SCORE Journal - The Official Publication of SCORE Off-Road Racing
Issue link: http://read.uberflip.com/i/1040456
UTVs Battle For The Championship The Lucerna Hotels & Resorts Tijuana 22nd SCORE Desert Challenge Was Toughest On The UTV Racers By Dan Sanchez Photos By Get Some Photo If you weren’t watching close enough at the UTV racers at this year’s Lucerna Hotels & Resorts Tijuana 22nd SCORE Desert Challenge, you might have blinked and missed one of the closest races in this class all season. The race came down to the wire with some upsets and challenges that will make racing at the BFGoodrich Tires SCORE Baja 1000 even much more important for these side-by-side racers come November. After some penalties were assessed to some racers in the Pro UTV Forced Induction class, Rhys Millen came out with the fastest time to win the class posting a combined time of 3:38:52. Right behind Millen was Wayne Matlock with a time of 3:51:44. Closely behind Matlock was Brandon Schueler with a time of 3:51:52. Fourth place finisher in class was Tony Riggs with a time of 3:57:52. This made for a very tight race in Pro UTV FI, but it’s also tight for the overall championship in this class. With the win, Matlock leads in points, but both Riggs and Schueler are close enough to steal it away with a win at the next race. Within the Pro UTV N/A class, Kristen Matlock was the favorite to win, but she had some car problems and posted a rare DNF. This left the door open for Kaden Wells to win the class in the number 1995 car. Finishing second in class was Adrian Orellana in the 1985 car, followed by Paul Champion in the number 1955 car. Despite Matlock’s loss in Tijuana, she can still pull off the championship for the season with a win at the 51st BFGoodrich Tires SCORE Baja 1000 in November. Keep in mind that Matlock is driving solo this season so the “1000” will be a difficult race for her, but she’s proven that she’s more than capable of finishing first. Pro UTV Unlimited had Jesus Mendez Jr. challenging himself in Tijuana. Although he was the only competitor in the class for this race, his time was just as competitive as the other classes, finishing with a combined time of 4:22:32. Mendez was assisted by Rodrigo Ferla, Ignacio Arteaga and Jesus Mendez who helped him drive the number 1872 Can-Am Maverick to victory. SJ