RACE RECAP | 2023 Legacy Racing Dirt Rebelution

Michael McFayden Tops Legacy Racing Association’s Dirt Rebelution

Tim Fitzpatrick, Mike Sieg Round Out the UTV Overall Podium

Words: Heather Wilson

Photos: Justin W. Coffey

UTV Sports Photo by Justin W. Coffey

UTV Sports Photo by Justin W. Coffey

UTV Sports Photo by Justin W. Coffey

UTV Sports Photo by Justin W. Coffey

UTV Sports Photo by Justin W. Coffey

Cedar City, Utah, was the location of Legacy Racing Association’s Dirt Rebelution competition. Drivers were presented with a loop-format course – the first for series competitors this year – for the fourth round. More than 35 UTV teams put their machines to the test on a tight and technical 61-mile loop. Pro UTV classes and the Stock2 class completed three laps, while the sportsman and Stock1 UTV classes ran two laps.

Teams received the GPS files on September 18 to start their race prep. Drivers were able to complete tech and contingency, as well as pre-run on September 22. Racers and fans were also treated to live music and food trucks at Iron Springs Resort the night before the competition.

UTV Sports Photo by Justin W. Coffey

September 23 was race day which meant an early start for motorcycle and ATV competitors at 7:30 a.m. UTV drivers had a little more time to make last-minute adjustments to their machines and rolled off of the starting line at 12:45 p.m. Prior to Dirt Rebelution, UTV Turbo class competitor Garrick Lastra (T924) had gone undefeated in the series, taking three overall UTV wins during 2023. His winning streak ended over the weekend when fellow class competitor Michael McFayden (T838) secured the overall win with a blazing time of 04:38:36.767. Running his 2021 Can-Am Maverick X3 XRS RR, the 17-year-old from Redlands, California, finished just seconds shy of 10 minutes ahead of his closest competitor.

UTV Sports Photo by Justin W. Coffey

“This was an extremely tough and technical race course with trees, tight turns and jumps,” McFayden said. “I am honored to get to race against some of the fastest racers in the sport and to show that we can make it to the top of the box! We had a perfect race with zero issues, very little dust and we set a blistering pace on lap one. This set us up for a clean race. A huge thank you to my co-driver Jeremy Gray, my sponsors and my family for supporting me on this journey. Thanks also to Legacy Racing Association for putting on a great race!”

UTV Sports Photo by Justin W. Coffey

UTV Sports Photo by Justin W. Coffey

UTV Sports Photo by Justin W. Coffey

McFayden currently holds second in the series standings with two more rounds to go. Fifty-eight-year-old Tim Fitzpatrick (2906) of Wheatland, California, captured the overall UTV runner-up spot in his Polaris RZR Pro R. After landing a UTV Unlimited class win at Baja Nevada and taking the runner-up class spot at VT Construction Battleground in addition to third UTV overall, Fitzpatrick was motivated to keep the momentum.

“This race is the most fun I’ve had racing a UTV,” Fitzpatrick said. “The course started out very technical and then opened up into what was an outdoor motocross track with some jumps, whoops, and 90-degree turns. From there, it went into some fast Jeep roads as we made our way up to the trees and then into a sand wash that had a lot of rocks.”

He said as they made their way back towards the pit area, the course opened up into fast silty Jeep roads. Since he was the first to start in the Unlimited class, he didn’t see anybody in his class throughout the day and had to work his way through the field of UTV Turbo class competitors.

“Everyone that I caught moved out of the way as soon as they heard our horn,” Fitzpatrick said. The first part of the third lap was the first time that I got to run dust-free. I knew that I had a shot at a good overall position, so I pushed hard and caught up to the remaining Turbo cars but I was never able to get close enough to make a pass. I ran in their dust the last half of lap three.”

He not only secured second overall with a time of 04:48:31.600, but he also captured the UTV Unlimited class win. He expressed his thanks for the support of C&J Equipment and Driven Offroad LLC, as well as to Legacy Racing Association for hosting a “must-do race.”

UTV Sports Photo by Justin W. Coffey

UTV Sports Photo by Justin W. Coffey

UTV Sports Photo by Justin W. Coffey

UTV Sports Photo by Justin W. Coffey

Taking the final step of the podium was Polaris pilot Mike Sieg (T979). The 44-year-old from Charlie Lake, BC, Canada, finished just under three minutes behind Fitzpatrick. In only his second Legacy Racing Association event this year, the UTV Turbo class competitor said it felt great to hit the podium second in class and third overall – especially when it was the first time they’d sat in the seat in seven months.

“The course was rough, tight, and dusty,” Sieg said. “It’s what I would call a navigator’s nightmare, but I’m lucky enough to be able to put my trust in my 17-year-old son who has been calling corners for me since he was 12 [years-old]. My Lonestar-Racing-built Polaris RZR Turbo S worked flawlessly until the last lap. We started having misfire limp mode issues. Then, we lost our brakes completely 30 miles from the finish, so we really had to slow our pace on this extremely technical course. We pushed through and managed to finish as close to the front as we could.”

He added that Donald [Jackson] and the entire Legacy Racing Association team does an excellent job at making everyone feel included and looked after from the very start at registration to the fair-well handshake when it’s over.

UTV Sports Photo by Justin W. Coffey

“I’d like to thank my wife, Brandy, for supporting myself and my son to chase our dream,” Sieg said. “[Plus] Lonestar Racing and crew for not only being on my side…but also [being] some of the best friends I’ve made in life. [Thanks to] Polaris RZR for supporting me and for the killer parts from Fox, RCV, Method Race Wheels, Tensor Tires, Baja Designs, Hostyle, Evo, and Aim Technologies.”

With McFayden and Sieg (T979) taking overall honors, Joe Fitos (T893) rounded out the UTV Turbo class with a time of 04:55:06.610 in his Can-Am. Turning to the UTV Unlimited class, Carlsbad, California’s Travis Sallee (2999) finished behind Fitzpatrick. Despite facing a penalty for speeding in the pits, Tyler Stewart (2973) captured third in his Polaris – finishing in just under five hours. Ethan Groom (1974) topped the UTV Naturally Aspirated class with a time of 05:02:45.936, followed by Angie Mitchell (1907) just seven minutes later. Carey McCandless (1934) of St. George, Utah, rounded out the class podium.

UTV Sports Photo by Justin W. Coffey

Thirty-six-year-old Blaine Davis (U947) secured the UTV Stock1 class victory, finishing his two laps in three hours and 26 minutes. Piloting a Can-Am, Derek Morse (U903) took second, and Utah’s Daniel Pierce (U922) took third in his Polaris. Las Vegas resident Wes Miller (U989) ran uncontested in the UTV Stock2 class, securing a time of 05:03:12.602. The UTV Stock Modified class saw Seth Jones (S982) navigate his Polaris to a class win in three hours and 33 minutes. Bryan Houghton (S923) took his fourth Legacy Racing Association class podium of the year, while Phillip Isabelle (S917) rounded out the podium.

UTV Sports Photo by Justin W. Coffey

UTV Sports Photo by Justin W. Coffey

With a loop format, racers had the advantage of running the same course for multiple laps. Although a much shorter distance than the other point-to-point races in the series this year – at only 183 total miles for select classes and 122 miles for sportsman and Stock1 UTV classes – the course format required drivers to formulate a different strategic approach to the race day in hopes of preparing themselves and their machines for battle in an attempt to secure top honors.

Legacy Racing Association will host the Gold Rush, the next competition on the 2023 schedule, October 19-22 in Tonopah, Nevada.