The Luke & The G.O.A.T. capture SCORE Baja 1000 overall

SCORE MEDIA CONTACT: Dominic Clark, Dominic@SCORE-International.com
November 20, 2022
Ensenada, Mexico

BFGoodrich Tires 55th SCORE Baja 1000
presented by 4 Wheel Parts
L. McMillin/MacCachren soar to Overall 828.25-mile
Gold, Samuels’ SLR team takes Motorcycle triumph

 

     ENSENADA, Baja California, Mexico—In a race full of ‘SCORE Super Teams’ that turned into a true ‘survival’ test, San Diego’s youthful super star Luke McMillin and the admired G.O.A.T. in desert racing, Las Vegas’ Rob MacCachren teamed to rise above the rest in a field of 276 starters early Saturday morning to win the overall and SCORE Trophy Truck title in the legendary season-ending BFGoodrich Tires 55th SCORE Baja 1000, presented by 4 Wheel Parts. The international event was the season-finale of the four-race 2022 SCORE World Desert Championship.
Starting second physically on the road in the elapsed time race and splitting the driving in McMillin’s Big Blue M racing machine all-wheel drive 4 Wheel Parts/BFGoodrich Tires No. 83 Chevy 1500, the dynamic duo patiently worked their way to the front of the pack and finished the beautifully bodacious 828.25-mile race around the Northern Part of Mexico’s majestic Baja peninsula in a sterling penalty-free time of 16 hours, 37 minutes and 46 seconds with an average speed of 49.81 miles per hour.
The SCORE Baja 1000 is at the pinnacle of motorsports as the oldest, most iconic, most prestigious, toughest and longest continuously held desert race in the world.
SCORE International is well known around the globe as the ‘World’s Foremost Desert Racing Organization.’ Celebrating its 49th season in 2022, this race is the flagship event of the SCORE World Desert Championship.
THE LUKE & THE G.O.A.T.
One of several ‘Super Teams’ competing in this race primarily because of the length of the course, Off-Road Motorsports Hall of Fame inductee MacCachren, 57, stabled his aging two-wheel drive thoroughbred when invited to join the Big Blue M race team again for this historic race and be Luke McMillin’s second driver in the McMillin’s No. 83 McMilling Racing AWD Chevy 1500 built by Mason Motorsports.
Using Luke McMillin’s No. 83 SCORE Trophy Truck, McMillin entered the race as the SCORE Trophy Truck overall point leader for 2022 and second in the SCORE Overall points.
A third-generation desert racer, Luke McMillin, 29, and venerable Hall of Famer ‘Rob Mac’ started second behind another ‘Super Team’ of Las Vegas’ Bryce Menzies and Luke McMillin’s cousin Andy McMillin, also of San Diego.
Last year, the McMillin family allowed MacCachren to be driver of record while driving in Luke’s truck and the pair won that race as well and MacCachren earned the SCORE Trophy Truck season point-championship.
Stalking their prey again this year like a hungry Cheetah, MacCachren started and stayed the course, with L. McMillin taking over the wheel at race mile 394, they then battled Luke’s older brother Dan McMillin and Josh Daniel, passing Josh when he had a flat tire, never looking back the rest of the way to the checkered flag.
Dan McMillin and Daniel finished second to give the iconic McMillin Racing family their first one-two overall finish in a SCORE race.
BIG BLUE M FAMILY LEGACY
With an enduring legacy started by the late family patriarch Corky McMillin, Luke McMillin added to the Big Blue M rich history with his third career victory in the marquee SCORE Trophy Truck division.
With his victory, L. 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, Luke McMillin’s champion family members include his brother Daniel McMillin, 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 15 overall victories in the SCORE Baja 1000.
While Luke McMillin earned his third (straight) SCORE Baja 1000 overall, his father Mark has five as does his cousin Andy and his uncle Scott has two overalls in this storied race.
Luke won in 2020 teamed with Larry Roeseler and the last two years with the legendary G.O.A.T. MacCachren.
With his overall win, L. McMillin became just the third driver in race history to earn a three-peat with his third consecutive SCORE Baja 1000 victory. The other two Off-Road Motorsports Hall of Fame racers to accomplish the feat have been MacCachren (2014, 2015, 2016) and super vet Larry Ragland (1995, 1996, 1997).
Ragland, Carefree, Ariz., who will turn 79 in December, was the second driver in this year’s race for Las Vegas’ Dallas Luttrell and they finished seventh in SCORE Trophy Truck and 14th overall.
BAJA MIL
Most of the world’s best desert racers were in action at this year’s massive BFGoodrich Tires 55th SCORE Baja 1000, presented by 4 Wheel Parts. The 2022 season-finale will be televised on a delayed basis as a one-hour special on ESPN2’s World of X Games programming. First airing is scheduled for 9 p.m. PT on Sunday, Dec. 12.
Ensenada, “The Off-Road Capital of the World” 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.
This iconic race started for the 48th time in Ensenada and finished for the 28th time in Ensenada.
This race is annually the grand finale of the SCORE World Desert Championship, which has been held exclusively for the past seven years in Baja California.
DIRTTRAX
When the final checkered flag fell, a total of 276 vehicles left the starting line early Friday morning in Ensenada in the elapsed time race. When the course officially closed at 12:01:33 a.m. PT on Sunday morning there were 155 official finishers for a solid 56.16 percent finishing rate on the long, extremely challenging race course.
The legend grows. Overall, the 276 starters are the 21st-most in the 55-year race history and the 155 finishers are the 20th-most finishers out of five-plus decades of the monstrous event.
The results were made official following complete data tracking review of the devices on each vehicle in the event early on Sunday morning.
MEDALISTS
Following the Cool Hand Luke/G.O.A.T. talented tandem onto the podium where Luke’s older brother Dan McMillin and ageless warrior Larry Roeseler.
Dan McMillin, 35, also of San Diego and Josh Daniel, 47, Bonsall, Calif., split the driving in the No. 23 McMillin Racing AWD Chevy 1500 built by Mason Motorsports in 16:59:40 (48.74mph).
Completing the podium was Larry ‘Mr. Baja’ Roeseler, 65, Boulevard, Calif., who drove solo for the second straight year, covering the course in 17:38:44 (46.92mph) in his No. 43 Baja Jerky Toyota Turndra, built by ID Designs. Roeseler has a SCORE-record 18 overall wins in the SCORE Baja 1000, including 14 on motorcycles, two in Class 1 cars and two in SCORE Trophy Truck. His last overall win was in 2020 when he was the second driver for Luke McMillin in SCORE Trophy Truck.
SLR M/C SAGA CONTINUES
Continuing their winning ways individually and as a team were Mark Samuels, 33, Yucca Valley, Calif. and his teammates Justin Morgan, 32, El Cajon, Calif. and Kendall Norman, 38, Santa Barbara, Calif. who won on their No. 7x Slam Life Racing Honda CRF450X.
Winning their 13th consecutive SCORE race (that they entered) as a team in the SCORE World Desert Championship, the super team finished the grueling course in a winning time of 18:51:30 with an average speed of 43.92 mph.
Morgan won the SCORE Baja 1000 in 2020 with Samuels and Justin Jones, Murrieta, Calif.
Individually this was the seventh SCORE Baja 1000 overall victory for Samuels, sixth overall for Morgan and eighth for Norman. As a team, SLR has a combined 21 overall motorcycle wins in the SCORE Baja 1000.
Morgan started the race and rode the first 280 miles. Samuels took over from race mile 280 to rocket to race mile 475. At the point, Norman took over and rode the motorcycle to race mile 726 where Morgan jumped backed on and cruised it to the finish line and a victory margin of just under one hour.
The victory also earned Honda motorcycles its race-record 32nd overall motorcycle victory in the SCORE Baja 1000.
SCORE TT LEGEND
Mexico’s veteran SCORE champion Gustavo Vildosola Sr, 69, Mexicali, Mexico, finished an undefeated season in SCORE TT Legend (drivers over 50 years old) following his four 2022 victories, one in San Felipe and three in Ensenada. Vildosola Sr, won the SCORE TT Legend season point championship in 2018 with Scott Bailey as a second driver.
He won all four races this year with help from legendary racer Ricky Johnson, 58, El Cajon, Calif. who drove the first half of each race in the Vildosola Racing No. 21L AWD Ford Raptor built by Mason Motorsports. The third driver for this year’s race was Mike Coleman of San Diego.
The Vildosola Racing team completed the SCORE Baja 1000course in a penalty-free 18:08:10 (45.67mph) in the Mexicana Logistics No. 21L AWD Ford Rapture, built by Mason Motorsports. Vildosola finished seventh overall in additional to winning his class, the highest overall placement for his class since it was introduced in 2017.
Vildosola Sr also has three career SCORE Trophy Truck race wins in his illustrious career in SCORE desert racing.
SEVEN OF TOP 11 OVERALL SCORE TROPHY TRUCKS
Besides podium finishers L. McMillin/MacCachren, D. McMillin/J. Daniels and Roeseler along with fifth place Vildosola Sr/Johnson/Coleman, seven of the top 11 overall four-wheel vehicle finishers were all SCORE Trophy Trucks. The other four were from the Trophy Truck Spec class.
LOS TERRIBLES TRIO
And three of the top 11 overall four-wheel vehicle finishers were all part of Las Vegas’ iconic Terrible Herbst Motorsports team.
All driving Herbst/Smith-built race trucks, Pierce Herbst, son of veteran SCORE champion Tim Herbst, finished third the Trophy Truck Spec class while finishing eighth overall, Tim Herbst finished sixth in SCORE Trophy Truck and 10th overall and Ed Herbst’s son EJ Herbst finished fourth in Trophy Truck Spec and 11th overall.
Pierce Herbst split the driving with his cousin Riley Herbst (Troy Herbst’s son and regular in the NASCAR Xfinity Series) and Las Vegas’ James Dean, whose father Pat Dean shared driving duties with Tim Herbst.
EJ Herbst split the driving in his Trophy Truck Spec class with New Zealand’s Ryan Millen.
REMAINING TOP 11
The other two SCORE Trophy Trucks among the top 11 overall finishers were Dave Taylor, Paige, Ariz., fourth in SCORE Trophy Truck and fifth overall along with the team of Mickey Lawrence, Banning, Calif./Dustin Grabowski, Upland, Calif., fifth in SCORE Trophy Truck and ninth overall.
Elijah Kiger, Kirby, Penn., won the Trophy Truck Spec class and was an amazing fourth overall with a penalty-free race. Green Army Racing brothers Justin and Jeremy Davis of Chino Hills, Calif., finished second in Trophy Truck Spec and sixth overall.
CLASS 1 SUPERLATIVE
In his first season as the driver of record after over a decade as the team’s second driver, Kyle Quinn, 35, Lakewood, Calif., led a Wilson Motorsports team to victory in the unlimited Class 1. Quinn was the primary driver for the No. 138 Wilson Motorsports Chevy-powered Jimco open-wheel desert race car.
Quinn earned his second Class 1 win of the 2022 SCORE World Desert Championship with driving teammates Ronny Wilson, 60, Long Beach, Calif. and Sammy Ehrenberg, 57, Las Vegas.
The trio drove to a winning time in Baja California of 20:09:57, averaging 41.07 miles per hour over the extremely demanding race course.
OVERALL UTV, ETC.
Defeating 54 starters in five different UTV classes in the race, Branden Sims, 36, Prescott Valley, Ariz., emerged as the Overall UTV and Pro UTV Open class winner in this year’s race. He drove his No. 1869 Polaris RZR Pro R to the fastest time among the UTVs, covering the course in 20:37:09 (40.16mph).
Austin Weiland, 30, El Cajon, Calif., captured the checkered flag over the largest UTV field in this year’s race, Pro UTV FI (Forced Induction) which had 27 starters, running the distance in 21:15:57 in his No. 2954 Can-Am X3.
Winning the Pro UTV Stock class which had 11 starters was Antonio Mendez, 57, Puebla, Mexico, in his No. 3959 Polaris RZR XP4 Turbo in 26:20:36.
Kaden Wells, 24, Hurricane, Utah, claimed his second 2022 SCORE victory in the Pro UTV NA (Naturally Aspirated) class with a time of 23:01:57 in his No. 1995 Polaris RZR XP1000
COOL HAND LUKE
Luke McMillin commented after the race, “Today is really, really special for the entire team for quite a few reasons. Today is our third SCORE Baja 1000 in a row in the No. 83 SCORE Trophy Truck. That’s unbelievable. Only two other people in the history of the SCORE Baja 1000 have done that – Rob MacCachren and Larry Roeseler – two legends I have looked up to my entire life. Another reason it is a special day is the big blue M. My brother and I are here one and two. That’s awesome. This is a testament to the race shop, everyone that works on these trucks. The amount of work we put in, we work really hard to do this and we really earned this. I am really pumped for this team. This is awesome. Today was good.”
“This SCORE Baja 1000 probably had the most highs and lows I have ever had in a SCORE Baja 1000. At the end, it was probably the most calm I have ever had in a SCORE Baja 1000. At the beginning, Rob MacCachren passed Bryce Menzies about race mile 70 for the physical lead and I was like, all right, that’s pretty cool, but it’s early. And then Rob got a flat and Dan McMillin and Bryce got by him and Rob worked his way past both of them again. My brother started having a little bit of engine issues, some popping and stuff, no big deal, it worked its way out and his truck was running good after that.”
“Rob caught Bryce on Zoo line and I was waiting down the road and to my surprise, Rob was first. That was pretty cool. So that was the high. And then the low was we lost a driveshaft on Puertocitas road and we had about 20 minutes of down time and I was sitting at my pit waiting for the truck and I was ready to get in and do battle with the No. 7 and was looking forward to that but unfortunately it didn’t work out for either one of us. At the time, Rob had dropped down to fourth on the road, but there was no one else. There was only four or five running…the two of us McMillins and Bryce and Larry Roeseler and Cameron Steele were in the mix.”
“Behind that was a big gap so once we changed the driveshaft, I knew Rob could push back up and catch him and sure enough, he caught Cameron, then the No. 7 had a transmission change, so then we were third on the road. I got in at third on the road and then Cameron lost a transmission, so then my brother and I were one and two. We got up on them in the desert. They did a driver change and went into Mike’s [Sky Ranch] only a minute or two separating us, which was pretty exciting.”
“From there I drove the entire Mike’s loop blind. I couldn’t see five feet in front of me. Unfortunately, my brother got a flat, so then we got around him and just drove it in from there. It was odd; the last 300 miles, my brother was 10 or 15 minutes behind us and then behind him they were saying there was a 45-60 minute gap, so it kind of like a long pre-run. No pressure. That’s what my brother and I do down here, we just kind of follow each other. And here we are. A three-peat.”
ROB REPORT
For the G.O.A.T. MacCachren, he increased his SCORE-record to 20 all-time SCORE Trophy Truck career race wins as well as earning his 11th class win and sixth overall in the SCORE Baja 1000.
The ‘Mac Attack’ commented, ““Here we are at the finish line, overall winners. McMillin Racing, BFGoodrich Tires. What an honor to be invited to race with the McMillin family two years in a row now. It is Luke’s third overall win in a row. I’m not counting for me, but it is good to get another SCORE Baja 1000 victory under my belt.”
“I ended up going the first 394 miles. I got first on the road at about race mile 80 but then I got a mystery flat. We changed that but Bryce (Menzies) got back by and Dan (McMillin) got by. We ended up getting both of them back by the time we got to San Felipe and then we were first truck on the road, going toward Matomi Wash and I thought hey this is a great situation because the sun is going down and usually when the sun goes down the dust starts hanging, but then for some reason we had a driveshaft come out of the truck. So (Jason) Duncan and I, the co-driver who solo’d by the way, got out and changed the driveshaft. It took us about 18-20 minutes or so. Let three trucks by. We got that done and got back out on the road and started pushing hard because I knew Luke really wanted to win this race to make it three in a row, so I figured we need to push hard now.”
“I handed the truck to Luke about seven minutes behind Dan and he pushed hard and caught him going up the summit and followed him all the way through there. When they got over on the beach side, Dan had a little problem and that let Luke get by him and then from there it was just the two of them. It is great to have the McMillin's one and two, it is a testament to the McMillin team and mechanics and team strategy. It is awesome to be here. I want to thank SCORE for allowing us to race across this desert and do what we do. And thank you to all the fans.”
SLR SAYS
At the joyful finish line festivities, the three riders on Mark Samuels 7x motorcycle each spoke. Samuels said, “It was a tough course, slower than normal, slower than we anticipated. I am tired, I am sore. Looking forward to getting back and taking a nap. But it feels good to cross that finish line. It is a special feeling for sure. We had our hands full at the beginning. The course was really gnarly from the Hurricane Kay that came through. It changed the course a lot, turned a lot of rocks up. The 10x team (Juan Carlos Salvatierra) was on a mission and 3x (Forrest Minchinton) was riding really good. We had to make our way through the pack from seventh. It was a really good race. By race mile 340 we were in the lead. From there we just had to bring it home.”
CO-RIDER KENDALL NORMAN said: “Baja was tough. I am tired. It was very rough, technical as well. All the San Felipe and Mike’s loop that has been ridden a lot and the newer summit, I haven’t been down it, but from what I heard it was really gnarly. It was the battle of Baja out there.”
CO-RIDER JUSTIN MORGAN said: “I am happy to be here. The course was awesome. It had a little bit of everything.”
THE UNDEFEATED
Besides Vildosola Sr in SCORE TT Legend, also finishing the season undefeated with four consecutive wins in their respective classes were racers in two Motorcycle classes.
With four straight class wins in the 2022 season also are Fernando Beltran, Ensenada, Mexico (Pro Moto Limited, No. 180x Honda CRF450X) and Ryan Liebelt, Reedley, Calif. (Pro Moto 40, No. 400x Yamaha WR450F).
MORE CLASS WINNERS
Topping the podium in Class 10 which had 23 starters was Hiram Duran, Tecate, Mexico (No. 1016 Alumi Craft-Chevy).
Among the other 4-wheel vehicle class winners in this year’s SCORE Baja 1000 were Jeff Proctor, Glendora, Calif. (Class 7, No. 709 Honda Ridgeline) who won his class in this race for the fourth time.
In its SCORE debut, Brad Lovell, Colorado Springs, Colo., won Stock Midsize in the new No. 773 Ford Ranger Raptor that was built in Australia in conjunction with Ford Performance.
Other class winners included Miguel Cortez, San Diego (SCORE Lites, No. 1205 Curry-VW), Eli Yee, Tijuana, Mexico (Class 1/2-1600, No. 1616 PCR-VW), Cole Johnson, Tremonton, Utah (Hammer Truck Unlimited, No. 4482 SXOR-Chevy), Ramon Fernandez, Ensenada, Mexico (Class 5, No. 507, Penhall-Chevy), Cesar Gutierrez, Tijuana, Mexico (Class 5/1600, No. 553, VW Baja Bug), Frank DeAngelo, Timmonsville, S.C. (Baja Challenge, No. BC1 BTC-Subaru), Mark C. Van Tassel, Ely, Nev. (Stock Full, No. 8155 Toyota Land Cruiser) and Oliver Flemate, Ensenada, Mexico (Class 11, Stock VW Sedan)
Leading the other motorcycle was Tanner Janesky, Middlebury, Conn., who defeated a motorcycle race-high field of 20 starters in the Pro Moto Ironman class for solo riders. The fastest quad was driven by Hector Chavez, Tecate, Mexico (Pro Quad, No. 31a Honda TRX450R).
Among the other motorcycle class winners teams led by Darrel Collins, Eureka, Calif. (Pro Moto 30, No. 301x ), Fernando Beltran, Ensenada, Mexico (Pro Moto Limited, No. 180x ), Vance Kennedy, Peoria, Ariz. (Pro Moto 50, No. 522x ), and Canada’s Guy Laycraft (Pro Moto 60, No. 649x ).
AMAZING RACE
Pre-race Contingency/Tech along with the start and finish of the race were located in the SCORE compound located on Boulevard Costero adjacent to the historic Riviera del Pacifico Cultural Center in Ensenada.
The 276 total in this year’s Granddaddy of All Desert Races, racers represented 37 U.S. States, U.S. Territory Puerto Rico and 18 countries.
U.S. States represented in the field of competitors to date were Alabama, Alaska, Arizona, California, Colorado, Connecticut, Florida, Georgia, Hawaii, Idaho, Illinois, Indiana, Iowa, Kansas, Maryland, Massachusetts, Michigan, Minnesota, Missouri, Montana, Nevada, New Mexico, New York, North Carolina, Ohio, Oklahoma, Oregon, Pennsylvania, South Carolina, South Dakota, Tennessee, Texas, Utah, Vermont, Virginia, Washington and Wyoming.
The countries were United States, U.S. Territory Puerto Rico, host country Mexico, Argentina, Australia, Belize, Bolivia, Brazil, Canada, Chile, Colombia, Costa Rica, England, India, Japan, New Zealand, Norway, Peru and Spain.
SCORE LIVE
During contingency on Wednesday and Thursday and the race on Friday until the course closed on Sunday early morning, SCORE Live streaming broadcasted race activities and start and finish line interviews as well as live action from Drones, ground cameras and in-car cameras from around the race course.
Popular Rat Sult, who has been the voice of SCORE over the last seven seasons, once again served as host and lead announcer of the expansive SCORE Live streaming. Assisting Sult on-site was veteran voice Dave Arnold.
Sult and Arnold announced and conducted interviews from the SCORE start/finish ramp while the show also included SCORE studio announcer Bob Bower in El Cajon, Calif., and Fishgistics providing live info and updates throughout the race.
SCORE live was produced again by SCORE Media House, Aaron Laub, producer, Alberto Luna-director.
LA RUTA
Identified, designed, plotted and marked by SCORE President/Race Director Abelardo Grijalva, the 828.25-mile race course for the BFGoodrich Tires SCORE Baja 1000, presented by 4 Wheel Parts, ran in a clockwise direction after the first part to and then back from Ojos Negros.
The magnificent course featured three physical, full-stop checkpoints and 285 virtual checkpoints. The course also had 18 speed zones for a total of 70.6 race miles.
Checkpoint 1 was at race-mile 200.22 (El Chinero), Checkpoint 2 was at rm 579.98 (Ejido Jaramillo) and Checkpoint 3 was at race-mile 726.57 (El Alamo).
After Ojos Negros, the course went up and over the Cordillera de Molina to drop into the desert around Rm 115.
After reaching the La Ventana area it ran south to the El Chinero road crossing highway 3 at Km 192 and kept going south to Matomi Wash. Halfway into Matomi Wash it exited and went north to Azufre Wash, then to Huatamote wash, Chanate Wash and up to Morelia Junction.
From there the course exited the desert and went to San Matias Pass road and Mike’s Sky Rancho, down to Rancho La Jolla and ran on the San Pedro Martir road to Meling Ranch. After Meling it ran to the Pacific Coast to Ejido Jaramillo and north to just below San Vicente where it crossed back to Valley de Trinidad then back to Ojos Negros and onto to the finish line in Ensenada.
For safety reasons, all of the Sportsman 4 Wheel Vehicle classes along with Class 11 and Class 7SX ran a reduced course of 695.79 miles and the Sportsman Motorcycle and Quad classes along with Class 11 and Class 7SX ran a reduced course of 695.79 miles and the Sportsman Motorcycle and Quad classes raced a on a reduced course of 760.91 miles.
GRAND MARSHAL—SCOT HARDEN
Grand Marshal for the BFGoodrich Tires 55th SCORE Baja 1000, presented by 4 Wheel Parts, was Hall of Fame SCORE motorcycle champion Scot Harden.
Harden, 66, born and raised in Las Vegas and currently living in Menifee, Calif., is a legendary professional desert motorcycle racer with a 50-year career as a world champion racer and motorcycle industry executive.
In his racing career Harden captured two SCORE Baja 1000 overall victories, three SCORE Baja 500 wins, two wins in the SCORE Parker 400, one Mexicali 300 win and he also won the 1979 SCORE Pro Moto Unlimited (Class 22) season point championship. In addition, he has numerous overalls at other major desert events,
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 54 overall winners of the popular SCORE Baja 500 and 33 of the 55 overall winners of the legendary SCORE Baja 1000. BFGoodrich Tires is also the title sponsor of both of these 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 the first of the three SCORE Baja 400 races.
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.
PRESENTING SPONSOR
Presenting sponsor for this year’s BFGoodrich Tires 5th 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
2023 GOLDEN ANNIVERSARY SCHEDULE
Here are the dates for the four-race 2023 SCORE World Desert Championship Golden Anniversary season, ‘Celebrating 50 Years of Desert Racing Excellence’, which will be held totally in Baja California, Mexico for the eighth consecutive year:
King Shocks 36th SCORE San Felipe 250—
March 29-April 2, San Felipe, Baja California, Mexico
BFGoodrich Tires 55th SCORE Baja 500, presented by 4 Wheel Parts—
May 31-June 4, Ensenada, Baja California, Mexico
4th SCORE Baja 400, presented by VP Racing Fuels—
September 12-17, Ensenada, Baja California, Mexico
BFGoodrich Tires 56th SCORE Baja 1000, presented by 4 Wheel Parts—
November 13-18, La Paz, Baja California Sur to 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 are airing 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. Bud Brutsman is the Executive Producer.
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.

SCORE Baja 1000 All-Time Overall Champions

YEAR DRIVERS/RIDERS VEHICLE TIME
1967 Vic Wilson/Ted Mangels Meyers Manx-VW 27:38
J.N. Roberts/Malcolm Smith Husqvarna 28:48
1968 Larry Berquist/Gary Preston Honda 20:38:28
Larry Minor/Jack Bayer Ford Bronco 21:11:32
1969 Larry Minor/Rod Hall Ford Bronco 20:48:10
Gunnar Nilsson/J.N. Roberts Husqvarna 21:35:52
1970 Drino Miller/Vic Wilson Miller-VW 16:07
Mike Patrick/Bill Bowers Yamaha 18:31
1971 Parnelli Jones/Bill Stroppe Ford Bronco 14:59
Malcolm Smith/Gunnar Nilsson Husqvarna 16:51
1972 Parnelli Jones/Bill Stroppe Ford Bronco 16:47
Gunnar Nilsson/Rolf Tibblin Husqvarna 19:19
1973 Bobby Ferro/Johnny Johnson Funco-VW 16:50:25
Mitch Mayes/A.C. Bakken Husqvarna 18:42:51
1974 NO RACE
1975 Al Baker/ Gene Cannady Honda 18:22:55
Malcolm Smith/Dr. Bud Feldkamp Hi-Jumper-VW 18:55:49
1976 Larry Roeseler/Mitch Mayes Husqvarna 11:30:47
Ivan Stewart Chenowth-VW 12:17:28
1977 Brent Wallingsford/Scot Harden Husqvarna 14:37:07
Malcolm Smith/Dr. Bud Feldkamp Funco-VW 15:10:42
1978 Larry Roeseler/Jack Johnson Husqvarna 10:23:47
Mark Stahl Chenowth-VW 12:55:42
1979 Larry Roeseler/Jack Johnson Husqvarna 19:48:04
Walker Evans/Bruce Florio Dodge pickup 20:48:27
1980 Larry Roeseler/Jack Johnson Yamaha 12:45:13
Mark Stahl Chenowth-VW 13:33:55
1981 Scot Harden/Brent Wallingsford Husqvarna 17:14:05
Mark McMillin/Thomas Hoke Chenowth-VW 20:29:14
1982 Al Baker/Jack Johnson Honda 17:25:27
Mickey Thompson/Terry Smith Raceco-VW 19:40:23
1983 Dan Smith/Dan Ashcraft Husqvarna 14:48:10
Mark McMillin/Ralph Paxton Chenowth-VW 17:35:06
1984 Chuck Miller/Randy Morales Honda 14:34:34
Mark McMillin/Ralph Paxton Chenowth-VW 16:27:09
1985 Randy Morales/Derrick Paiement Honda 17:44:42
Steve Sourapas/Dave Richardson Raceco-VW 17:54:55
1986 Bruce Ogilvie/Chuck Miller Honda 18:05:52
Mark McMillin/Ralph Paxton Chenowth-Porsche 18:26:28
1987 Dan Ashcraft/Bruce Ogilvie Honda 12:02:14
Bob Gordon/Malcolm Smith Chenowth-Porsche 13:15:04
1988 Paul Krause/Larry Roeseler/Danny LaPorte Kawasaki 11:33:45
Mark McMillin Chenowth-Porsche 13:07:09
1989 Larry Roeseler/Danny LaPorte/Ted Hunnicutt Jr. Kawasaki 17:53:16
Robby Gordon Ford Truck 18:04:07
1990 Larry Roeseler/Ted Hunnicutt Jr./Danny LaPorte Kawasaki 11:11:45
Bob Gordon/Robyn Gordon/Robby Gordon Chenowth-Chevy 12:30:45
1991 Larry Roeseler/Ted Hunnicutt Jr./Marty Smith Kawasaki 13:35:25
Larry Ragland Chevrolet pickup 16:37:35
1992 Danny Hamel/Garth Sweetland/Paul Ostbo Kawasaki 16:50:12
Paul & Dave Simon Ford truck 16:53:02
1993 Ivan Stewart Toyota SR5 13:29:11
Danny Hamel/Larry Roeseler/Ty Davis Kawasaki 13:57:23
1994 Danny Hamel/Larry Roeseler/Ty Davis Kawasaki 10:20:47
Jim Smith (SCORE Trophy Truck) Ford 10:28:56
Dave Ashley/Dan Smith Ford truck 10:43:43
1995 Paul Krause/Ty Davis/Ted Hunnicutt Jr. Kawasaki 19:31:19
Larry Ragland (SCORE Trophy Truck) Chevy 20:14:12
Dale White Chevy Truck 21:57:03
1996 Paul Krause/Ty Davis/Greg Zitterkopf Kawasaki 14:11:02
Larry Ragland (SCORE Trophy Truck) Chevy 14:38:59
Ryan Thomas Chenowth-VW 15:53:56
1997 Johnny Campbell/Tim Staab/Greg Bringle Honda 13:19:59
Larry Ragland (SCORE Trophy Truck) Chevy 13:53:46
Doug Fortin Chenowth-VW 14:31:02
1998 Johnny Campbell/Jimmy Lewis Honda 18:58:48
Ivan Stewart Toyota truck 19:08:20
1999 Johnny Campbell/Tim Staab Honda 14:15:42
Larry Ragland Chevy truck 14:26:36
2000 Johnny Campbell/Tim Staab/Craig Smith, Steve Hengeveld Honda 30:54:12
Dan Smith/Dave Ashley Ford truck 32:15:39
2001 Johnny Campbell/Tim Staab Honda 13:51:40
Doug Fortin/Charlie Townsley Jimco Chevy truck 14:35:42
2002 Steve Hengeveld/Johnny Campbell/Andy Grider Honda 16:17:28
Dan Smith/Dave Ashley, Ford truck 16:19:03
2003 Steve Hengeveld/Johnny Campbell/Bruce Ogilvie Honda 15:39:52
Doug Fortin/Charlie Townsley Jimco-Chevy 16:24:02
2004 Steve Hengeveld/Johnny Campbell/Kendall Norman, Honda 15:57:37
Troy Herbst/Larry Roeseler, Smithbuilt-Ford 16:18:14
2005 Steve Hengeveld/Johnny Campbell/Mike Childress, Honda 14:20:30
Larry Roeseler/Troy Herbst, Smithbuilt-Ford 15:06:19
2006 Steve Hengeveld/ Mike Childress/Quinn Cody, Honda 18:17:50
Andy McMillin/Robby Gordon, Chevy truck 19:15:17
2007 Robby Bell/Steve Hengeveld/Johnny Campbell/Kendall Norman, Honda 24:15:50
Mark Post/Rob MacCachren/Carl Renezeder, Ford truck 25:21:25
2008 Robby Bell/Kendall Norman/Johnny Campbell, Honda 12:29:18
Roger Norman/Larry Roeseler, Ford truck 12:40:33
2009 Kendall Norman/Timmy Weigand/Quinn Cody, Honda 13:27:50
Andy McMillin/Scott McMillin, Chevy truck 14:19:50
2010 Gus Vildosola Jr./Gus Vildosola Sr., Ford truck 19:00:04
Kendall Norman/Quinn Cody, Honda 19:20:52
2011 Kendall Norman/Quinn Cody/Logan Holladay, Honda 14:14:25
Andy McMillin/Scott McMillin, Ford truck 14:51:36
2012 B.J. Baldwin, Chevy truck 20:00:59
Colton Udall/Timmy Weigand/David Kamo, Honda 20:09:30
2013-Tim Weigand/Colton Udall/David Kamo/Mark Samuels, Honda 18:29:14
B.J. Baldwin, Chevy Truck, 18:36:30
2014-Rob MacCachren/Andy McMillin/Jason Voss, Ford truck 22:31:28
Ricky Brabec/Robby Bell/Steve Hengeveld/Max Eddy Jr., Kawasaki 24:24:01
2015-Rob MacCachren/Andy McMillin, Ford truck 15:58:32
Colton Udall/Mark Samuels/Justin Jones, Honda 16:29:08
2016- Rob MacCachren/Jason Voss, Ford truck 17:12:58
Colton Udall/Mark Samuels/Justin Jones/Daymon Stokie/David Kamo, Honda 18:16:42
2017- Carlos ‘Apdaly Lopez/Juan C. Lopez, Chevy truck 19:53:36
Francisco Arredondo/Shane Esposito/Justin Morgan/Max Eddy Jr/Ty Davis, Honda 21:07:17
2018- Justin Morgan/Mark Samuels/Justin Jones, Honda 16:23:26
Cameron Steele/Pat Dean, Ford truck 16:24:02
2019- Alan Ampudia/Aaron Ampudia, Ford truck 16:10:36
Justin Morgan/David Kamo/Max Eddy Jr/Shane Esposito, Honda 17:34:28
2020-Luke McMillin/Larry Roeseler, Ford truck, 19:10:25
Mark Samuels/Justin Morgan/Justin Jones, Honda 20:50:30
2021-Rob MacCachren/Luke McMillin, Chevy Truck, 20:45:59
Mark Samuels/Justin Morgan/Kendall Norman/Brandon Prieto, 23:07:18
2022-Luke McMillin/Rob MacCachren, Chevy Truck, 16:37:46
Mark Samuels/Justin Morgan/Kendall Norman, 18:51:30
NOTE: 1994-1997, SCORE Trophy Truck competed as its own series

SCORE Baja 1000 Overall Champions

Cars & Trucks
15
Larry Roeseler*
6
Rob MacCachren
5
Andy McMillin
Mark McMillin
Larry Ragland
Malcolm Smith**
4
Dan Smith***
3
Dave Ashley
Doug Fortin Jr.
Robby Gordon
Luke McMillin
Ralph Paxton
Ivan Stewart
2
B.J. Baldwin
Dr. Bud Feldkamp
Bob Gordon
Troy Herbst
Parnelli Jones
Scott McMillin
Larry Minor
Mark Stahl
Jason Voss
Vic Wilson
1
Aaron Ampudia
Alan Ampudia
Pat Dean
Walker Evans
Bobby Ferro
Robyn Gordon
Rod Hall
Johnny Johnson
Carlos ‘Apdaly’ Lopez
Juan C. Lopez
Drino Miller
Roger Norman
Mark Post
Carl Renezeder
Dave Simon
Paul Simon
Jim Smith
Steve Sourapas
Cameron Steele
Ryan Thomas
Mickey Thompson
Gus Vildosola Sr.
Gus Vildosola Jr.
Dale White
*10 on Motorcycle
**2 on Motorcycle
***1 on Motorcycle
Motorcycles
11
Johnny Campbell
8
Steve Hengeveld
Kendall Norman
7
Mark Samuels
6
Justin Morgan
5
Ty Davis
4
Quinn Cody
Ted Hunnicutt Jr.
Jack Johnson
Justin Jones
David Kamo
Tim Staab
Colton Udall
3
Robby Bell
Max Eddy Jr.
Danny Hamel
Paul Krause
Danny LaPorte
Gunnar Nilsson
Bruce Ogilvie
Timmy Weigand
2
Dan Ashcraft
Al Baker
Mike Childress
Shane Esposito
Scot Harden
Mitch Mayes
Chuck Miller
Randy Morales
J.N. Roberts
Brent Wallingsford
1
Francisco Arredondo
A.C. Bakken
Larry Berquist
Bill Bowers
Ricky Brabec
Greg Bringle
Gene Cannady
Andy Grider
Logan Holladay
Jimmy Lewis
Paul Ostbo
Derrick Paiement
Mike Patrick
Dave Richardson
Gary Preston
Dave Richardson
Brandon Prieto
Craig Smith
Marty Smith
Damen Stokie
Garth Sweetland
Rolf Tibblin
Greg Zitterkopf
OVERALL VEHICLE WINS
Cars & Trucks
15
Ford Truck
12
Chevrolet Truck
5
Chenowth-VW
4
Ford Bronco
3
Chenowth-Porsche
2
Chenowth-Chevrolet
Funco-VW
Jimco-Chevy
Raceco-VW
Smithbuilt-Ford
Toyota Truck
1
Miller-VW
Hi-Jumper-VW
Dodge Truck
Meyers Manx-VW
Cars & Trucks
Tire Manufacturers
33
BFGoodrich Tires
6
Western Auto
4
Firestone
Toyo
3
Calahan Cap
1
Armstrong
Gates
Goodyear
Mickey Thompson
Tectira
Motorcycles
32
Honda
11
Husqvarna
10
Kawasaki
2
Yamaha