Gaughan Exits Laughlin SCORE Event Early On Day 1

A broken transmission relegated Brendan Gaughan and co-pilot Billy Holbrook to an early exit from the Class 1 race at the Laughlin Desert Challenge on Saturday afternoon.

Despite the mechanical problems, Gaughan was pleased with his Kreger Fab buggy’s performance in its second-ever off-road race.

“I’ve never had an off-road race car like this,” Gaughan said. “This buggy is unreal fast, and once we can get our issues with this transmission part fixed, we’re going to be tough.”

Gaughan started 43rd, but he was able to pass 11 cars on his first lap of the six-mile loop. The transmission failed on Gaughan’s second lap.

“It’s the same piece we’ve had problems with a couple of different times this year,” Gaughan said. “It’s not going to be better until we get the new piece.

“So, I’m just going to have to tone it down a little bit on the track until then.”

Gaughan and Holbrook will tackle the desert course again Sunday afternoon. This time, Gaughan has a different game plan that he hopes will yield better results.

“I’m going to have to back down to make sure that I finish the race,” Gaughan said. “If I can finish, then that’s good for the points and good for the championship – because I plan to run all six SCORE races and challenge for the title this year.

“This car can pass 13 cars in one lap. If I can focus on passing six cars a lap, the math says I can still win. And that’s going to have to be my game plan.”