The GOAT gets another race win to add to a truckful of them. KTM wins in motorcycles.
Desert racing sanctioning body SCORE International calls longtime racer Rob MacCachren the G.O.A.T., or Greatest of All Time, with championships and wins in every major event that SCORE sanctions – and many outside of SCORE.
This weekend he added another victory to a long list of them: the BFGoodrich Tires 54th SCORE Baja 500 Presented by 4 Wheel Parts, round two of the four-race 2022 SCORE World Desert Championship.
The 57-year-old MacCachren powered his Geiser-built Ford F-150 Trophy Truck to victory in 9:22.47 over the 463-mile loop course that started and ended in the seaside port city of Ensenada, Baja California, Mexico just south of the U.S. border. Even after an all-day race Mac’s time was less than two minutes faster than 21-year-old relative newcomer Broc Dickerson in a TSCO-built Raptor, and only 13 minutes ahead of 65-year-old veteran Larry Roeseler in an ID-built Toyota Tundra.
Bird’s eye view of the race truck. Both this one and the top photo are from earlier races.
BFGoodrich
“It was a good day,” Mac said in classic understatement. “We started out on our pace. The three all-wheel-drives in front of us (Mac runs a rwd F-150) were pulling away a little bit at a time. When Bryce (Menzies, No. 7) lost a motor, that put us third on the road to the bottom of the Summit (a steep feature on the course). It is an unbelievable pass; it takes probably 20 minutes to get down it. It is awesome. Halfway down we caught up to (Mike) Walser (who ultimately finished 15th), but then he took off again. After he got a flat we started hauling ass knowing Luke (McMillin, former race winner and Mac’s race-winning co-driver in the Baja 1000 last year) was ten minutes ahead of us. I couldn’t see his tracks anymore after a while. So that meant we were first on the road. I just had to maintain the gaps back to (Broc) Dickerson and (Alan) Ampudia. We started taking it easy and being cautious and careful about everything and it went well.”
Second-place finisher Dickerson was just happy to be there at the end.
“This is my fourth SCORE Baja 500 but the first in a Class 10 or Class 1,” he said. “I am surprised I made it to this level. We started twenty-first and crossed the line physically in third. Our plan was to take it easy and save the car. We sat there having fun and set a good pace and went with it. It all worked out. It was a technical course. We only passed five trucks, the rest we passed when they were pulled over. We had a blast. We caught a couple bushes. We had to add a little oil. The truck can probably go another whole race right now. I can’t, but this truck can. I’m excited for the next event. We will have a good starting position. I think we proved a lot today. Now I know I can run with the leaders. It was fun.”
Larry Roeseler, who won the Baja 500 last year, was likewise satisfied with third.
“Anytime you get to the finish line is awesome,” he said. “With all the competition, we are pleased with our finish. It was a team effort. It was fun but it also kicked our butt. Justin Morgan, my navigator, did an awesome job. I normally don’t get tired, but I am more tired today than I was at the SCORE Baja 1000.”
File photo of a KTM 450 SF-X somewhat like the one that won the Baja 500 this year.
KTM
In motorcycles it was Dakar veteran rider Juan Carlos “Chavo” Salvatierra and teammates Arturo Salas Jr, Shane Logan, and Diego Llanos who won sharing a KTM 450SX-F. That team crossed the line about an hour and a half behind the winning trucks. Sometimes the motorcycles win, sometimes the trucks.
Next up is the SCORE Baja 400 Sept. 13-18 Presented by VP Racing Fuels, and the BFGoodrich SCORE Baja 1000 Presented by 4 Wheel Parts Nov. 15-20. Both of those are loop courses starting and finishing in Ensenada.
Keyword: GOAT Rob MacCachren Wins Baja 500 In a Ford F-150