SCORE Journal - The Official Publication of SCORE Off-Road Racing
Issue link: https://read.uberflip.com/i/1540550
AN UNSTOPPABLE PACE Trophy Truck Class Racers Needed A Perfect Race To Win By Dan Sanchez, Isaac Flores, Adilene Ponce, and Ariana Medrano It was not the fastest SCORE Baja 400 on record, but many of the SCORE Trophy Truck racers thought the pace on the course was incredibly fast, and that the pressure was seemingly relentless. After qualifying, the Trophy Truck class had Toby Price and Paul Weel start first in the No. 46 truck. He was followed by Alan Ampudia in the No. 1 truck, then Christopher Polvoorde in the No. 94 truck. Behind them was Luke McMillin in the No. 83 truck, which set the stage for the four fastest competitors up front to battle and set the pace for the rest of the class. The pressure began building almost immediately, as each of the teams knew the winner would ultimately be the one who had the most “perfect” race possible with few mistakes, tire changes, and pit stops. After the race began, Price tried to put as much distance between him and Ampudia, and set an extremely fast pace. “We were just trying to keep Alan behind us and in the dust, hoping he made a mistake,” said Co-Driver Paul Weel. Price kept Ampudia behind him throughout the first part of the course. Once Weel got in he managed to keep their lead until the transmission began giving the team problems. “I was about probably 20 miles into my stint, so we got stuck in 6th,” said Weel. “We don’t know what happened, couldn’t shift, couldn’t do anything.” While Weel managed to keep Ampudia behind them, he got a couple of flats in the process. This gave Ampudia the chance he was looking for and took the lead until the end of the race to win his third race in a row. “They were in front of me again, like at the SCORE Baja 500,” said Ampudia. “I thought it was going to be another battle until the end but they pulled over and I got by them.” Ampudia kept the truck in good shape the rest of the way and pulled into the finish line with another win. Wheel and Price were able to finish in second place only three minutes behind the Ampudia team. Behind them was Justin Lofton in the No. 41 truck who had his best finish this season in third-place. Lofton started fifth behind Luke McMillin and had to battle his way past him and Chris Polvoorde to get on the podium. “It was just a good battle back there with Christopher and Luke,” said Lofton. “I had a lot of fun driving today. The truck’s great. I used it up, tried to beat it up, but it just kept on trucking, and that’s what we needed to do.” Polvoorde had transmission issues which cost him his position on the course and ultimately, the overall win, but a fourth-place finish. “ We were running really good and then we got a flat tire up by Mike’s (Sky Ranch) and then started dicing it with Luke and Lofton,” he said. “Then, we got around Luke, and was chasing down Lofton when we started having transmission issues. We lost fifth and sixth gears. It’s been a rough season and a year since I finished a SCORE race, so I’m just happy to be here.” McMillin finished fifth after losing brakes on the truck. “We were in the mix and we were doing well in the first couple hundred miles, and then unfortunately in the Mike’s loop, our brakes just went away on us,” said McMillin. “It was scary and I didn’t want to pull over because I didn’t want to lose a position, but we were going to go over the crossover road.” Stidham Comes Out To Win In 2WD The SCORE 2WD points leader Cameron Steele in the No. 16T truck was looking for another win after qualifying second in class. With seven trucks ahead of him, Steele moved into first position in class and held the lead until the last section of the race. “We broke a part on the top of the motor with only 70 miles to go and had to retire from the race,” said Steele. With four other competitors in the lead, RJ Stidham in the No. 78T truck moved up the pack and had a flawless driving day to win the class. This was Stidham’s first SCORE race this season and first SCORE 2WD Class win, finishing 10th Overall. Stidham had been driving with Tracy Poole at the 2024 SCORE Baja 1000, while driving in State-Side races for several years. “We had a flawless day,” he said. “It’s great to be back racing in Baja again!” Following Stidham in second place, was Tim Herbst in the No. 19T truck, followed by Ryan Poelman in the No. 62T truck, who finished in third place. “It was a challenging course and we had to fight our way through the dust and stuff and the truck ran great,” said Herbst. For Poleman and his son Dodge, it was the team’s first race and first podium finish of the season. “We were in our groove, battling up there in the top two for the lead a little bit,” said co-driver Dodge Poelman. “We lost our driveshaft during the race, but we’re in the top three. So I mean, that’s a trophy, and that’s a big win for us. We haven’t raced the first two races of the season, so to come and perform like this is really special. My dad and I are going to team up for the SCORE Baja 1000.” No Stopping Vildosola Sr. In Legends Adding a 15th consecutive class race win in a row, Gustavo Vildosola Sr, and co-driver Ricky Johnson continue to dominate the Trophy Truck Legends Class and make history. Johnson got the No. 1L truck in the top ten starting positions overall, putting the team well ahead of their competition. “Ricky got us in the lead and when I got in the truck, we were well ahead in our class,” said Vildosola Sr. “I had no flats and a perfect run. We’re excited and looking forward to the SCORE Baja 1000 in November.” Finishing second in class was Clay Lawrence in the No. 85L truck, followed by the No. 61L truck of David Payne in third place. McNeil Claims Top TT Spec Spot The competition seems to get tougher in the SCORE TT Spec class, with top racers all wanting a win. After qualifying, Jason McNeil in the No. 234 truck started first in class, followed by current class points series leader Justin Davis in the No. 285 truck. As expected the two battled each other, taking the lead back and forth on the course. Both racers had a nearly perfect race until McNeil got the last lead after Davis pitted and carried it to the finish line. “ We battled with Davis for a lot of the day. We had a flat early on, so we pushed on Mike’s road and got him right past Mike’s (Sky Ranch),” said McNeil. “Then he got us back in the pits. And then we got it back, it was just back and forth.” “We ran a conservative pace because we’re in the championship hunt,” said Davis. “McNeil, he’s just here to win, and we battled with him for 320 miles. We had an issue in our pit we had to deal with. He just kind of got away from us and then coming into Uruapan we managed the truck during the last 30 miles with no brakes. We will take the second and move on. That’s why we’re here.. to battle and have a good time. It wasn’t easy, but that’s why we’re down here.” The race between the two was close all the way to the end. McNeil won with a time of 8:43:00, while Davis’ time was 8:48:5. The second place finish gives Davis and the Green Army a substantial lead in the chase for the SCORE TT Spec Class Championship. For McNeil, the win was special because it was the first time he got to drive with his son. “That was a dream come true for me,” he said. “ My guys did a good job. It was really tight and technical, but it really widened out a lot more than I thought it would. Starting in front, that was the ticket.” Following Davis in third place was Cole Hardin in the No. 279 truck. “It was an awesome course,” said co-driver, and uncle Eric Hardin. “I made some mistakes. I got two flats, which cost us some time. My nephew gave us the truck in a good position, running great, no issues at all. It was super technical. The coast and the beach were super-fast.” SJ