SCORE Journal - The Official Publication of SCORE Off-Road Racing
Issue link: https://read.uberflip.com/i/1547140
FORWARD MOMENTUM Moto and Quad Classes Push Towards A Finish By Dan Sanchez, Ariana Medrano, Isaac Flores, and Alberto Lopez Photos by Get Some Photo The excitement of the Moto and Quad classes at the 2026 SCORE Baja 400 started in the early hours of the morning on race day. All moto and quad classes staged on the starting line in downtown Ensenada at 4:30 am, with the green flag dropping at 5:00 am. The 1x bike with 2025 Champion Tyler Lynn began the dark journey into the Baja desert with the other Pro Moto Unlimited teams behind him. He and his teammates would ultimately finish first, sweeping the series with three consecutive wins, adding to nine consecutive wins from the 2024 and 2025 seasons. But other classes had racers who were also competing to retain their current Championship status or win one of the toughest races in Baja. Among them was Mauri Herrera on the No. 110x bike, who finished sixth overall with a time of 11:29:36, to win the SCORE Pro Moto Limited Class. “It was a quick, fun stint,” said Mauri, who rode the bike first. “Then my teammate Andrew took over and drove it to Valladolid before handing it back to me. I drove it all the way to San Quintín and handed it off to my teammate Mauricio Reynoso. To bring it home, Andrew took the wheel again to get it to Rancho Nelson, and our sponsor, Sergio Hernández, crossed the finish line. And that was it—the engine held up, and the team got the job done, and now we’re heading to the SCORE Baja 1000.” In a tight race, Jesus Gonzalez in the No. 707x Honda finished seventh overall in corrected time to win the SCORE Pro Moto Ironman class. The effort was epic, especially with tough competition consisting of Kyle Phenix on the No. 725x bike, Kyle Ramirez on the No. 797x bike, and Jorge Ramirez on the No. 738x bike, who all finished in that order behind Gonzalez. “It was a very hard race, really, very tiring,” said Gonzalez at the finish. “I started with a good pace, and I was in first place. Along the way, the rider on the 500x, who fell in front of me, and I stopped there for a while to help him. We were able to make up time. I have an impact vest, and that was what helped me to last longer on the bike. The track was very difficult, very demanding. I think during the last 100 miles I wanted to get to the end.” Phenix finished five minutes behind Gonzalez (ninth overall), for second place. “I let the leaders on the course get away too far ahead, and it was too big of a gap to close,” he said. “I also had a couple crashes, and I just didn’t manage the race very well. But I charged back in the end behind first place.” Finishing nearly 20 minutes behind Phenix, Ramirez had a tougher time on the course but was happy to be on the podium. “I almost died maybe three times. I flew off the track maybe five times and lost a front brake. I was racing flat track a month ago. I didn’t know I was practicing with no front brake,” he said. “This class has only one rider, but with a great team. My dad, especially, wouldn't happen without him, along with Robert, Ilian, and Steve Winerman. We’re a small crew this time, but we made it work. I’m out here living the Baja dream, doing exactly what I want to do. I will be back for the SCORE Baja 1000.” AGE CLASSES SHOW DETERMINATION Erick Barkan riding the No. 333x Kawasaki finished first in Pro Moto 30 ahead of Levi Gill on the 318x Yamaha. Barkan’s teammate, Lace Filly, stopped to help the 500x rider and went on once he was okay. “Up over Mike’s Ranch, our rider, Cahl Sandler, had to get off and dislocated his thumb,” said Barkan. “He rode it the rest of the way out. Our third rider, Keith Anfenson, kept a huge gap right in front of all the SCORE Trophy Trucks, brought it in there to Arendera, where I got on right around race mile 325, and then I just ran it home. I had three really bad get-offs along the way, and broke my GPS with my face. But I just kept riding it in; you know, it was fun. Apparently, I’m hard-headed. Finishing first in Pro Moto 40 were Jason Miller and Shane Esposito on the 400x Honda. “It was a great race, and we ran it clean,” said Esposito. “I rode over the mountain from Mike’s (Sky Ranch). It was what I expected with this weather and all of this like monsoon-like stuff. We adapted. It wouldn’t be Baja if you didn’t get something like that in there.” The 500x team of Mike Prunty is the team that had a rider go down and was knocked unconscious. “He kept it together, gathered everything up, and got back going again,” said Prunty. “We switched some riders and managed to get through to the next section over to Mike’s. Everything was good, and we brought it in for the win.” I want to thank everybody from SCORE®, including SCORE Moto Liaison Andy Kirker, who came over there. He flew in on a helicopter to check on our guy.” Prunty’s team win here gives him a substantial lead towards retaining their Pro Moto 50 Championship status heading into the SCORE Baja 1000. “This will be my 20th year here doing this. And, you know, we’ve seen SCORE develop over these years, and they’ve been adding a lot more safety protocol recently,” said Prunty. “And what they’ve been doing to help keep the motorcycles safe has just been incredible. You are going to see us for the SCORE Baja 1000, with essentially the same crew of guys that we’ve got right now.” Harold Harris on the 600x Husqvarna continued his winning streak this season, taking the Pro Moto 60 class win at the SCORE Baja 400. His team finished less than seven minutes behind Prunty’s team, proving that age is just a number, but riding talent comes with experience. Call Outs “I’m out here living the Baja dream doing exactly what I want to do.” - Kyle Phenix “The track was very difficult, very demanding. I think during the last 100 miles I wanted to get to the end.” - Jorge Ramirez