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Baja 1000 Results 2018: Race Winners, Video Highlights and More
November 18, 2018
After finishing second in last year's race, Cameron Steele was named the official winner of the 2018 Baja 1000 on Sunday.
Steele, who qualified in 13th, was second to cross the line in the Trophy Truck category behind four-time Baja 1000 winner Rob MacCachren but claimed the crown after MacCachren was hit by time penalties for speeding and an unsafe, illegal pass on a highway.
Steele was initially named as the unofficial winner of the race while his rival appealed the sanctions, but upon review, Score International upheld them to give Steele his first Baja 1000 victory in what was the 51st edition of the prestigious race.
Steele was also hit with a penalty for speeding of three minutes, 27 seconds, but he still finished ahead of Andy McMillin and MacCachren with a final time of 16:24:02, per Score International's official website.
Race spring manufacturer Eibach congratulated him and his team:
At the halfway point, Larry Connor's team held the lead ahead of MacCachren. The vehicles of Bryce Menzies, McMillin and Robby Gordon separated the latter from Steele, who was sixth at the time.
A broken spindle in the final 100 miles put paid to Connor's hopes, however, while Menzies and McMillin also encountered some issues that paved the way for MacCachren and Steele to cross the line in first and second, respectively.
Steele, who was inducted into the Off-Road Motorsports Hall of Fame in July, only earned his first overall victory in September, when he won the Tijuana Score Desert Challenge.
Meanwhile, Alexander Rossi—who won the Indy 500 in 2016—secured a podium finish in the Class 7 category.
Racing driver Tim Coronel shared a near-miss the American had with an oncoming SUV during the race:
The incident took place just 33 miles in near Ojos Negros.
The 807-mile race, which started and ended in Ensenada, Baja California, Mexico, was entered by 296 vehicles driven by teams from 41 U.S. states and 18 countries.