Las Vegas Sun

March 28, 2024

TAKE FIVE: SCORE LAS VEGAS TERRIBLE’S CUP III

WHAT: SCORE Las Vegas Terrible's Cup III

WHEN: Spectator gates open at 5 p.m. Friday and Saturday; racing begins at 7 both days.

WHERE: Las Vegas Motor Speedway dirt track

TICKETS: $15 to $30. Tickets available at the track, at www.unlvtickets.com or at 739-3267.

ON THE WEB: www.scorelasvegas.com

Say what you want about the quality of racing during the annual NASCAR weekend at Las Vegas Motor Speedway, the Champ Car street race downtown or the weekly short-track racing at the speedway, but it can't touch the action this weekend at its dirt track.

The monstrous SCORE Trophy Trucks and the moon rover-like buggies that take on the wide-open deserts of Southern Nevada and Mexico will be moving into the confines of a stadium for the third annual SCORE Las Vegas Terrible's Cup.

If you think the 800-horsepower Trophy Trucks - purpose-built full-size trucks designed to handle the rigors of such races as the Baja 1000 are ill-suited for a narrow 1.5-mile dirt road course, you're right. And that's exactly why the Terrible's Cup has packed the 8,000-seat speedway dirt track for the main events each of the past two years.

1. More at stake

The first two editions of the Las Vegas Terrible's Cup were non points events, but SCORE International, the sanctioning body, has made this year's race a points-paying race for six classes including the featured SCORE Trophy Trucks. Other classes competing for points toward the 2007 SCORE Desert Series season championship are the unlimited SCORE Class 1 open-wheel desert race cars, Class 1-2/1600, Class 10, SCORE Lite and the mini-trucks of Class 7.

2. Back to the future

The inaugural Terrible's Cup in 2005 was the first short-course stadium race held in Las Vegas since the now-defunct Mickey Thompson Stadium Series at Sam Boyd Stadium in October 1994 a race that featured future NASCAR stars Robby Gordon and Jimmie Johnson and was won by off-road legend Ivan Stewart. This is the only stadium-style event on the six-race SCORE Desert Series schedule.

3. Familiar faces

Robby Gordon, who won last year's SCORE Trophy Truck main event, has withdrawn from this year's race, but there will be plenty of recognizable names among the 95 entries. Las Vegas brothers Ed, Tim and Troy Herbst will be competing in the event that is sponsored by their family business, as will local casino executives Bobby Baldwin (MGM Mirage Resorts) and Bill McBeath (Bellagio). Television personalities Cameron Steele and Jesse James also are expected to race this weekend.

4. Class domination

Ed and Tim Herbst of Las Vegas, who co-drive the No. 19 Terrible Herbst Motorsports Ford F-150 in the featured Trophy Truck class, form the most successful team in the history of the class with 11 race wins and four season championships. In addition to their duties in the Trophy Truck, the brothers plan to enter separate vehicles in Class 1-2/1600 this weekend.

5. Off-track action

In addition to racing Friday and Saturday nights, many of the racers and their vehicles will be at the SCORE Las Vegas Pit Stop under the Fremont Street Experience canopy from 6 to 9 p.m. Thursday. The event will include the $10,000 Terrible's Pit Crew Challenge for Trophy Trucks teams. On Friday and Saturday nights at the track, a fireworks display will be presented during the second intermission.

archive