BEST IN THE DESERT Pahrump Nugget 250 December 3, 2016

“It was an honor, by far,” said Dale Sims. “There was no way I could measure up to his driving ability so I went out to get the car finished. I told him I wasn’t going to break any speed records but I would get the car to finish. For him, this is his world. He lives every day of his life about racing. He works 24-7 at times to get this car where it is. I am just super proud of him.”

Branden Sims won the BITD Turbo UTV Championship in a the 2 seat version on the Polaris RZR Turbo

Sims came out atop a late-season battle with the Murrays to clinch the championship. The Murrays, driving Can-Am’s new X3, did their best to win the race, but a mechanical issue late in the race slowed them and they finished second.

“We had a battle with the Murrays all year and we beat that new X3, so that’s all that matters,” said Sims. “I’ve had consistent good races and that’s what it comes down to. After I got back from my accident, we’ve had a consistent season. We’ve podiumed ever race since then and won the Baja 1000 a week and half ago. It’s been a phenomenal season. The track was rough. It had miles of dirt road silt. It was a lot of work. It beat me and it was rough.”

The Murrays debuted Can-Am’s new race-ready X3 with a victory earlier this year. They had a great run going, but a broken brake caliper toward the end of the race handed them second in the race, and they finished second in the championship.

Can-Am / ITP's Derek & Jason Murray finished the season 2nd in the Turbo Championship with a 2nd place finish at the Pahrump 250

“We were a couple of minutes off, but this Can-Am X3 ran awesome,” said Derek Murray. “We are running a bone stock suspension and drive train and it can compete with the rest of them. We left nothing on the course and another great season is in the books. Can-Am has made an amazing machine.”

Jacob Carver overcame mechanical issues to finish third. Carver has had little issues all season hold him back, so it was nice to finish the season on the podium.

Jacob Carver secured the third spot at the Pahrump 250 & rounded out the top five in the BITD Turbo UTV Championship

“It was a really rough day for us, but if a third-place finish is a rough day, we’ll take it,” said Carver. “The first few races of the season were really rough us, but we finished out the season with four podiums. I can’t complain too much. Next year, I’ll be racing all of BITD, the Baja 500 and the Baja 1000.”

Tomas Sallvin finished fourth in Cognito’s new Turbo RZR, which Lambert will be making the switch to in 2017.

Tomas Sallvin takes Fourth at BITD Pahrump Nugget 250

“This is our third race, so we just wanted to have a clean run and finish,” said Sallvin. “We got our car really dialed in. This is Justin’s new baby, and it’s really nice to build his new vehicle. It’s fun working with such a talented guy. I grew up doing this. We ran with a couple of teams and now we’re running with Cognito and we’re stoked.”