LOS ANGELES—Preparing to celebrate its 39th year as the world’s foremost desert racing sanctioning body, SCORE International today officially announced the finalized schedule for the five race 2012 SCORE Desert Series.

SCORE’s 2012 season will culminate with the massive 45th anniversary celebration of the legendary Tecate SCORE Baja 1000.  The season will start in Southern Nevada with the 18th Annual SCORE Laughlin Desert Challenge.

With Las Vegas Events this week approving SCORE to produce the 18th annual SCORE Laughlin Desert Challenge, SCORE has announced plans to make each day of the two-day Laughlin event separate race events for purposes of championship points, prize money and trophies.  Further, SCORE also announced that after five years of running a shorter course loop, the course for the 2012 Laughlin event will be expanded to the longer route that crosses the Needles Highway.

“SCORE will maintain a five-race series and we want all of our great racers to celebrate with us at the 45th anniversary of the Tecate SCORE Baja 1000.  We want to give our racers ample time to prepare for the massive undertaking and unique challenge of a peninsula run format, so eliminating the September race seemed to be the best option.” said Sal Fish, SCORE CEO/President.
The SCORE Laughlin Desert Challenge will once again be held on the Martin Luther King birthday weekend which in 2012 will be January 13-15.

“SCORE International is the premier desert racing organization in the world and Las Vegas Events has a great working relationship with Sal Fish and his dedicated team,” commented Pat Christenson, president of Las Vegas Events, the entity which will sponsor the January two-race format in Laughlin.

The Laughlin event will include course practice sessions and qualifying for SCORE Trophy Truck on Friday followed by two separate and independent races, the first on Saturday and the second on Sunday.  There will not be a Laughlin Leap competition prior to the race.  While there will be a spectator area adjacent to the start/finish line, there will not be grandstand seating. Spectator admission will be free on Friday, Saturday and Sunday.

The SCORE Desert Series, which features 36 Pro and 6 Sportsman classes for cars, trucks, buggies, motorcycles and ATVs, will kick off January 13-15 with the 18th Annual SCORE Laughlin Desert Challenge in the Southern Nevada resort city of Laughlin on the banks of the Colorado River.  The season will conclude November 14-17 with the 45th Tecate SCORE Baja 1000, the granddaddy of all desert races, which will start in Ensenada, Baja California and finish in La Paz, Baja California Sur, Mexico.

The 2012 SCORE Desert Series will again start with the most unique and the shortest race of the season and finish with the oldest and most recognized desert race in the world.  After starting the season in Laughlin, 90 miles south of Las Vegas, it will conclude with the Tecate SCORE Baja 1000, which is always a unique and memorable special race.

Rounds 3 and 4 of the 2012 SCORE Desert Series will both be held in Mexico. The 26th MasterCraft Safety Tecate SCORE San Felipe 250 is set for March 9-11 in San Felipe, followed by the vastly popular 44th Tecate SCORE Baja 500, June 1-3, in Ensenada.

SCORE International, founded in 1973 by the late Mickey Thompson and headed by Sal Fish since 1974, continues today as the premier sanctioning body in the sport of desert racing. SCORE races feature 25 Pro and 3 Sportsman classes for cars and trucks in the U.S. with 11 Pro and 3 Sportsman classes for motorcycles and ATVs competing at the Mexico races.

Tecate Beer is the title sponsor of the upcoming 44th annual Tecate SCORE Baja 1000.

Official Sponsors of the SCORE Desert Series are:
-BFGoodrich Tires, Official Tire
-Volkswagen of America, Official Vehicle
-Sunoco Race Fuels, Official Race Fuel
-Slime, Official Tire Sealant
-Symons Ambulance Company, Official Ambulance
-Bilstein, Official Shock Absorber
-Instant Mexico Auto Insurance, Official Mexican Auto Insurance

Official Sponsors of the SCORE Baja 1000 are:
-Coca-Cola, Official Soft Drink
-Volaris Airlines, Official Airline
-Lightforce Performance Lighting, Official Driving Light

Additional SCORE Sponsors are – Proturismo Ensenada, Baja California Secretary of Tourism, COTUCO Mexicali/San Felipe, Las Vegas Events, Blue C Advertising, SignPros, PCI Race Radios, McKenzie’s Performance Products and Advanced Color Graphics.

For more information regarding the series, contact SCORE at its Los Angeles headquarters 818.225.8402 or visit the official website of the 2012 SCORE Desert Series at www.score-international.com.

2012 SCORE Desert Series – Schedule of Events

18th SCORE Laughlin Desert Challenge (two races)
January 13-15 – Laughlin, Nevada

26th MasterCraft Safety Tecate SCORE San Felipe 250
March 9-11 – San Felipe, Baja California, Mexico

44th Tecate SCORE Baja 500
June 1-3 – Ensenada, Baja California, Mexico

45th Tecate SCORE Baja 1000
November 14-17 – Ensenada To La Paz Peninsula Run

SCORE Awards Night
December 8 – Location To Be Determined