SCORE Journal

SCORE-Journal-Jan-2021

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

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A MONSTROUS WIN Monster Energy’s Matt Burroughs Wins The SCORE Overall And Pro UTV FI Points Championships For 2020 By Dan Sanchez Photos by Get Some Photo Monster Energy’s Senior VP of Corporate Finance, Matt Burroughs, is more than a number cruncher. He is an off-road racer with over 35 years of desert racing experience who started racing SCORE’s Pro UTV FI class back in 2017, but before that, he was a factory Husqvarna racer from 1999 to 2005. “In 2017, we started racing SCORE in our Can-Am Maverick X3 MAX and finally reached the podium with a hard-earned third place in the Pro UTV FI class at the 2019 SCORE Baja 1000,” said Burroughs. Although 2020 may have been a bad year for some, it was a turning point in Burroughs. In June, Burroughs contracted COVID-19 and was sick for nearly a month. He recovered and finished first in class at the SCORE Baja 500 in September. At the SCORE Baja 1000 in November Burroughs finished second in class, and with the two finishes combined, he earned enough points to win the SCORE 2020 Season Overall Points Championship, as well as the Pro UTV FI Class Championship. “Winning the SCORE Championship was beyond anything we had ever dreamed of,” said Burroughs. “Heading into the SCORE Baja 1000, we saw this as an unbelievable opportunity, rather than extra pressure to take the Championship.” The second-place finish at the SCORE Baja 1000 did not come easy “Our four-wheel-drive wasn’t working leaving the starting line,” he said. “We drove the first 80-miles of the race in two-wheel drive, and then had to pit early to fix the issue. It took us just over an hour to get the 4WD actuator swapped out. That put us about an hour and 20-minutes down, but we just kept pushing. With about 100-miles to go, we were running with the leader, but we decided to pit and check the car. It was then that we decided to back our pace down and go for the championship. We would have been devastated if we had pushed all out to win the SCORE Baja 1000 and lost the championship as a result. ” The Monster Energy/Can-Am UTV team had a lot to celebrate, and Burroughs was quick to point out that he could not have won the Championship without their effort. “We always believed in our abilities,” he said. “I wanted it for my crew. I wanted it for Bradley Howe and Mitchel Alsup, who both shared the driving duties with me. I wanted it for all our sponsors who believed in us. Everyone collectively didn’t give up and kept at it.” Winning during a pandemic was another obstacle the team had to overcome, one which left Burroughs and Loco Jones handling all the prep-work on the Can-Am X3 for the SCORE Baja 1000. “We get factory support, which includes technical and parts, but the team is 100-percent volunteer,” says Burroughs. “I try not to have my crew do a lot of prep as they’re volunteering their time to come and race. So, I probably do 80-percent of it myself. Don Woods, who is our ‘computer guy’ handles all the car and chase team tracking, the course notes, plotting GPS, putting sat-phones together, insurance for the chase vehicles, and a bunch of other things so I can focus on the race car.” With the success Burroughs and Can-Am have had this year, the Monster Energy/Can-Am team is energized and ready for the 2021 racing season. “I enjoyed proving the doubters wrong this year,” says Burroughs. “We rarely get mentioned as favorites to win by the so-called UTV industry experts. This fires the guys up, and we use it as motivation. We’re going to go after the SCORE 2021 season championship, and our 100 percent focus will be repeating as champions.” SJ

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