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Ultra4 Racing is no slouch when it comes to putting on great races. Their countless races all across the United States and, of course, the world renowned King Of The Hammers (KOH), Ultra4 Racing has become one of the top sanctions in off-road racing. The newest race in their yearly line up will continue their dominance.
The inaugural Ultra4Â El Rey de Las Bajas was held outside San Felipe, Baja, Mexico on May 18, 2019. The race was a 22-mile circuit that covered the range of off-road driving conditions. Long high-speed desert sections, rock washes, and ridges as well as the San Felipe Whoops. Also included in the course was a rock bed that would rival any other out there. The mile-long, flat and wide rock bed was loaded full of house and vehicle sized boulders. Ultra4 even stated that is was “perhaps the single coolest rock trail we have ever raced.”
Over 70 teams qualified in the days before the race, split up between the five race classes: 4600, UTV, 4800, 4500 and 4400. The top qualifiers put down the fastest laps times and won the KMC Wheels Hard Charger Awards.
| Race Class | Top Qualifier |
| Spidertrax Off-Road 4600 Stock Class | Josh Atteberry |
| Can-Am Off-Road UTV Class | Scott LeSage |
| Branik Motorsports 4800 Legends Class | Bailey Cole |
| Yukon Gear & Axle 4500 Stock-Modified Class | Dan Fresh |
| Ultra4 4400 Class | Bailey Campbell |
On race day, racers were split into two sections. 4600 and UTVs took off the line at 8 am, with Scott LeSage and Loren Healy leading the charge. The second group was 4800, 4500 and 4400 classes. Bailey Campbell and Paul Horschel were the first to leave the line around 12 pm.
The grueling race took its toll. Nine racers were unable to finish. The big guns, the 4400 class, got the most laps in, most of them finishing five laps within five hours. Paul Morschel and his team Horschel Motorsports took the checkered flag with the fastest time, 3 hours and 18 minutes. Shannon Campbell was hot on his heels, however, with a finishing time just over a minute behind. Bailey Campbell rounded out the Top 3 with a finishing time of 3 hours and 13 minutes.
Finishing Results:
| Race Class | 1st Place Finisher | Laps | Time |
| Spidertrax Off-Road 4600 Stock Class | Josh Atteberry | 3 | 1:56:30 |
| Can-Am Off-Road UTV Class | Chayse Caprara | 3 | 2:13:34 |
| Branik Motorsports 4800 Legends Class | Dan Fresh | 4 | 3:20:15 |
| Yukon Gear & Axle 4500 Stock-Modified Class | Jeremy Jones | 4 | 3:14:54 |
| Ultra4 4400 Class | Paul Horschel | 5 | 3:08:19 |
The Ultra4 El Rey de Las Bajas has been in the making for about five years. At that time, the King Of the Hammers race had a shaky future due to land-use issues. Fortunately, KOH was able to live on and thrive, paving the way further for another successful event to be added.
Expect next year’s El Rey de Las Baja to be even bigger!
All images courtesy of Ultra4 Racing.
