Can-Am factory racer Phil Blurton won the 2020 Best In The Desert (BITD) UTV Turbo class opener in Parker, Ariz., Blurton, a two-time BITD Turbo class champion, kicked off the season with a convincing win behind the wheel of his No Limit RD-prepped turbocharged Can-Am Maverick X3 side-by-side.
Can-Am racer Austin Weiland joined Blurton on the podium to give Can-Am a 1-2 finish to start the year. Can-Am also won the UTV Unlimited (Michael Isom) and UTV Production Turbo Short Course (Beau Judge) events.
Blurton came into the new racing season more determined than ever. One reason is the Californian wanted to make amends for the DNF he suffered to end the season last year, which ended his chase for three straight championships. Another was that the Parker 250 course has never been too kind to him, so a victory was his objective. With a total three-lap time of 04:34:52.895, Blurton won the 2020 BITD opener, setting his 2020 plan into motion.
“We made it, finally. This track has haunted us the last two years,” said Blurton on the BITD podium. “The last race of last-season was pretty much a worse-case scenario. But it made us come back hungrier here and try to go for the triple crown. Hopefully we can get this championship. WeÂ’re off to a good start.”
Can-Am driver Austin Weiland, who ended 2019 in fifth place overall, secured the runner-up spot about a minute back of Blurton in his own Maverick X3. His podium run gave Can-Am a solid 1-2 finish in the UTV Turbo class.
Derek and Jason Murray had a great race going and even carried the lead into lap three. However, a mechanical issue forced them to go at a slower pace on the final lap and they had to settle for fifth place.
Mobbin’ Racing Can-Am Maverick X3 pilot Michael Isom won his first event in 2020 to start the defense of his 2019 UTV Unlimited class championship. Can-Am racers actually took the top seven spots in the UTV Unlimited ranks and the also the runner-up finish in the UTV Rally class.
No Limit Rd Can-Am racer Beau Judge, who is the co-pilot for Blurton in UTV Turbo class, began the weekend winning the UTV Production Turbo Short Course class by more than three minutes Friday evening.
The next BITD action for Can-Am racers is the two-day Laughlin Desert Classic, held Feb. 20-23, in Laughlin, Nev.
