SCORE Journal - The Official Publication of SCORE Off-Road Racing
Issue link: http://read.uberflip.com/i/1542694
OUT ON TOP Kaden Wells Wins It All In SCORE Pro UTV FI By Larry Saavedra Photos by Get Some Photo In his first full season racing in the SCORE Pro UTV Forced Induction class, Kaden Wells, in the No. 2935 Can-Am Maverick R, won the 2025 season Overall SCORE Points Championship, Overall SCORE UTV Championship, and SCORE UTV FI Class Championship titles. But things could have turned out much differently for Wells had it not been for the quick thinking of his team and pit crew. Fortunately, he had established a solid start to the season, beginning at the SCORE San Felipe 250, where he placed second in class. His podium finish gave Wells 120 points. But Jorge Cano in the No. 2910 Can-Am was within four points of overtaking him. Wells added another 131 points after winning the SCORE Baja 500, widening his lead against Cano and others chasing him for the championship. Wells’ win at SCORE Baja 400 gave him another 119 points. By this time, all he needed was a big finish at the SCORE Baja 1000 to take command of the points lead to win the class championship. But at the 58th SCORE Baja 1000, Wells nearly lost his exhaust system after being bump-drafted by another competitor, which could have ended his championship effort. Worse yet, the radius rod on his Maverick UTV grenaded at mile 630. But with some quick thinking by Wells, the team was able to swap radius rods with their Can-Am Maverick R pre-runner. “I was fighting the radius rod issue at about 3 a.m. and in the dark,” he said. “Even Phil Blurton Jr. helped me out after he got out of his car in a driver swap.” Blurton is the factory team driver for Can-Am, and Wells is a factory-supported racer with Can-Am. “The radius rod issue causes the rear suspension to let loose,” he said. “The radius rod damage made the vehicle crab-walk instead of driving straight. I basically had no steering.” Shortly after they repaired the Can-Am, Wells began experiencing intermediate fuel issues. Now, only miles from the finish, Wells was dead in the water again. This time, it was a faulty fuel pump. The clock was ticking, and Wells needed to fix the problem or call it quits. But co-driver Emma Cornwell had an idea. She built a makeshift fuel-pump button to bypass the system, and Wells was able to continue to the finish line, albeit extremely slowly. He says he practically crawled over the whoops heading to the finish in the rain, but it proved to be enough to podium behind Blurton, who finished first in class. “Can-Am is grateful for these titles,” he said. “It helps my sponsors and means that I can race in the future. The titles we won show everyone we are able to persevere in the worst of times. Now at the end of the season, this is also my eighth Rod Hall Milestone award too, and I’m really proud of that accomplishment.” SJ