SCORE Journal

score-journal-JAN-2020

SCORE Journal - The Official Publication of SCORE Off-Road Racing

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51st SCORE Baja 500 Andy McMillin Wins Two Races In A Row By Dan Sanchez Photos by Get Some Photo Racers who completed and finished first in their respective classes at the SCORE San Felipe 250 got to start first at the 51st SCORE Baja 500. This was an advantage as the start for this race included a short course in the Lucas Oil Off-Road Stadium that allowed thousands of fans to watch racers start side by side and battle to get out of the stadium first. Those racers who started first in their class got to head onto the course alone, and for the SCORE Trophy Truck field, that meant Andy McMillin could get a huge lead and be difficult to catch. As the race progressed for the SCORE Trophy Truck class, it all came down to the McMillin family, in which Luke, Dan, and Andy were battling for the lead at one point. With some flat tires and Dan McMillin hitting a large hole, Andy finished first, followed by Luke, with Dan McMillin finishing in eighth place. Class 1 racers had a difficult time getting through the silt just outside the start and stadium area. Many had to wait for 15 minutes or longer to get through. This was bad news for the San Felipe winner Brad Wilson, who got stuck, allowing Justin Davis to go around and ultimately win the class, with Wilson in second place. Among the SCORE Trophy Truck Spec racers A.J. Jones, Charles Dorrance, and Sara Price were the three that pulled away from the pack and battled for the lead throughout the desert. With Jones in the lead, It looked like he had the race wrapped up, but ended up getting stuck in a silt bed, allowing Dorrance to pass and take the ultimate win with Price finishing in second place. As the competition grew heavier in the Pro UTV Classes in this race, the silt and mechanical issues seemed to bog down the entire Pro UTV FI class. Wayne Matlock who finished first in San Felipe, wanted to start at the back of the pack, leaving Marc Burnett to cruise ahead until his Can-Am had clutch issues. This left Craig Scanlon in his Polaris RZR in the right spot to win the class. Burnett fixed his clutch and pushed extremely hard to finish in second place, while Matlock finished in fourth. In the Pro UTV N/A Class it was once again Kaden Wells versus Kristen Matlock, this time with Wells finishing first ahead of Matlock to gain his first class win of the season. One of the older SCORE Classes, the 7SX truck class, saw some competition this season. At the San Felipe 250, Mike Leslie former SCORE Class Champion returned from retirement to compete in his original Jeep Comanche and won the class. At the SCORE Baja 500, Gerardo Novelo, who was also a former SCORE Class Champion, entered the race in a Nissan Frontier to win the class. The two would be challenging for the championship all season, but it will be a difficult road for both of them. Within the Pro Moto divisions, it was no surprise that the 1x team of Justin Morgan, Mark Samuels, and Justin Jones took the Pro Moto Unlimited win. They were proving to be just as dominant as they were last season and had no signs of slowing down. In Pro Moto Limited, Santiago Creel’s team took their j2first win of the season. In the Pro Quad Class, Said Sanchez in the 1a Honda looked as though he was on his way to another championship season, winning his second race with Adolfo Arellano in the 21a Honda who once again, finished in second place.

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