In his first public statement since being disqualified from the San Felipe 250, Toby Price feels the proof that’s publicly available—particularly the video that has since gone viral—is flimsy, but fully understands SCORE’s Competition Review Board would not take such an investigation lightly and accepts the verdict.

In the meantime, he intends to take a hiatus from desert racing.

He stated on Monday night:

The past couple of days have been the toughest of my career, which spans over 20 years.
I have been compliant with all investigations both external to the team and internal to the team.

I am aware of the decision of Brent Bauman the team navigator to resign and respect him for that course of action which goes a long way towards taking some responsibility for the outcome off the back of the CRB’s decision.

There are times in life when circumstances require significant action and this is one of those circumstances. The video that is circulating does not provide evidence of me placing any rocks, the witness statement does not provide evidence of me making any rock placement and the conversations at the site where the video was taken were not with me except for me telling a girl I was ok when asked and that I was clearing a new line.

That being said the CRB has made its decision and I am obviously treating this as final and respect the process that they went through to get to it. I have the highest respect for SCORE International and for the people of the Baja Peninsula that provide their cooperation to the event. The safety of everyone competing and spectating in all forms of motorsport should be of paramount consideration.

This is obviously not how I expected the San Felipe 250 to go but it is how it ended up. Despite the fact that I believe a higher standard of proof should be used here given the consequences, I am going to fully respect the decision of the CRB and the court of public opinion.

I will be taking some time off from desert racing and I don’t take this decision lightly given the significant damage. I will reassess the position with the team and whether I will be competing in the series in the near future.

In the meantime, I want to thank Paul for the significant investment he and his family have not only put into this team but also into my career. Paul was obviously not in any way involved in this interaction and has no knowledge it was occurring at the time, as he was located hours away and should not be portrayed negatively.

Price and Paul Weel, with Bauman as co-driver, had finished the San Felipe 250 eighth in Trophy Truck and 17th overall. The disqualification was handed down by the CRB on Sunday, which SCORE then backed the following day.

Bauman resigned from Team Australia hours before Price’s statement. Weel has been leading an internal investigation of the team in the wake of the DSQ.

Team Australia was formed in 2022 and won the Baja 500 in 2024. While he’s a two-time Dakar Rally winner and Finke Desert Race legend, Price had been fully committed to SCORE as the only series where he has a stable ride. He placed eighth in this year’s Dakar with Toyota Gazoo Racing, though that was a one-off deal and Akira Miura has since taken his spot.

Featured image credit: Art Eugenio / Red Bull Content Pool