Mexican Off-Road Legend to visit San Felipe, Baja California, Mexico, April 2-6 to lead Round 1 of the 2025 SCORE World Desert Championship festivities
3/14/2025
The first Mexican to win an overall in SCORE
Mexico´s Gus Vildosola Sr. to be Grand Marshal of the 38th King Shocks SCORE San Felipe 250
Mexican Off-Road Legend to visit San Felipe, Baja California, Mexico, April 2-6 to lead Round 1 of the 2025 SCORE World Desert Championship festivities
ENSENADA, Baja California, Mexico – Gustavo Vildosola Sr., 71, Mexicali, Baja California, has written countless stories in San Felipe, within the golden book of Off-Road. He who will be the Grand Marshal for the 38th King Shocks SCORE San Felipe 250, and will have a packed agenda from April 2 to 6, as he will also seek to win Round 1 of the 2025 SCORE World Desert Championship in the SCORE Trophy Truck Legend.
‘Gus’, a living legend behind the wheel, who has won the SCORE San Felipe 250 seven times (1996, 2003, 2013, 2017, 2002, 2023, 2024), two of those overall (2003, 2013), considered his appointment by SCORE International executives an honor, both for his family and himself. “This is the sport of excellence for me, and San Felipe is always very important to my family and me. The people welcome us with open arms, and it’s a race I really enjoy because it’s a very special challenge for any driver”.
After winning the SCORE championship for the past three years in the SCORE TT Legend class, (drivers over 50 years old), alongside Supercross legend Ricky Johnson, 60, El Cajon, California, Vildosola is focused on fighting for a new title as the team leader of Vildosola Racing.
It has been 22 years since his first overall victory in the SCORE San Felipe 250, alongside Rob ‘G.O.A.T’ MacCachren, a moment that ‘Gus’ recalls with great emotion. “All wins are very satisfying, but that first overall in 2003 with Rob MacCachren is very special. Fortunately, we’ve had the chance to win several more times, but it was a great experience in my first Trophy, the Geiser, it was a perfect race”.
That was the first overall victory by a Mexican driver in SCORE International history, both in motorcycles and cars. In March 1998, Ensenada’s Juan Carlos “Tigrillo” Ibarra won the SCORE San Felipe 250 in the SCORE Trophy Trucks, but the overall win went to Mark Post and Jerry Whelchel, who also triumphed in Class 1 aboard the Riviera Eagle buggy from the Riviera Racing team.
Vildosola Sr. will divide his time behind the wheel of the Mason No. 1L Ford Raptor Vildosola Racing team to attend media engagements, meet fans, sign autographs, wave the green flag at El Malecon in San Felipe, and send a safety message to the spectators attending Round 1 of the 2025 SCORE World Desert Championship.
“At Vildosola Racing, we ask the fans not make booby traps, not to stand on the outside of turns. The fans have improved a lot; they now position themselves in safer spots along the race course. However, we still need people to leave their areas clean. We need to take care of the desert to have a cleaner Mexico and a better Baja California Peninsula”.
‘Gus’ Vildosola’s career spans over five decades in Off-Road, starting his first race as a driver in 1968. He has participated in over 30 editions of the SCORE San Felipe 250, competing in Class 11, Class 5-1600, Protruck, Class 1, SCORE Trophy Truck, and the SCORE Trophy Truck Legend. He also won the overall title in the 43rd SCORE Baja 1000 in 2010, alongside his son Gustavo ‘Tavo’ Vildosola Jr., on a 1,061.69-mile race course that started in Ensenada, Baja California, and ended in La Paz, Baja California Sur.
Gustavo has spent part of his time supporting different generations of students at Cetys Universidad in the various campuses of Baja California. He has also become a benefactor of the institution, helping to create new sports gyms and classrooms, as well as giving talks to students from different countries, promoting the values that have made him a successful person in the business industry. He has been part of the Kenworth company for many years and later created his own project, Mexicana Logistics, with facilities in both Mexico and the United States.
TO EXTEND THEIR FABULOUS STREAK IN BAJA
Gustavo Vildosola Sr. and Ricky Johnson have an incredible streak in SCORE with 12 consecutive victories, alongside their triple championship in the SCORE TT Legend, thanks to the preparation work of Andrés ‘Lechero’ Rodriguez on the Ford Raptor No. 1L Mason Vildosola Racing, along with the support of their navigators, Victor Valenzuela and Nicolas Ambriz.
In 2024, Vildosola and Johnson celebrated at the top of the podium in the San Felipe 250, Baja 500, Baja 400, and the Baja 1000, also winning the 2024 SCORE Rod Hall Milestone Award, presented by Toyota Escondido. This award is given each season to drivers who complete all the miles of the SCORE season.
SAN FELIPE AWAITS US WITH OPEN ARMS
Celebrating the 38th anniversary of the youngest of the three legendary SCORE Baja races, sometimes referred to as the SCORE ‘Baby Baja’, with entries now being accepted on the SCORE website under Race Info at www.SCOREInternational.com for Pro and Sportsman entries for cars, trucks, UTVs, motorcycles and quads.
The green flag for the racers will be waved on Saturday, April 5, at the San Felipe El Malecon, with the motorcycles starting at 6 a.m., followed by the opening ceremonies at 9:15 a.m., and the first 4-wheel vehicle starting at 10 a.m.
It is expected that the overall winners of the SCORE San Felipe 250 will cross the finish line in 5 hours for motorcycles and 4 hours and 20 minutes for cars. The time limit for the racers to finish the race is 12 hours.
Pre-race Contingency and Tech Inspection and the start/finish line compound will be located on the picturesque El Malecon in San Felipe along the inspiring azure waters of the Sea of Cortez.
San Felipe is 125 miles south of the U.S. Border at Calexico, Calif. on the eastern side of the Baja peninsula. All four 2025 SCORE races will be held on Mexico’s magnificent Baja California peninsula for the 10th consecutive year.
ENTRY DEADLINES
The deadline to enter in time to be included in the SCORE San Felipe 250 Race Day program and the race program is 9 p.m. PT on Friday March 21.
Starting positions for the classes that aren’t qualifying will be determined by a random drawing after the close of online racer registration. Results of the start draw will be posted on the SCORE website by 5 p.m. PT on Friday, March 28.
Late entries may register in person at the SCORE Ensenada office until 5 p.m. PT on Wednesday, March 26. Those late entries, however, will not be included in the start draw. Late, on-site entries will receive the next starting position within the class entered.
Questions on entry should be directed to Shannon Lund, SCORE Registration and Membership Director at 775.852.8907 or registration@SCORE-International.com.
METHOD RACE WHEELS QUALIFYING
For just the fifth time in the history of this popular ‘Spring Break’ race, SCORE will once again hold the Method Race Wheels qualifying session starting at 8 a.m. PT on Thursday, April 3 to determine the starting positions within each class for the SCORE Trophy Truck, SCORE TT 2WD, SCORE TT Legend and Trophy Truck Spec classes. The starting order for qualifying in each class will be determined by the date and time that the registration entry is received. Entries received in the qualifying classes received after Friday, March 21 will be given the next available starting slot within their respective classes.
Qualifying is not open to the public and will be held on a private course that is not part of the official race course.
WELCOME TO THE PRESS IN SCORE
Different media outlets can now register for coverage of the 38th King Shocks SCORE San Felipe 250. To do so, access the link at https://score-international.com/score-media/index.php, and fill out the registration form to be considered for media credentials for the first round of the 2025 SCORE World Desert Championship.
Last year, over 800 media outlets were registered for the four SCORE races, highlighting the increased interest in covering this sport, with press from countries like the United States, Mexico, Japan, Bolivia, Ecuador, Venezuela, Australia, and Canada in the official SCORE records.
SCOREstory
The original SCORE International was founded in 1973 by the late Mickey Thompson and headed by Sal Fish from 1974 until Fish sold SCORE International on Dec. 20, 2012. SCORE continues as the premier sanctioning body in the sport of desert racing. SCORE races feature classes for Pro and Sportsman cars, trucks, UTVs, motorcycles and quads competing in the internationally-televised four-race SCORE World Desert Championship.
SCOREscope
2025 SCORE SCHEDULE
Here are the dates for the four-race 2025 SCORE World Desert Championship which
will be held in Baja California, Mexico for the 10th consecutive year:
King Shocks 38th SCORE San Felipe 250
April 2-6, San Felipe, Baja California, Mexico
BFGoodrich Tires 56th SCORE Baja 500
June 4-8, Ensenada, Baja California, Mexico
6th SCORE Baja 400
September 10-14, Ensenada, Baja California, Mexico
BFGoodrich Tires 58th SCORE Baja 1000
November 10-16, Ensenada, Baja California, Mexico
King Shocks 38th SCORE San Felipe 250
Opener of four-race 2025 SCORE World Desert Championship
April 2-6 – 250.06 miles – San Felipe, Baja California, Mexico
Total Entries: 155 (as of 3/14/25)
(from 19 U.S. States, host Mexico, Argentina, Australia, Canada, New Zealand)
(Numerical order, by class)
Pro Cars/Trucks/UTVs
SCORE TROPHY TRUCK (35*)
1 Alan Ampudia
**1L Gustavo Vildosola Sr
2 Chad Broughton
5 Clyde Stacy
7 Bryce Menzies
11 Rob MacCachren
*15T David Ziegler
*16T Cameron Steele
*17T Josh Dejong
*19T Tim Herbst
21 Gustavo ‘Tavo’ Vildosola Jr
23 Dan McMillin
24 Adam Householder
**25L Mark Winkelman
*26T Dave Taylor
*28T Ryan Daniel
*33T Roberto Romo Jr
**37L Rolf Helland
38 Eric Hustead
41 Justin Lofton
*45T Gary Magness
46 Toby Price
**53L Wade Porter
58 Tracy Graf
**61L David Payne
*65T Greg Adler
70 Kevin Thompson
**74L Shane Lewis
*82T Sam Baldi
83 Luke McMillin
*85T Mikey Lawrence
**85L Clay Lawrence
87 Dallas Lutrell
*94T Steve Strobel
**99L Shawn Runyon
*SCORE TROPHY TRUCK 2WD
**SCORE TT LEGEND
CLASS 1 (7)
127 Cody Parkhouse
138 Brad Wilson
162 Brendan Gaughan
168 Cody Reid
179 Mario Fuentes
180 Morgan Langley
188 Caleb Sanden
TROPHY TRUCK SPEC (25)
200 Thor Herbst
203 Scott McNeil
205 Joe Delucie
209 J. David Ruvalcaba
211 Pat Sims
214 Sean Geiser
215 Trey Gibbs
228 Ryan Hancock
230 Neal Drickey
240 Chris Miller
241 Stephen Beal
245 Ethan Hagle
246 Ben Hagle
258 Mavrick Gaunt
260 Santiago Creel
263 EJ Herbst
275 Luis Angel Huerto
280 Justin Montesalvo
282 Brent Fox
284 Jose Contreras
285 Justin Davis
290 Isidro Ochoa Jr
294 Vincent Munoz
297 Jorge Sampietro
299 Charles Dorrance
CLASS 10 (5)
1002 Matias Arjona IV
1006 Stan Potter
1011 Cesar Cuevas
1044 Jason Shipman
1075 Eliseo Garcia
PRO UTV OPEN (13)
1825 Vito Ranuio
1835 Rickey Arslanian
1836 Rodrigo Ampudia Jr
1838 Michael McFayden
1846 Elexander Noble
1854 Kristen Matlock
1857 Blake Wilkey
1866 Harrison Weis
1869 Justin Lambert
1871 Wayne Matlock
1872 Justin Smith
1874 Ethan Groom
1886 Branden Sims
PRO UTV FI (15)
2910 Jorge Cano
2912 Allen Yost
2921 John Myerly
2925 Bernardo Perez
2928 Carlos Quezada
2929 Joshua Cobb
2935 Kaden Wells
2939 David Placencia
2940 Erick Kozin
2948 Matt Burroughs
2950 Arturo Ortega
2958 Zach Lumsden
2962 Clinton Schue
2983 JR Luna
2987 Edgar Garcia
CLASS 7 (4)
702 Daniel Chamlee
703 Scott Brady
711 Rhys Millen
720 Randy Bluth
PRO UTV NA (3)
1919 Eva Star Malabanan
1957 Joe Bolton
1984 Ricardo Torres
CLASS 5 (1)
500 Eli Yee
PRO UTV STOCK (11)
3908 Scott Bergen
3916 Jeff Embree
3918 Antonio De Loera
3923 Marcos Valladolid
3928 Endy Chavez
3943 Dennis Romero
3944 Connor Willert
3952 Antonio Mendez
3957 Kyle Chavez
3959 Antonio Mendez
3969 Kevin Clyde
CLASS 1/2-1600 (3)
1625 Eric Pavolka
1628 Jose G. Estrada Jr
1643 Daniel Reyes Jr
HEAVY METAL (1)
8008 Rob White
CLASS 5/1600 (1)
556 Ruben Espinoza
CLASS 11 (2)
1111 Eric Solorzano
1156 Arthur Penner
SPORTSMAN
SPT OPEN-WHEEL (1)
1550 Cesar Quirarte
SPT TRUCK (1)
1474 Dan Gregory
SPT UTV (1)
1812 Pedro A. Robles
Pro Motorcycles
PRO MOTO UNLIMITED (2)
1x Arturo Salas Jr
13x Adrian Ortiz
PRO MOTO 30 (2)
308x Jason Alosi
324x Edgar Najar
PRO MOTO LIMITED (2)
116x David Navarro
121x Leon Dagieu
PRO MOTO 50 (1)
500x Mike Prunty
PRO MOTO 40 (1)
400x Shane Esposito
PRO MOTO IRONMAN (10)
722x Daniel Albritton
725x Kyle Phenix
729x Austin Eddy
739x Aaron Richardson
744x Austin Farley
753x Oscar Bernal
766x Dustin Vasquez
790x Erick Estrada
793x Kenneth Holley
797x Kyle Ramirez
PRO MOTO 60 (2)
600x Harold Harris
611x John Vander Lans
Sportsman
SPT M/C (2)
235x Valerie Grijalva
292x Frederick Ty McPherson
SPT QUAD (3)
106a Aaron Lopez
127a Martin De la Torre
138a Gabriel Vazquez
