May 13, 2025
In Ensenada, Baja California, Mexico
The official map for the second round of the 2025 SCORE World Desert Championship is now available at www.score-international.com. It covers 461.03 miles for the pro classes of motorcycles, trucks and cars, as well as 416.43 miles for the Sportsman classes.
Ensenada, Baja California, Mexico – Today, the official map for the 57th BFGoodrich Tires SCORE Baja 500 was unveiled, the second round of the 2025 SCORE World Desert Championship, which will take place from June 4 to 8 in Ensenada, Baja California, Mexico, featuring magical and historic terrains along its 461.03 race course miles.
In SCORE International’s 52nd season, SCORE President and Race Director, Jose A. Grijalva, designed a route that includes many traditional areas of the magical Baja California Peninsula, along with several new natural off-road areas, in collaboration with SCORE Race Co-Director, Rodolfo Fernandez.
For Fernandez, the SCORE Baja 500 race course is very technical, with some new sections that have not been used in any previous SCORE race, “They are existing paths, but new for SCORE. It will be a very fast coastal section, but very technical in the first part of the course.”
“The preliminary track layout work began before the SCORE San Felipe 250. After the race, we went out to inspect the trails to confirm that they were in suitable condition to be part of the route,”.
The race course for the Sportsman classes of motorcycles, trucks cars is 416.43 miles, with a cutoff point in the race course of 50 miles, between mile 200 and mile 259.
THE RACE COURSE
The green flag will be waved on the Bulevar Costero of Ensenada, where race drivers will need to travel at normal traffic speed along the Federal Highway 1, until reaching Rancho Nelson, where the timing for competitors will begin. From there, the race course will continue towards the Piedras Gordas ejido, then to Ojos Negros, and further on to 3 Hermanos. After that, the drivers will exit at kilometer 77 on Federal Highway 1, and enter at kilometer 79, heading towards the Santa Catarina ejido.
Racers will pass the famous Goat Trail, then take the highway to Valle de la Trinidad, heading towards Mike’s Sky ranch. From there, they will proceed to La Jolla ranch, then take the highway to the San Pedro Martir Observatory, reach Santa Cruz ranch, then Valladares ranch, and the race course will descend to the Santo Domingo stream. From there, they will head towards the Vicente Guerrero (Pena Colorada) Colony, reaching San Quintin, then heading north towards the San Quintin volcanoes area, continuing on to the Ejido Zarahemla, Camalu, San Jacinto, 4 Casas, Punta Colonet ejido, San Antonio del Mar, and Cerro Solo.
The journey will then arrive at the Lopez Rayon ejido, passing the San Vicente stream, and offer a view of the Pacific Ocean near the Erendira ejido. From there, it will cross over to Punta Cabras, pass through the Nativos del Valle ejido, and descend to Santo Tomas, taking the Federal Highway 2 until reaching the Uruapan ejido. After passing the famous hills, the race course will head towards Ojos Negros, and later return to Rancho Nelson, where 7 ramps will be set up in a short course area to cut time for all the race teams. Racers will then drive at moderate speeds along the road back to the Bulevar Costero.
Along the race course, racers will pass through 11 washes, making their way step by step to the checkered flag in Ensenada. The time limit for all competitors to finish the race is 18 hours.
This year’s map is available on the SCORE website, under the SCORE Baja 500 logo at www.SCORE-International.com.
IT’S TIME TO DO THE HOMEWORK
The race course will open for pre-running on Saturday, May 24, with the reminder that race teams must inspect the race course at moderate speeds, not race speeds, comply with traffic laws, and ensure ranch gates are closed where the race will pass.
On Thursday, May 22, the GPS files for the race course will be published in the afternoon on the SCORE website, under the SCORE Baja 500 logo. This information will be very useful for racers and their teams as part of their reconnaissance logistics.
BFGOODRICH TIRES, THE BEST PITS IN BAJA
BFGoodrich Tires, the official tire of SCORE for 48 years, is the latest winner of SCORE’s Pit Crew of the Year award, a role that employees and volunteers from the American company have carried out for over 34 years, supporting competition teams from continents such as Europe, Asia, Africa, Oceania, and the Americas.
For the 57th BFGoodrich Tires SCORE Baja 500 this coming June, there will be 3 pits along the route, designed to cover areas with difficult access in the municipalities of Ensenada and San Quintin, with staff from both the United States and Mexico providing specialized attention in off-road racing. They will offer tire changes, if needed, race fuel service, welding work, and other mechanical services.
The BFGoodrich Tires pit 1 will be located at mile 125 south of the Valle de la Trinidad, pit 2 will be at mile 237 in the municipality of San Quintin, and pit 3 will service the competition teams at the Ejido Erendira, mile 350.
BFGoodrich Tires has been the choice of 34 of the 56 overall winners of the popular SCORE Baja 500 and 34 of the 57 overall winners of the iconic SCORE Baja 1000. BFGoodrich Tires also was the title sponsor of both iconic races again in 2024. And will be again in 2025.
BFGoodrich Tires also has been the choice of 31 of the 38 overall winners of the SCORE San Felipe 250, all three SCORE Desert Challenge races, the one SCORE Challenge of Champions race, the one SCORE Baja Sur 500 and one of five overall winners of the SCORE Baja 400.
BFGoodrich Tires has also posted $6,000 in Contingency bonuses for the winner in six classes in this race.
Wheels qualification and is considered one of the favorites to win the ‘pole position’ in the SCORE Baja 500.
MORE ENTRYS INTERNATIONALFROM AROUND THE WORLD
So far, 96 teams have registered for the 57th BFGoodrich Tires SCORE Baja 500, the second round of the 2025 SCORE World Desert Championship, which will take place in Ensenada, Baja California, Mexico, from June 4 to 8, with competitors from Australia, Canada, New Zealand, France, the United States, and host Mexico.
Athletes from 15 states in the United States are officially registered, including California, Nevada, Utah, Arizona, Idaho, and Texas. The four SCORE races in 2025 will be held on the magnificent Baja California Peninsula in Mexico, a tradition that has continued for the past ten years.
BULEVAR COSTERO, HOME OF THE SCORE BAJA 500
Tech Inspection for the SCORE Baja 500 will take place on Friday, June 6, at the Ensenada Bulevar Costero, from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. PT, an event expected to gather more than 50,000 people throughout the day.
On Saturday, June 7, the green flag will drop at the Bulevar Costero, with the first motorcycle leaving at 3:30 a.m. PT, while the first 4-wheel vehicle will depart at 9:15 a.m. PT, facing a 460-mile race course. All vehicles will have a 18-hour time limit to become official finishers in the elapsed-time race.
The awards celebration will be held on Sunday, June 8, at the Cathedral Room of the Riviera de Ensenada Cultural Center at 12:30 p.m. Qualifying, contingency and the race days will be part of SCORE Live with Rat Sult and Kevin Johnson on SCORE´s official YouTube channel and also its official Facebook account. Tracking of the race vehicles will be available during the race through the SCORE website.
METHOD RACE WHEELS QUALIFYING
SCORE Trophy Truck, SCORE Trophy Truck 2WD, SCORE Trophy Truck, SCORE TT Legend and Trophy Truck Spec classes will hold the Method Race Wheels Qualifying session on Thursday, June 5. Starting with at 7 a.m. PT at a private venue, this event is closed to the public.
The Method Race Wheels Qualifying will determine the starting order in those three classes for the race, as this is the second time in history that all SCORE four races will hold a qualifying session.
SCORE Live will air the Method Race Wheels Qualifying through the SCORE website.
Start order for all of the other classes in this race will be determined by a random draw for positions within each class.
ENSENADA, A PACIFIC PARADISE
Located 79 miles south of the U.S. border in San Diego, California, Ensenada is a beautiful city situated just steps from the Pacific Ocean, known as ‘The Cinderella of the Pacific.’
Ensenada boasts many tourist attractions, including the popular Valle de Guadalupe with more than 150 wineries and excellent restaurants offering the best of Mexican cuisine to thousands of visitors throughout the year. It is also home to La Bufadora, a natural geyser that has been visited by millions of people for over four decades, as well as the legendary Riviera Cultural and Social Center of Ensenada, home to the famous drink known as the Margarita, which is served at the Bar Andaluz.
History of SCORE
SCORE International was founded in 1973 by the late Mickey Thompson, and one year later, under the leadership of Sal Fish, until he sold the company on December 20, 2012. SCORE remains the leading company in off-road racing. SCORE features various professional and Sportsman classes for motorcycles and cars, along with extensive internet coverage of its 4 races in the SCORE World Desert Championship.
SCOREscope
2025 SCORE SCHEDULE
These are the 3 remaining dates of the 2025 SCORE World Championship, which will take place entirely in Baja California, something that will happen for the tenth consecutive year.
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
SCORE SPONSORS…
Official SCORE Sponsors: BFGoodrich Tires-Official Tire and Race Title Sponsor, Ford-Official Truck and SUV, King Shocks-Official Shock Absorber and Race Title Sponsor, Polaris RZR-Official UTV, AutoZone Mexico, Official Automotive Parts Retailer, VP Racing-Official Fuel, Optima Batteries-Official Battery, Rugged Radios-Official Radio Communication, Sylvania Off-Road-Official Light, Method Race Wheels-Official Wheel and Race Qualifying sponsor, Lasernut-Official Custom Metal Fabricator, Wide Open Excursions-Official Arrive and Drive Company, Crystal Bay Casino-Official Casino.
SCORE Official Partners: MEXICO Secretary of Tourism, Baja California Secretary of Tourism, Ensenada Municipal Government, San Felipe Municipal Government, San Quintin Municipal Government, Ensenada Marketing Tourism Committee, San Felipe Marketing Tourism Committee, Ensenada Hotel and Motel Association, Proturismo Ensenada, Instant Mexico Auto Insurance, and Cruz Roja Mexicana.
For more information regarding SCORE, visit the official website of the SCORE World Desert Championship at www.SCORE-International.com.