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409 Class winners in field for 56th SCORE Baja 1000
By Dominic Clark / Photo by GetSomePhoto
SCORE MEDIA CONTACT: Dominic Clark, Dominic@SCORE-International.com November 1, 2023 ‘Celebrating 50 Years of SCORE Desert Racing Excellence’ Presented by K&N BFGoodrich Tires 56th SCORE Baja 1000… Led by LR, 121 racers with combined 409 class wins back for another amazing adventure in Baja California Starting for first time in La Paz, Baja California Sur, finishing in Ensenada… SCORE Baja peninsula race to be held Nov. 13-18 UP Baja California, Mexico; epic event is finale of the four-race 2023 SCORE World Desert Championship; legendary ‘godfather’ Sal Fish, Grand Marshal for the 2023 SCORE racing season more info at… https://score-international.com/raceinfo/2023-baja-1000-nov-13-18-2023/ #SCOREBaja1000 NOTE: Multiple class winners list entered this year at bottom of text ENSENADA, Baja California, Mexico—‘Celebrating 50 Years of SCORE Desert Racing Excellence’ this year, drawn once again by the lure of the most iconic desert race in the world, Hall of Famer Larry ‘Mr. Baja’ Roeseler leads 121 racers who have combined for 409 class victories among over 300 expected starters who have been drawn to once again blaze another dynamic dusty trail. This year, the call of the desert has come in the form of this month’s iconic season-ending BFGoodrich Tires 56th SCORE Baja 1000, presented by K&N, the season finale of the four-race 2023 SCORE World Desert Championship. LA GRAN CARRERA The Granddaddy of All Desert Races, the SCORE Baja 1000 is at the pinnacle of motorsports as the most iconic, oldest, prestigious, toughest, and longest, continuously held desert race in the world. This year, starting for the first time in La Paz, Baja California Sur Mexico, and finishing in Ensenada, Baja California, Mexico, race-week festivities and the race itself will be held Nov. 13-18. This year’s race, the 25th Peninsula run in race history, will be a point-to-point race of 1310.94 miles UP Baja California’s majestically masterful, poignantly picturesque peninsula. THE FIELD There are over 300 entries anticipated at the start line, for the Granddaddy of All Desert Races, with racers so far representing 33 U.S. States, U.S. Territory Puerto Rico, and 16 countries. The countries with at least one racer so far are United States, host country Mexico, Argentina, Australia, Bolivia, Canada, Chile, Great Britain, Hungary, Italy, Japan, the Netherlands, New Zealand, Peru, Spain, and Venezuela. 56th SCORE BAJA 1000 The world’s best desert racers will be in action at this year’s massive BFGoodrich Tires 56th SCORE Baja 1000, presented by K&N. There will be live streaming from two days of pre-race contingency and start-to-finish live coverage on the SCORE website and social media channels. Race week activities will be held Nov. 13-18. Over 300 vehicles are expected at the start line with racers from nearly 40 U.S. States and as many as 20 countries anticipated. Pro and Sportsman classes for cars, trucks, UTVs, motorcycles and quads will be competing in the Granddaddy of All Desert Races. This year’s SCORE Baja 1000 will be a point-to-point race of an exhilaratingly exhausting 1310.94 miles starting for the first time in La Paz, Baja California Sur and finishing for the 29th time in Ensenada, Baja California. La Paz is the Capital of Baja California Sur, located nearly 1000 miles from the U.S. Border at Calexico, Calif. Ensenada, “The Off-Road Racing Capital of the World” is a coastal city on the Bahia de Todos Santos area of the Pacific Ocean, 80 miles south of the U.S. border at San Diego. This race is annually the finale of the SCORE World Desert Championship, which has been held exclusively for the past eight years in Baja California. A HAPPENING… Two days of the colorful pre-race Manufacturer’s Midway, Contingency and Tech inspection will be held from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. on both Tuesday and Wednesday (Nov. 14-15) along the captivating El Malecon along the Sea of Cortez in La Paz. LR TOPS MULTI LEADERS At the top of the SCORE Baja 1000 all-time Pro Multi-Class winners entered this year is the legendary Larry ‘Mr. Baja’ Roeseler with 18 class wins in this race. Roeseler, 66, of Imperial, Calif., has a race-record 14 overall victories in this race, including 10 on a motorcycle. He is the only racer in history of this race to win an overall on a motorcycle, a SCORE Trophy Truck and an open-wheel desert race car. For the record, Roeseler’s class win total in the SCORE Baja 1000 is second only to the late, great Rod Hall who earned 25 career class wins while driving in the first 50 races. Roeseler’s first class win in this iconic race was in 1976 in the open motorcycle class riding with Mitch Mayes and his most recent was in 2020 when he was the second driver for Luke McMillin in SCORE Trophy Truck. ‘Mr. Baja,’ a member of both the American Motorcyclist Association (AMA) and Off-Road Motorsports (ORMHOF) Halls of Fame, enters this year’s peninsula run in his No. 43 Baja Jerky Toyota Tundra. He will have two additional drivers this year, Australian stars Toby Price and Paul Weel, hoping to add even more to his amazing SCORE Baja legacy. AGE GROUPERS The next three racers entered on the all-time multiple class win list are motorcycle racers who race in age group classes. Tied for fourth overall with 16 class wins is champion age-group racer Jeff Kaplan, Thousand Oaks, Calif., with 16 class wins, and tied for sixth overall with 15 class wins is the extreme veteran champion Jim O’Neal, 75, Santa Barbara, Calif. O’Neal, known worldwide for his O’Neal USA racing apparel, is racing in Pro Moto 50 this time around. Kaplan is riding in the Pro Moto 60 class. Racing is riding with Kaplan in Pro Moto 60 with 13 class wins in Lou Franco, Sherman Oaks, Calif. and also with 13 wins is Francisco Septien, of Ensenada. Racing in Pro Moto 60 this year with 12 class wins is Bob Johnson, Upland, Calif. MORE MULTI-TIMERS With 11 class wins (all in the last 14 years) all in Class 7 is Daniel Chamlee, along with Rob MacCachren in SCORE Trophy Truck and Eric Solorzano has nine wins in Class 11. With eight class wins are Shane Esposito and Mark Samuels, who has won five straight years in Pro Moto Unlimited With seven class wins each in this legendary race are Wayne Matlock (Pro UTV Open), Brad Lovell (Stock Mid-size), and Jason Trubey (Pro Moto 40). There are four racers entered so far with six class wins each: Troy Herbst (Trophy Truck Spec), Justin Morgan (Pro UTV FI), J. David Ruvalcaba (Class 10) and Doug Smith (Pro Moto 50). BAJA RUTA MUY ESPECIAL! The race features a course, fully plotted, and marked by SCORE President/Race Director Jose A. Grijalva, and Assistant Race Director Rodolfo Fernandez, of 1,310.94 miles of rugged Baja California terrain. The challenging, pre-dominantly up-hill rugged race course is another memorable example of all that Mexico’s Baja California has to offer, including high-speed dirt trails, sandy, rocky, and silty natural terrain, majestic Baja washes and canyons, stretches along the seashore with elevations from sea level to over 4,000 feet. The course is another crown jewel reflecting the stark beauty of Baja California. The 1310.94-mile race course, the longest ever between La Paz and Ensenada for the BFGoodrich Tires 56th SCORE Baja 1000, presented by K&N, runs for the first time from La Paz to Ensenada, UP Mexico’s magnificent Baja California peninsula. The iconic race will start for the first time on the picturesque El Malecon in La Paz along the Sea of Cortez and finish on Boulevard Costero, adjacent to the historic Riviera del Pacifico Cultural Center in the heart of Ensenada. The incredibly beautiful, and ridiculously rugged race course has 31 Speed Zones for a total of 201.81 miles, 324 total Virtual Check Points, three physical, full-stop Check Points, and feature nine BFGoodrich Tires Pits. Physical Check Point No. 1 is at race mile 233.88 (Valle de Santo Domingo), CP 2 is at RM 599.34 (South of Vizcaino) and CP3 is at RM 922.25 (South of Catavina). After leaving El Malecon in La Paz, the course begins its windy road North from the Mexican State of Baja California Sur to the Mexican State of Baja California. The race course passes near several of the legendary Spanish Missions on its way North. From RM 50 across Arroyo Seco, the course runs adjacent to the Pacific Ocean for the first time up to RM 220. At RM 277.46 the course passes by Mission de San Javier on top of the Sierra de La Giganta and at RM 300.05 for the first time in SCORE history, the race course goes through El Malecon in Loreto, again by the Sea of Cortez. At RM 632.75, the course crosses from Baja California Sur into Baja California for the final half of the race. At RM 821.35, the course is near the Pacific Ocean for the final time near Bahia Blanco. While the race course includes numerous Baja washes, at race-mile 1014.24, the course will begin a treacherous trek through six of the gloriously majestic washes around San Felipe: Matomi, Azufre, Boulder Canyon, Huatamote, Chanate, and Amarillas. At RM 1200.75, the course passes Valle de Trinidad and up the infamous Goat Trail, behind Santa Catarina (RM 1226.36) by Rancho El Mezcal to Ojos Negros (RM 1277.04) and to the finish line in Ensenada. For safety reasons, all the Sportsman classes along with Class 11 and Class 7SX will run a reduced course of 1197.04 miles. GREEN FLAG It is an elapsed-time race with staggered starts with the green flag dropping on Thursday (Nov. 16). Motorcycles and Quads will start at 1 a.m. MT, Cars, Trucks, and UTVs will start at 9 a.m. MT. While the fastest vehicles in the 1310.94-mile race are expected to finish in about 23 hours, the elapsed-time race will have a 50-hour time limit to become an official finisher. SCORE LIVE From the new state-of-the art SCORE Studio in El Cajon, Calif., SCORE LIVE with host Brandon Johnson, will provide exclusive race coverage, along with vehicle tracking, live drone, and in-car camera footage from various locations around the race course. Legendary SCORE racers will be working with Johnson during the race-days show. Popular Rat Sult, in his eighth season with SCORE, will be the host announcer on the SCORE ramp during contingency and the race start and finish. Assisting Sult will be veteran voice Dave Arnold, and Mexico’s Gabriel Garcia, who will be assisting with finish-line interviews. SCORE LIVE may be viewed on the SCORE website, SCORE APP, SCORE Facebook page and the SCORE International YouTube Channel. CITY EXPRESS… The City Express Hotel on the Northeast end of El Malecon in La Paz, will host racer registration and media registration on Monday, Tuesday, and Wednesday (Nov. 13-15). On Monday (Nov. 13), racer registration will be held from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. MST. On Tuesday (Nov. 14) it will run from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. MST, and on Wednesday (Nov. 15) from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. MST. SCORE Media Registration will be held at the City Express on Monday (Nov. 13) from 1 p.m. to 5 p.m. MST and from 9 a.m. on Tuesday and Wednesday (Nov. 14-15) from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. PDT. The race will start along the picturesque El Malecon in La Paz. BFGOODRICH TIRES UNMATCHED BFGoodrich Tires, the official tire of SCORE for 47 years, was honored after the 2022 season as the SCORE Contingency Company of the year for the 32nd time. BFGoodrich Tires has been the choice of 35 of the 55 overall winners of the popular SCORE Baja 500 and 34 of the 55 overall winners of the legendary SCORE Baja 1000. BFGoodrich Tires is also the title sponsor of both iconic races again in 2023. BFGoodrich Tires also has been the choice of 30 of the 36 overall winners of the SCORE San Felipe 250, all three SCORE Desert Challenge races, the lone SCORE Challenge of Champions in San Felipe, the one SCORE Baja Sur 500 and one of the four overall winners in the SCORE Baja 400. This year’s SCORE San Felipe 250 overall victory by San Diego’s Luke McMillin marked the 103rd SCORE Baja overall race win for BFGoodrich Tires. BFG BIG BONUS SCORE major sponsor BFGoodrich Tires has posted a US$25,000 contingency bonus for the overall 4-wheel race winner to help commemorate the Granddaddy of all Desert Races. US$20,000 PRO MOTO UNLTD PURSE Through the coordination and efforts of SCORE Motorcycle liaison, Andy Kirker, a former SCORE motorcycle racer, four companies have combined to put up a special $20,000 bonus purse exclusively for the Pro Moto Unlimited Class, the fastest class on two wheels. The four companies posting this unprecedented purse for this year’s SCORE Baja 1000 are: Anube, from Spain, Taco Moto Company from Las Vegas, Baja Bound of Mexico, and AHM Factory Services of Yorba Linda, Calif. This unique payout will be for first through fifth place on the official results: first-$10,000, second-$5,000, third-$3,000, fourth-$1,500 and fifth-$500. GRANDEST MARSHAL FOR GOLDEN YEAR Sal Fish, admired as the iconic ‘godfather’ of SCORE desert racing who is a foundational pillar of the organization, is the Grand Marshal of the Year for the entire four-race 2023 SCORE World Desert Championship. Revered all over Baja California, Fish, who turned 84 in May of this year, is a former publisher of Hot Rod Magazine and a 2006 inductee into the Off-Road Motorsports Hall of Fame. He led SCORE for 38 years, from 1974 until he sold the organization on Dec. 20, 2012. His footprint left an indelible mark on all of desert racing as he was an extraordinary innovator and visionary for SCORE and the entire world of desert racing. He expanded TV coverage of SCORE races and in 1994 created the SCORE Trophy Truck class, the marquee racing division in the sport of desert racing. SCORE SPONSORS… Official SCORE Sponsors: BFGoodrich Tires-Official Tire and Race Title Sponsor, Ford-Official Truck and SUV, King Shocks-Official Shock Absorber and Race Title Sponsor, Polaris RZR-Official UTV, VP Racing Fuels-Official Fuel and race presenting sponsor, Baja Vida-Official Snacks and race presenting sponsor, Optima Batteries-Official Batteries, Rugged Radios-Official Radio Communications, Wide Open Excursions-Official Arrive and Drive Company, Crystal Bay Casino-Official Casino. SCORE Official Partners: The Satellite Phone Store, Instant Mexico Auto Insurance. Additional SCORE Associate Partners: Baja California Secretary of Tourism, MEXICO Secretary of Tourism, San Felipe Foundational Municipal Council, Ensenada Municipal Government, San Felipe Marketing Tourism Committee, Ensenada Marketing Tourism Committee, Ensenada Hotel and Motel Association, Proturismo Ensenada, Cruz Roja Mexicana, Baja California Sur State Secretary of Tourism and Economy, Baja California Sur State Tourism Trust (FITUES), Municipal Government of La Paz, Municipal Government of Comondu, Municipal Government of Loreto, and the Municipal Government of Mulege. For more information regarding SCORE, visit the official website of the SCORE World Desert Championship at www.SCORE-International.com. SCORE Baja 1000 Pro Multi-Class Champion Leaders (1967 thru 2022) (Entered in this year’s race as of 11.1.23) RIVER/RIDER (Years)*TOTAL 18 Larry Roeseler--1976, 1978, 1979, 1980, 1988, 1989, 1990, 1991, 1993, 1994, 1996, 1998, 2004, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2008, 2020 17 Craig Adams—1978, 1983, 1985, 1991, 1999, 2000, 2001, 2002, 2003, 2007(2), 2008(2), 2009(2), 2018, 2022 16 Jeff Kaplan—1979, 1991, 2004, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2008, 2009(2), 2010, 2011, 2012, 2016, 2017, 2019, 2022 15 Jim O’Neal—1998, 2004, 2005, 2006(3), 2007, 2008, 2009, 2011, 2012, 2015, 2016(2), 2021 13 Lou Franco—2004, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2008, 2009, 2010, 2012, 2015, 2016, 2017, 2019, 2022 Francisco Septien—2006, 2007, 2008, 2009, 2010, 2011, 2014, 2016, 2017, 2018, 2019, 2020, 2021 12 Bob Johnson—1985, 1995, 2002, 2003, 2007, 2008, 2009, 2010, 2011, 2015, 2017, 2018 11 Dan Chamlee—2006, 2007, 2009, 2010, 2011, 2013, 2015, 2016, 2018, 2019, 2020 Rob MacCachren--1992, 1993, 2001, 2004, 2007, 2014, 2015, 2016, 2018, 2021, 2022 9 Eric Solorzano--1993, 1997, 1998, 1999, 2000, 2001, 2002, 2004, 2006 8 Shane Esposito—2008, 2009, 2013, 2014, 2017, 2019(2), 2020 Mark Samuels—2013, 2015, 2016, 2018, 2019, 2020, 2021, 2022 7 Brad Lovell—2012, 2013, 2015, 2017, 2018, 2021, 2022 Wayne Matlock—2005, 2008, 2009, 2011, 2013, 2015, 2018 Jason Trubey—2005, 2012, 2015, 2018, 2019, 2021, 2022 6 Troy Herbst—1999, 2000, 2004, 2005, 2006, 2007 Justin Morgan—2017, 2018, 2019, 2020, 2021, 2022
- David Ruvalcaba--1999, 2000, 2001, 2002, 2014, 2019