SCORE Journal - The Official Publication of SCORE Off-Road Racing
Issue link: http://read.uberflip.com/i/1040456
Taking Flight Over TiJuana Pro Moto Teams Take on the short course for a thrill-ride By Dan Sanchez Photos by Get Some Photo Better than any stadium race, the Lucerna Hotels & Resorts Tijuana 22nd SCORE Desert Challenge had some of the best motorcycle action this season. SCORE fans who woke up early enough on both days of competition got to see why these racers are the best in the world. But the race for the Pro Moto classes didn’t start without some difficulty. Fog and mud made it almost impossible to see and many of the racers threw their goggles away after they became useless when they and the racers themselves became covered in mud. Despite the visual difficulties on the course, the competition has been tight within the Pro Moto Unlimited class, but still dominated by the 7x team of Justin Morgan. When the checkered flag dropped on both days, it was Morgan who once again snatched another victory leaving him with a third straight first-place finish this season. For the 66x team of Santiago Creel, he had a difficult day driving a Trophy Truck Spec with Mark Winkelman after finishing a grueling race on the bike. Despite the challenges, the 66x team finished second with co-riders Brandon Prieto, Massimo Magini, Eric Yorba and Roberto Villalobos. The team’s 25x bike lead by Massimo Magini finished in third with co-riders Creel, Enrique Furhken, Alberto Heredia and Larry Serna. Within the Pro Moto Limited class, Creel’s Pro Moto Limited 100x team didn’t have the time to beat the 106x team of Phillip Jaramillo and Willy Gaziola. Creel’s team finished second with co-riders Alberto Heredia, Larry Serna, Ricardo de la Pena, and Enrique Furhken. Finishing third in class was the 171x team of Luis Flores and Juan Ochoa. For the moment, Creel’s team has a lead for the class championship, but they’ll need to finish in the top three in Ensenada to secure it over Jaramillo’s team. Creel finishes second in Pro Moto Unlimited with the 66x team Ryan Liebelt and the 300x team celebrate their win Pro Moto 30 riders Ryan Liebelt, Andrew Pucket and Justin Schultz of the 300x team finished first in class followed by the 314x team of Rudolfo Patron, Manuel Gomez, and Adrian Valdez. Finishing third in Pro Moto 30 was the 303x team consisting of Luis Gomez (ROR) with Edgar Espinosa and Rene Magana on the handlebars in Tijuana. Liebelt has a lead over the other teams for the championship, but at the 51st BFGoodrich Tires SCORE Baja 1000, the lead isn’t enough to keep a winning team from also taking the class championship. Although Jano Montoya won for the third straight SCORE race this season in Pro Moto 40, the 400x team hasn’t secured a big enough lead for a class championship against the 427x team of Salvador Sainz, who finished second in class in Tijuana. But in Pro Moto 50, the 510x team of Giovanni Spinalli, with Earl Roberts, Troy Pierce, and John Griffin, won their third straight class win this season, securing a championship. The 649x Pro Moto 60 team of Guy Laycroft also won their third straight victory this season. The team consisting of Laycroft, Doug Smith, Craig Adams, Bob Johnson, and Dave Potts secured a championship season if they finish at the 51st BFGoodrich Tires SCORE Baja 1000 in November. The 400x team of Jano Montoya celebrates a third straight win It will be a bit tougher for Pro Moto Ironman racers to secure a championship this season, however. While Jose Carrasco won in Tijuana on the 721x bike, he’s still behind Francisco Septien on the 730x bike who finished second in Tijuana. With one of her best finishes this season, Liz Karcz took third place in Tijuana. No Beating Sanchez In Pro Quad As expected Said Sanchez in the 1a Quad beat out the competition in Tijuana, but it was a close race for second place finisher Juan Sanchez in the 15a Quad who finished slightly a second slower. The 1a team consisted of Sanchez, Felipe Veles, and Luis Velez. The 15a team included Juan Sanchez, Adolfo Arellano, and Edgar Moreno. Sportsman moto racers had a much better time handling the short course in Tijuana than others. There were eight competitors who came out to ride and in the end Danny Magdalena, with Jorge Lopez, Eddie Bareno, Ismael Cazarez and Chris Avalos won the Sportsman Quad class in their number 110a Honda TRX 450R. Finishing in second place was the 128a team of Julian Zepeda, and Manuel Mayoral, followed by third-place finishers David Morales and Edgar Munoz on the number 155a quad. Jorge Carbajal brings in a fast lap for the 200x team The 200x team of Miguel Pena (ROR) was led by Jorge Carbajal in Tijuana and won the Sportsman M/C class with the help of Jorge Carbajal C., and Jose Aguirre. Finishing second was the 284x team of Shane Schorno (ROR) who had Nick Roberson, Don Crane, Nick Vasquez and Steve Herstad ride in Tijuana. Finishing third was the 212x team of Carlos Silva, Oswaldo Moncada, Joe Leal, Hector Cardenas, Raul Ortega Jr., and Carlos Silva. As the racers prepare for the 51st BFGoodrich Tires SCORE Baja 1000, many class championships are on the line. For many of the racers, it’s a must-win situation, which will make the competition in Ensenada much more exciting to watch. SCORE International will offer live streaming coverage of the race that is available on the SCORE app or on the SCORE International website. SJ