Jagged X introduced an all-new Polaris RZR S desert race car in May 2009 as the team pursued its third consecutive Best in the Desert UTV championship.
The new machine represented an important transition for Jagged X. After winning the 2007 and 2008 BITD championships with the original Polaris RZR platform, the team moved to the wider and more capable Polaris RZR S 800 for the heart of the 2009 season.
A New RZR S Race Car for Jagged X
Jagged X built the new race car around the recently introduced RZR S platform. Compared with the original 50-inch RZR, the production RZR S featured a 60.5-inch stance, 12 inches of suspension travel and a 55-horsepower twin-cylinder engine.
Those changes made the RZR S a better starting point for high-speed desert competition. Jagged X combined the new platform with a purpose-built safety structure, racing components and the team’s extensive experience developing early Polaris RZR race vehicles.
The car debuted at the Best in the Desert Blue Water Grand Prix in Parker, Arizona, in May 2009.
Jagged X Polaris RZR S Desert Race Car
Companies Behind the 2009 Jagged X RZR S
The project brought together a large group of companies involved in early UTV desert racing. Contributors included:
- Polaris Industries
- S&S Off Road Performance
- CR Designs
- OMF Performance
- MTA
- Simpson
- Vision X Off Road Lighting
- Tire Balls
- Fullbore Innovations
- Affordable Powder Coat
- ATL Fuel Cells
- Trophy Engineering
- Robby Gordon Off Road
Jagged X Polaris RZR S Desert Race Car
The RZR S Became a Championship Winner
The new RZR S ultimately played a major role in another successful season for Jagged X. Brandon Schueler and the team won the UTV class at the 2009 Vegas to Reno race and followed it with a victory at the Silver State 300.
Jagged X completed the season with second-place finishes at the Primm Grand Prix and Henderson Fabtech Desert Classic, securing its third consecutive Best in the Desert championship.
The 2009 RZR S race car illustrates how quickly UTV competition was evolving. Jagged X had won the inaugural BITD UTV championship with the original RZR only two years earlier, but the wider RZR S gave the team a more capable platform for the speed and punishment of desert racing.
Jagged X continued racing Polaris vehicles for years afterward and became one of the foundational teams in the history of Polaris RZR factory racing. The team’s early development work also helped demonstrate the competition potential that would shape later generations of the Polaris RZR.
Originally published May 13, 2009. Updated with additional historical context and the results of Jagged X’s 2009 championship season.
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