FACEBOOK OFFICIAL SCORE APP SCORE STORE HOME SCHEDULE RACE INFO SCORE JOURNAL News FAN PAGES Media SCORE TV Marketing SCORE STORE VILDOSOLA JR, CHAMLEE, LOFTON NEW ENTRIES-SCORE BAJA 500 SCORE WEBMASTER·MAY 17, 2021 SCORE FEATURED STORIES LATEST NEWS SCORE MEDIA CONTACT: Dominic Clark, Dominic@SCORE-International.com May 17, 2021 Race week June 10-13 BFGOODRICH TIRES 53RD SCORE BAJA 500, PRESENTED BY 4 WHEEL PARTS VILDOSOLA, CHAMLEE, LOFTON, AMPUDIA BROTHERS, WALSER/ARCIERO, SPINALI, PROCTOR NEWEST ENTRIES Round 2 of four-race 2021 SCORE World Desert Championship in Ensenada, Baja California, Mexico; Airing on ESPN2 World of X Games; Legendary age-group motorcycle champion Jim O’Neal selected Grand Marshal; Racer registration, event info at www.SCORE-International.com; #SCOREBaja500 NOTE: Current UNOFFICIAL numerical order entry list, by class, at end of text ENSENADA, Baja California, Mexico – Mexico’s Tavo Vildosola, one of just nine racers who has won the SCORE Baja Triple Crown, along with SCORE champion racers Daniel Chamlee, Justin Lofton, Alan and Aaron Ampudia, Mike Walser/Ryan Arciero, Giovanni Spinali and Jeff Proctor and his Honda Racing Factory Off-Road Team lead the most recent group of entries for next month’s internationally-televised BFGoodrich Tires 53rd SCORE Baja 500, presented by 4 Wheel Parts. Round 2 of the four-race 2021 SCORE World Desert Championship will be held June 10-13 in Ensenada, Baja California, Mexico. Most the world’s best desert racers will be in action at this year’s celebration of one of the top 10 motorsports events in the entire world. CLOSED START/FINISH Because of the significant health and safety protocols developed by SCORE in conjunction with and the approval of state and local health authorities as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic, all race-week festivities and the start/finish line compound will be restricted access only and closed to the general public. The SCORE race start/finish compound will be located Northeast of downtown Ensenada, one-mile east of the end of the extension of Avenida Ruiz. Use the following link for the map to the SCORE start/finish compound: https://score-international.com/raceinfo/map-to-compound/. Spectators, adhering to the protocols, will be allowed to watch the race from around the race course. ONLINE RACER ENTRY APPLICATIONS Racer entry applications continue to be available at www.SCORE-International.com under Race Info on the SCORE Baja 500 page. Questions should be directed to SCORE Registration and Membership Director Audreonna Garcia at 775. 852.8907. Online racer entry applications will be accepted through this Friday, May 21. DETAILS With nearly 300 entries expected from as many as 30 U.S. States and 20 countries, 51 competition classes are offered for cars, trucks, UTVs, motorcycles and quads. Among the latest group of 111 total early entries to date are racers from 14 U.S. States, host country Mexico, along with Bolivia, Canada, France and Peru. Domestically, the race will be televised on a delayed basis on the World of X Games show on the ESPN2 as co-produced by SCORE International and award-winning BCII TV of Los Angeles. All four 2021 SCORE races are being held on Mexico’s magnificent Baja California peninsula for the sixth consecutive year. SCORE Live will be streaming throughout contingency and race days on the SCORE website and on the new SCORE TV app. Colorful Rat Sult is back for his sixth season as the host of SCORE Live. VILDOSOLA JR A major part of the first family of Mexican desert racers, Gustavo ‘Tavo’ Vildosola Jr is back in Ensenada for the 53rd SCORE Baja 500. From Mexicali, Tavo, 39, is a veteran champion SCORE racer. He is also just one of nine racers who have earned iconic SCORE Baja Triple Crown awards as overall winners in the SCORE Baja 1000, SCORE Baja 500 and the SCORE San Felipe 250. His father Gustavo Vildosola Sr is also a champion SCORE desert racer. Tavo Vildsola has six career SCORE Trophy Truck race wins. One of his most spectacular victories was in 2010 when he split the driving with his father in the SCORE Baja 1000 to become the first Mexican national team to win the legendary Granddaddy of All Races and it was a peninsula run from Ensenada to La Paz. In the SCORE Baja 500, Tavo Vildosola has two class wins, 2007 in Protruck and 2016 in SCORE Trophy Truck. In this year’s race Tavo Vildosola will drive the new No. 21 Vildosola Racing Ford Raptor built by Vildosola Racing in the SCORE Trophy Truck class. He finished ninth in SCORE Trophy Truck out of 35 starters in the season-opening SCORE San Felipe 250. CLASS 7 MASTER Veteran SCORE champion Daniel Chamlee, 58, of Montecito, Calif. has entered again in Class 7 in his No. 700 The Factory Racing Ford Ranger in this year’s SCORE Baja 500. Chamlee has driven consistently to earn 16 SCORE Class 7 season point championships in the last 17 years. In the SCORE Baja 500 Chamlee had five straight Class 7 victories (2006, 2007, 2008, 2009 and 2010). In this year’s season-opener in San Felipe, Chamlee was on the podium again, finishing third in Class 7. In his career has also earned seven Rod Hall SCORE Milestone Awards, presented by VP Racing Fuels, for racers who complete every required mile for that season. BACK TO HIS FUTURE Like so many, Justin Lofton, 35, is a SCORE second-generation desert racer. After spending several years driving on various NASCAR national circuits, Lofton, who helps run the family Lofton Cattle company in Texas and his hometown of Brawley, Calif., has raced in four NASCAR Xfinity Series races, 84 in the NASCAR Truck Series. In the NASCAR Truck Series, Lofton had 29 top 10 finishes and one race victory. Lofton also ran several years in the ARCA Series where he earned the 2009 season point championship. During that 2009 ARCA campaign, Lofton has six race wins, 15 top fives and 19 top 10 finishes. He started racing late model stock cars on local tracks before pursing the NASCAR feeder series. Lofton also raced several times in Robby Gordon’s Stadium Super Trucks series and won both the 2015 and 2016 Mint 400 desert race in Las Vegas. With so much NASCAR racing, Lofton hasn’t competed to much in the SCORE Baja 500 and he will be hunt for his first SCORE Trophy Truck win in his No. 41 Lofton Cattle JL Racing Ford Raptor built by Jimco Racing. PAPAS & BEER RACING Part of a popular second-gen Mexican race team, brothers Alan Ampudia, 30, and Aaron Ampudia, 28, both of Ensenada, Baja California, will easily be among the favorites in the very loaded SCORE Trophy Truck class in Ensenada. The brothers share the driving in their No. 10 Papas & Beer Racing Ford Raptor built by ID Designs. Following in the tracks of their famous father Rodrigo Ampudia Sr, the Ampudia brothers along with have combined for two class wins in the SCORE Baja 500. In 2015 the Ampudia brothers, whose family owns the famous Papas & Beer restaurants and entertainment centers in Ensenada and Rosarito Beach, Baja California, won Class 1/2-1600 in this race and then backed that win up in 2016 by winning Class 8 where the popular family has had so much success over the years. In this year’s SCORE San Felipe 250, Alan and Aaron Ampudia finished fourth out of 35 starters in SCORE Trophy Truck. Alan and Aaron Ampudia also teamed up to capture the overall and SCORE Trophy Truck victory in the 2019 SCORE Baja 1000. Rodrigo Ampudia Jr, 38, Ensenada currently is a navigator and back-up driver, if needed for the two younger Ampudia brothers. But he opened the season by racing in a UTV class WALSER/ARCIERO TANDEM One of several new SCORE Trophy Truck driver pairings this year is the team of Mike Walser and Ryan Arciero. Walser, 54 of Comfort, Texas, is a veteran Texas desert racer and Arciero, 47 of Foothill Ranch, Calif., who is a third-generation desert racer who is very accomplished driving in SCORE Trophy Trucks. Walser is a specialized engineering executive from Texas where he graduated from Texas Tech University. Arciero has four career SCORE Trophy Truck race wins and he also won the 1998 SCORE Baja 1000 from Santo Tomas to La Paz while splitting the driving in the unlimited Class 1 with the late great Bob Gordon. Arciero’s most recent SCORE Trophy Truck race win was in 2019 when he won the inaugural SCORE Baja 400 in Ensenada. In the SCORE Baja 500, Arciero won the 2003 Overall and SCORE Trophy Truck victory as the second driver for Mark Miller. For the SCORE Baja 500, Walser and Arciero will split the driving in Walser’s No. 89 Chevy Silverado built by Mason Motorsports. AGE GROUP MX STAR SCORE age-group motorcycle racing champion Giovanni Spinali has entered his team in Pro Moto 50 for riders over 50 years of age. Spinali, 55, El Cajon, Calif., has four class wins in the SCORE Baja 500 (2014, 2017, 2018 and 2019). His 2014 victory was in Pro Moto 40 while his three consecutive wins were all in Pro Moto 50. Spinali also has three age-group motorcycle season point champions (2014, 2018 and 2019). He has put together another stellar team of co-riders to compete on his team’s No. 510x Yamaha YZ450FX motorcycle. The talented co-riders for Spinali for this race are Earl Robert, 58, La Jolla, Calif., John Griffin, 51, Julian, Calif. and Jim O’Neal, 74, Santa Barbara, Calif. PROCTOR HONDA TEAM SoCal’s Jeff Proctor and his Honda Racing Factory Off-Road Team have entered this year’s SCORE Baja 500 with a three-vehicle effort, one Honda in Class 7 and two Hondas in the Pro UTV NA (Naturally Aspirated) class. After running a limited SCORE schedule for several seasons, Proctor, 42, Glendora, Calif., has committed his three-vehicle team to the entire 2021 SCORE World Desert Championship series. He leads the way with his No. 709 Honda Ridgeline in Class 7 where he won the season-opener in San Felipe. His other two entries are new identically equipped Honda Talon 1000R UTVs in the Pro UTV NA class. Driving the two Honda UTVs are Mexico’s veteran champion racer Elias Hanna and SCORE newbie Zach Sizelove. Hanna, 38, of Ensenada, Mexico, drives the No. 1920 Honda Talon while Sizelove, 27, of Hesperia, Calif., is the driver of record for the No. 1925 Honda Talon. In the SCORE Baja 500, Proctor has four class wins (2016, 2018, 2019 and 2020). In 2016 he won in Class 2 while the three consecutive class wins have come in Class 7 in his Honda Ridgeline. Hanna has four class wins in the SCORE Baja 500, 2010, 2011 and 2013 in Class 7SX and 2017 in Trophy Truck Spec. Hanna also has six SCORE season point championships in his career (2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014 and 2017). He finished ninth in San Felipe this year in the Pro UTV NA class in his first SCORE race in the Honda Talon. Sizelove has raced for several years with his family in the SoCal High Desert evening building Class 1/2-1600 cars with his father. In his debut in San Felipe this year, he finished sixth out of 12 starters in his class in his first SCORE Baja race in the Honda Talon. GRAND MARSHAL: JIM O’NEAL Jim O’Neal, 74, the noted apparel/performance products manufacturer (O’Neal USA) from Simi Valley, Calif., and super-vet multi-time SCORE champion age-group motorcycle racer has been selected to be the Grand Marshal for this year’s BFGoodrich Tires 53rd SCORE Baja 500, presented by 4 Wheel Parts. O’Neal has a race-record 21 class wins in the SCORE Baja 500. He has 38 starts out of 52 years in the SCORE Baja 500 and 39 starts out of 53 years in the SCORE Baja 1000 and he has raced in all 34 SCORE San Felipe 250 races. He has a SCORE-record 22 season point titles in his lengthy career. This year’s SCORE Baja 500 will be his fourth SCORE race as a co-rider for the Giovanni Spinali team in the Pro Moto 50 class for riders over 50 years old on the No. 510x Yamaha YZ450FX. ON-SITE RACER REGISTRATION Being held in the SCORE start/finish line compound on the East end of Avenida Ruiz, regular on-site and late racer registration will be held on Thursday (June 10) from 2 p.m. to 8 p.m. PT and on Friday (June 11) from 8 a.m. to 4 p.m. No new entries will be accepted after 6 p.m. PT on Thursday (June 10) and 3 p.m. PT on Friday (June 11). START ORDER/DRAW DEADLINE The starting order within each class for this race will be determined by the individual finishes at this year’s SCORE San Felipe 250, if the individual entry is received and all fees paid in full by 8 p.m. on Friday, May 21. All entries received and paid in full by May 21 who didn’t race in San Felipe, will be part of a drawing to determine the remainder of the start order within each class. The draw results will be posted on the SCORE website at 5 p.m. on Friday, May 28. Up until and 5 p.m. PT on May 28, entries will be accepted in the SCORE Ensenada office but those entries received after May 21 will not be in the start draw. Late, on-site racer registration will be held on Thursday and Friday (June 11 and 12) and will be given the next available start position within their respective classes. All entries received after 8 p.m. PT on Friday, May 21 will be given the next available starting position within their respective classes. GREEN FLAG—JUNE 12 The motorcycle and quad classes will start at 6 a.m. PT Saturday (June 12) while the car, truck and UTV classes will begin their journey starting at 10 a.m. PT. SCORE Trophy Truck, TT Legend, Class 1, Trophy Truck Spec and the Pro Moto Unlimited classes will start one vehicle every 60 seconds race while all other classes will start one every 30 seconds. While the fastest vehicles in the elapsed-time race are expected to finish in approximately eight hours, all vehicles will have 20 hours from the time each starts to become an official finisher in the historic race. PRE-RUNNING Official practice, or pre-running, on the official 466-mile race course for this year’s BFGoodrich Tires 53rd SCORE Baja 500, presented by 4 Wheel Parts will begin at 8 a.m. PT on Saturday, May 22 starting at race mile 32.9 and finishing at race mile 433.1. The rm0.0 to rm32.9 section will be open only from 7 a.m. to 7 p.m. on Wednesday and Thursday (June 9-10). Only outbound running to rm32.9 except on race day. The official 53rd SCORE Baja 500 course map is available now on the SCORE website. The official SCORE Racer Brief and GPS files will be available by 6 p.m. PT on Thursday, May 20 on the SCORE website under race info/SCORE Baja 500. COURSE PREVIEW With pre-running opening on Saturday, May 22 for the BFGoodrich Tires 53rd SCORE Baja 500, presented by 4 Wheel Parts, SCORE President/Race Director Jose A. Grijalva has put together another memorable 466-mile race course to challenge the world’s best desert racers. Running in a clockwise direction, the race will start and finish without spectators in the SCORE compound because of Health and Safety protocols. The SCORE start/finish compound will be located Northeast of downtown Ensenada one-mile past the end of the extension of Avenida Ruiz All Sportsman classes, Class 7SX, Baja Challenge, Class 11 and the Baja-e class will race on a reduced course of 389.56 miles. GRAN HISTORIA This year’s SCORE World Desert Championship is another special tribute to the iconic SCORE Baja 500. The SCORE Baja 500 is one of the top motorsports events in the world. It was started originally in 1969 by the NORRA organization. Mickey Thompson and his SCORE International organization were invited by the Mexican government to take over the event starting in 1974. Sal Fish ran and later owned and produced the SCORE Baja 500 for 39 years until he sold SCORE in December of 2012. The first Baja 500 organized and produced by SCORE was held on July 26, 1974 in Ensenada as the first of over 150 SCORE Baja races. After being held last year because of the health pandemic in San Felipe for just the second time in race history, this year’s SCORE Baja 500 will start for the 47th time in Ensenada and finish for the 43rd time in Ensenada. BFGOODRICH TIRES UNMATCHED BFGoodrich Tires, the official tire of SCORE for 45 years, received two awards for the 2020 SCORE World Desert Championship. BFGoodrich Tires was honored after the 2020 season as the SCORE Contingency Company of the year for the 30th time as well as being voted the SCORE Pit Support Team of the Year for the 32nd time. BFGoodrich Tires has been the choice of 32 of the 52 overall winners of the popular SCORE Baja 500 and 31 of the 53 overall winners of the legendary SCORE Baja 1000. BFGoodrich Tires is also the title sponsor of both of the iconic races again in 2021. BFGoodrich Tires also has been the choice of 28 of the 34 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 the inaugural SCORE Baja 400. BFGoodrich Tires is also the title sponsor for this year’s SCORE Baja 500. BFGoodrich Tires has posted a contingency bonus for the overall winner of this race of US$25,000. PRESENTING SPONSOR Presenting sponsor for this year’s BFGoodrich Tires 53rd SCORE Baja 500 is 4 Wheel Parts, the official Off-Road Retailer and Race Presenting Partner of SCORE and the SCORE World Desert Championship. SCOREscope 2021 SCORE SKED Here are the remaining three dates in the four-race 2021 SCORE World Desert Championship which will all be held exclusively in Baja California, Mexico for the sixth consecutive year: BFGoodrich Tires 53rd SCORE Baja 500, presented by 4 Wheel Parts— June 9-13, Ensenada, Baja California, Mexico 2nd SCORE Baja 400, presented by VP Racing Fuels— September 14-19, Ensenada, Baja California, Mexico BFGoodrich Tires 54th SCORE Baja 1000, presented by 4 Wheel Parts— November 15-20, Ensenada, Baja California to La Paz, Baja California Sur, Mexico ESPN TV NETWORKS AGAIN IN 2021 For the third straight year, the 2021 SCORE World Desert Championship races are airing on the ESPN family of networks. The four-races will air as specials on the World of X Games program on ESPN2. The season-opening BFGoodrich Tires 34th SCORE San Felipe 250, presented by Ford, is scheduled to air on May 30. Check local listings for exact time. ABC first covered the 1967 and 1968 Baja 1000 races on the old ABC Wide World of Sports show with Jim McKay and again in the late 1980s with veteran motorsports journalists Sam Posey and Jack Arute. All of the SCORE race coverage shows also continue to air internationally in nearly 25 countries in Europe, Asia, Latin America and South America via syndication and ESPN International. The shows are co-produced by SCORE International and SoCal’s award-winning BCII TV. SCORE SPONSORS… Official SCORE Sponsors: BFGoodrich Tires-Official Tire and Race Title Sponsor, Monster Energy-Official Energy Drink, 4 Wheel Parts-Official Off-Road Retailer and Race Presenting Partner, Ford-Official Truck and SUV, King Shocks-Official Shock Absorber, Polaris RZR-Official UTV, RACELINE Wheels-Official Wheel, VP Racing Fuels-Official Fuel, Wide Open Excursions-Official Arrive and Drive Company, Crystal Bay Casino-Official Casino. SCORE Official Partners: PCI Race Radios, The Satellite Phone Store, Instant Mexico Auto Insurance, Lucerna Hotel. Additional SCORE Associate Partners: Baja California Secretary of Sustainable Economy and Tourism, XXIII Ensenada Municipal Government, Ensenada Hotel and Motel Association, Ensenada Tourism Marketing Committee and Cruz Roja Mexicana. For more information regarding SCORE, visit the official website of the SCORE World Desert Championship at www.SCORE-International.com. BFGOODRICH TIRES 53RD SCORE BAJA 500, PRESENTED BY 4 WHEEL PARTS ROUND 2 OF FOUR-RACE 2021 SCORE WORLD DESERT CHAMPIONSHIP June 10-13, 2021—466.00 miles – Ensenada, Baja California, Mexico Total UNOFFICIAL Entries: 111 (as of 5/16/21) (from 14 U.S. States, host Mexico, Bolivia, Canada, France, Peru) (Numerical order, by class) Pro Cars/Trucks/UTVs SCORE TROPHY TRUCK (25*) 1 Luke McMillin 7 Bryce Menzies 10 Alan Ampudia 11 Rob MacCachren *13L Robert Malone 14 Bobby Pecoy 16 Cameron Steele *20L Robbie Pierce 21 Gustavo ‘Tavo’ Vildosola 22 Jax Redline 23 Dan McMillin *25L Mark Winkelman 27 Jonathan Brenthel 31 Andy McMillin 35 Carlos Penunuri *37L Rolf Helland 40 Chris Miller 41 Justin Lofton 43 Larry Roeseler 65 Dan Myers 74 Kelly McArthur 85 Mike Lawrence 89 Mike Walser 90 Raul Gomez 92 Paul Nauleau *SCORE TT LEGEND CLASS 1 (3) 100 Cody Parkhouse 168 Shelby Reid 179 Mario Fuentes TROPHY TRUCK SPEC (19) 205 Jose Delucie 211 Pat Sims 213 Karl Ebdrup 214 Valerie Clark 227 Kyle Jergensen 228 Ryan Hancock 230 Chad Hall 232 Chelsea Magness 258 Justin Davis 278 Carlos Ibarra 284 Jose Contreras 285 Clay Lawrence 286 Rod Lewis 287 Ryan Lewis 292 Jason Coleman 293 Ryan Peacock 294 Vincent Munoz 296 Andrew Myers 299 Charles Dorrance CLASS 10 (9) 1001 Oliver Flemate 1006 Freddie Willert 1023 Tamara Myers 1024 Wheeler Morgan 1027 Arturo V. Malo 1047 Zack McLaren 1049 Ty Godde 1075 Eliseo Garcia 1081 Matt Winslow CLASS 7 (3) 700 Daniel Chamlee 709 Jeff Proctor 710 Mike Shaffer PRO UTV FI (13) 2905 Marc Burnett 2916 Brian Muzllenix 2918 Justin Lambert 2927 Justin Smith 2931 Craig Scanlon 2940 Erick Kozin 2946 Jose Juarez 2949 Alonso Lopez 2967 Mike Pratt 2969 Branden Sims 2987 Edgar Garcia Leon 2989 Wes Miller 2998 P.J. Jones PRO UTV NA (6) 1920 Elias Hanna 1925 Zach Sizemore 1957 Joe Bolton 1962 Dodge Poelman 1985 Adrian Orellana 1995 Kaden Wells CLASS 1/2-1600 (3) 1616 Eli Yee 1621 Kevin A. Sanchez 1680 Carlos Jimenez Guana PRO UTV STOCK (1) 3930 Douglas Cornwell HAMMER TRUCK UNLTD (1) 4421 Mike Hales PRO UTV OPEN (1) 1870 Justin Elenburg CLASS 5 (2) 508 Greg Sullivan 510 Gerardo Ibarra CLASS 5-1600 (1) 557 Larry Negrete Jr BAJA CHALLENGE (1) BC4 Edward Muncey CLASS 7F (1) 714F Justin Park CLASS 7SX (1) 744 Dario Serrano CLASS 11 (3) 1111 Eric Solorzano 1133 Mike Steel 1169 Rafael Figueroa Pro Motorcycles PRO MOTO UNLIMITED (1) 22x Shane Redline PRO MOTO 30 (3) 308x James Justin Shultz, (ROR-Greg Bardonnex) 320x Jorge Garcia 325x Jano Montoya PRO MOTO LIMITED (1) 109x Christopher Gil PRO MOTO 40 (2) 408x Ryan Liebelt 424x William St. Laurent PRO MOTO 50 (1) 510x Giovanni Spinali PRO MOTO IRONMAN (2) 725x Juan Carlos Salvatierra 785x Fabricio Fuentes Pro Quads Pro Quad (2) 5a Steven Lopez 37a Ricardo Villafana Sportsman SPT M/C (4) 201x Scott Borden 202x Jesse Smith 203x Giovanni Aviles 220x Stefano Migotto SPT QUAD (2) 118a Humberto Valenzuela 148a Alejandro Amador PREVIOUS ARTICLE MR. BAJA, A. MCMILLIN, MENZIES ENTERED IN SCORE BAJA 500 NEXT ARTICLE REG CLOSES TONIGHT, PRE-RUNNING OPENS SATURDAY–SCORE BAJA 500 RELATED POSTS FINISH LINE QUOTES–54TH SCORE BAJA 1000 IN LA PAZ, MEXICO Click Logo for the SCORE Race Fuel Order Form SCORE JOURNAL Read Story HERE Read Story HERE Read Story HERE SCORE SPONSORS HOME SCHEDULE RACE INFO SCORE JOURNAL News FAN PAGES Media SCORE TV Marketing SCORE STORE © 2015 – 2021 SCORE International Score International is the rights holder of all the trademarks used on this website which include but are not limited to Baja 1000, Baja 500, Baja 250, Baja Challenge, and Trophy Truck.