After a somewhat disappointing DNF at least year’s Baja 1000, the Ford Bronco R Race Prototype was back this weekend for another shot at one of the world’s most grueling races. And while it didn’t win its class, the Bronco R did manage to not only finish the race but also score a second-place class finish and place 70th overall out of 99 vehicles that managed to complete the course.
The Ford Bronco R Race Prototype, piloted by Cameron Steele, Shelby Hall, and a team of veteran Ford off-road racers including co-drivers Johnny Campbell, Curt LeDuc, and Jason Scherer, finished the 53rd SCORE-International Baja 1000 in Class 2 in just over 32 hours.
“When Bronco returned we said it would follow in the legacy of the first-generation Broncos that forever changed the off-road landscape – and today’s finish demonstrates we’re continuing the ‘Built Wild’ pedigree of Bronco,” said Mark Rushbrook, global director, Ford Performance motorsports.
Powered by a fully stock Ford 2.7L EcoBoost V6 and Ford 10-speed SelectShift automatic transmission, the Bronco R Race Prototype serves as a testbed for Bronco Built Wild Extreme Testing durability regimen and for the final the Baja Mode calibrations for the Terrain Management System with G.O.A.T. Modes on the production versions.
A pre-production 2021 Ford Bronco two-door Outer Banks equipped with the Sasquatch off-road Package also made its first appearance in the Baja Mexico desert.
The successful finish underscores the Bronco brand’s performance legacy at Baja, which includes the first-ever overall production 4×4 class win in the 1969 Baja 1000 – a feat no other manufacturer has accomplished since.
Overall, the first-generation Broncos claimed five Baja 1000 class wins (1967, two in 1969, 1971, and 1972) and two overall Baja 500 victories in 1970 and 1973. Later model year Broncos (1978-95) continued the legendary winning streak with nine Baja 500 Class 3 wins from 2004 to 2015 and 15 Baja 1000 Class 3 wins between 2002 to 2019.
Ford is the Official Truck and SUV of SCORE-International Off-Road Racing and the lead sponsor of the SCORE World Desert Challenge Series, which includes the 2019-22 SCORE Baja 1000 races. Ford is also the official vehicle of the Ultra4 King of the Hammers competition.
We’ll have much more on the Bronco R soon, so be sure and subscribe to Ford Authority for more Ford Bronco news and around-the-clock Ford news coverage.
Comments
Maybe Ford should have put a 5.0 Coyote V8 with 480hp in the Bronco prototype this year. After all it is a race…
If you ain’t first you’re last. Only true because there was only one other vehicle in the broncos class and it finished with a time 5 hours shorter than the bronco. I’d like to see fully stock broncos in the badlands and wild track trims complete the course. Toyota did the same thing with the 4 runner and tacoma in 2010
Last year the Bronco R, a one off, hand built racing machine, failed to finish, a Stock Bronco, if any are ever actually built (none exist at this point in time), wouldn’t make it. Remember, Stock, as you can order from the dealer-with no more mods than a real roll cage, and required safety equipment. Open Hoods prior to race, allow for photos, and after race-for those that finish.
You seem so sure the stock bronco wouldn’t make it. Last year, another vehicle rolled over and fell on top of the bronco. Besides, toyota had entered bone stock vehicles that have completed the entire course. If a stock bronco came do what a stock 4 runner or tacoma can do, then the new bronco isn’t really going to be king of offroad.
The winner had a V8 in it. Clearly you don’t know much about the Baja 1000, it is an endurance race, for the entire race, a Drag Race in parts of the course, and rocks and hills that require slow Off road Drive skills and a vehicle that is up to the task. With your way of thinking, maybe Ford should have gone with the little 2.3 liter ecoboost. The Bronco R, is a hand built, from the Ground-up, racing machine-NOT a production Bronco, and can not be compared to any production Ford.
I would love to see the production class-as you can order from a dealership, run by all the mfgs. If for example you cannot order a HD engine oil-cooler, it can not be run etc. I wish Ford would have run the 2.3 liter with their 7sp manual, as they say will be available on the production Broncos (once they actually start being produced mid 2021). As the vast majority of Broncos sold (once they are actually produced) will not be seeing any off road work, and God forbid Mud, for many years, this may be the only place we’ll be able to see what the factory vehicles are capable of. I know they’ll be good at mall crawling, but in the off road world, I don’t think we’ll see all that many on the trails, for many years to come.