presented by 4 Wheel Parts—
November 15-20, Ensenada, Baja California, Mexico
ESPN TV NETWORKS AGAIN IN 2022
For the fourth straight year, the 2022 SCORE World Desert Championship races will air on the ESPN family of networks. The four-races will air as specials on the World of X Games program 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 journalists Sam Posey and Jack Arute.
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 and Race Title Sponsor, Polaris RZR-Official UTV, RACELINE Wheels-Official Wheel, VP Racing Fuels-Official Fuel and race presenting sponsor, Optima Batteries-Official Batteries, Wide Open Excursions-Official Arrive and Drive Company, Crystal Bay Casino-Official Casino and PCI Race Radios.
SCORE Official Partners: The Satellite Phone Store, Instant Mexico Auto Insurance, Lucerna Hotel.
Additional SCORE Associate Partners: Baja California Secretary of Tourism, MEXICO Secretary of Tourism, San Felipe Foundational Municipal Council, Ensenada Municipal Government, San Felipe Marketing Tourism Committee, Ensenada Marketing Tourism Committee, Ensenada Hotel and Motel Association, Proturismo Ensenada and Cruz Roja Mexicana.
For more information regarding SCORE, visit the official website of the SCORE World Desert Championship at www.SCORE-International.com.

BFGoodrich Tires 54th SCORE Baja 500,
presented by 4 Wheel Parts
Round 2 of four-race 2022 SCORE World Desert Championship

PRO MOTO UNLIMITED (7)
3x Forrest Minchinton
4x Jason Alosi
10x Juan Carlos Salvatierra
19x Drew Watson
20x Miguel “Sammy” Pena
38x Ivan Delgadillo
69x Oliver Gamez
PRO MOTO 30 (4)
300x Greg Bardonnex
325x Jano Montoya
332x Jack Lundin
346x Rolando Cabrera
PRO MOTO LIMITED (4)
103x Giovanni Aviles
111x Carlos Castillo
122x Ignacio Laviosa
180x Fernando Beltran
PRO MOTO 50 (2)
500x Giovanni Spinali
522x Vance Kennedy
PRO MOTO 40 (6)
400x Ryan Liebelt
401x James Avery
415x Brad Baker (ROR-Quinn Cody)
419x Jacob Nieder
432x Brad White
441x Alirio Amado
PRO MOTO IRONMAN (10)
704x Juan Pablo Valenzuela
712x Eddie Meek
733x Paul Hart
739x Aaron Richardson
740x Carlos Cardenas
750x Brandon Wright
778x Aaron McDowell
785x Fabricio Fuentes
748x Guillermo HaleBolio-2nd RS
760x Adam Rachac-1st RS
PRO MOTO 60 (1)
649x Guy Laycraft

Pro Quad (5)
1a Ricardo Villafana
5a Steven Lopez
7a Luis Ernesto Villafana
10a Said Sanchez
27a Carlos Napoles
Pro Quad Ironman (1)
83a Faelly Lopez

SPT M/C (11)
212x Eduardo Larios
214x David Navarro
217x Dustin Davis
218x Christian Espinoza
224x Edgar Najar
225x Jason Lopez
227x Esteban Rodriguez
237x Fermin Vargas
245x Filiberto Garcia
246x Chael Pável Avilez Urcadiz
249x Armando Ortiz
SPT QUAD (8)
103a Dario Rabago
104a Juan Pablo Gonzalez
105a Francisco Valle
111a Fidel Gonzalez
122a Samir Garciayala Coy
126a Miguel Salas
130a Nakul Nacul Hernandez
133a Julian Zepeda