The second round of series and the 55th running of the event saw 23-year-old Brock Heger (1896) of El Centro, California, claim the overall UTV win at the Baja 500 competition on June 3rd. The Pro UTV class competitor earned a corrected time of 10:35:28, besting 20 drivers in his class and more than 60 total UTVs. He earned 31st overall, battling against trophy truck drivers and motorcycle riders. 

Heger, who had finished 10th in class at the San Felipe 250 earlier this year, piloted his Polaris RZR Pro R at an average speed of 44mph, navigating sand, washes, whoops and rocks. In the end, he finished almost 15 minutes ahead of the nearest UTV competitor. 

“We had a really good day,” Heger said. “We started with four brand-new BFGoodrich Tires, and we finished on the same four. We had some minor pit issues with the fuel, but we never got off the car and couldn’t have asked for a better day. This is my first year in this class, and I Ironman’d the SCORE San Felipe 250 and now the SCORE Baja 500.”

He added that he plans to do it again for the SCORE Baja 400 and is still trying to figure out the SCORE Baja 1000.

It was not only a celebration for Heger, but for the Polaris Factory Team as well – marking two-consecutive Pro UTV Open class wins in the series championship. Team principal Craig Scanlon had notched a win in the class at the San Felipe 250 held earlier in the year. But unfortunately, he and teammate Max Eddie Jr. blew a motor, forcing them to withdraw.  

Fellow Pro UTV Open class competitor, Branden Sims (1886), took runner-up behind Heger. The 37-year-old from Prescott Valley, Arizona, pushed his Polaris RZR Pro R at a similar pace as Heger, posting a 43 mph average to achieve an elapsed time of 11:00:24. 

“The race was good,” Sims said. “We had the cooling fans shut off around San Felipe [race mile 240], so we had to stop and fix it. But that was really the only time we had to get out of the car. We also replaced an axle in one of the pits.”

Sims said it was a brutal course, but he also really enjoyed it. 

“I’ve been to many SCORE Baja 500s, and I really like it,” he added. “They had fast sections, they had tight and technical sections… It’s fun to be able to go fast every once in a while, and have a little break. I really liked the course. I think it tested the equipment very well. It had a little bit of everything. It tested everybody’s driving ability in different scenarios.”

“Going over the Summit [race mile 100], you have all the rocky stuff there,” Blurton said. “Then you get to San Felipe [race mile 240], and it’s big whoops all the way. The coast is fun, it was easier there.” Blurton enjoyed the variety of terrain throughout the 473.67-mile course. 

Second in Pro UTV Forced Induction went to North Tustin, California’s Jason Murray (2917), and 54-year-old Matt Burroughs (2948) of Norco, California, claimed the third-place position. 

Can-Am’s Sara Price (3938) has been on fire lately, winning the UTV Pro Super Stock Turbo Class Win at the Mint 400, winning the National Car/UTV class at the Sonora Rally and taking the Mexican 1000 Evolution Stock Turbo UTV class win – an event hosted by National Off-Road Racing Association (NORRA). The Baja 500 was no exception in keeping the momentum rolling. The 30-year-old from Mohave Valley, Arizona, piloted her Can-Am X3 Turbo to the top of the box in the Pro Stock UTV class. 

Price piloted the first 270 miles of the day before co-driver Mitchell Alsup took over. The duo encountered no issues throughout the 13-hour day. Together, they finished with a corrected time of 13:06:05.757.

“This all just came about last-minute at Chula Vista with Cameron Steele,” Price said. “We built the car in about three days and decided to split driving here. We’ve been driving together for the last two months, and we’re very similar in so many ways. This is really the dream team.”

Twenty-seven-year-old Endy Chavez (3928) of Mexico took the checkers just under 16 minutes behind Price, while Nick Bruce (3953) rounded out the podium after he faced challenges with his car overheating and a few little crashes that forced him to spend time replacing parts.

“The car never missed a beat…” said Lambert. “We never got out of the car and just progressed all night.”

Turning to the Pro UTV Naturally-Aspirated class, Honda Factory Off Road Racing’s Zach Sizelove (1925), collected the win for the second year in a row, with a time of 12:59:51.162. He was one of three finishers in the class. The Honda Talon 1000R driver from Hesperia, California, drove up to race mile 210 before co-driver Wayne Lambert took over to the finish.

Not far behind was Middlebury, Connecticut’s Lawrence Janesky (1914), who earned second. He had to spend time fixing two flat tires, but otherwise ran a smooth race. Sixty-five-year-old Joe Bolton (1957) took third. 

Pro UTV Unlimited competitor Richard Fant (3993) was the solo competitor in his class, but laid down an impressive performance with his co-drivers Chapman Ducote and David Ducote in their new car.

“The first third of the race was great,” Fant said. “There was a lot of dust, but we did well. This is our first time in our new car and we’re very happy.”