{{Short description|American desert off-road race}} {{for|the album by the Australian rock band Ammonia|Mint 400 (album)}}
{{Infobox motor race | Race title = Mint 400 | Logo = Mint 400 logo.png | Location = Primm, Nevada, United States | Sponsor = BFGoodrich Tires | First race = 1968 | Distance = {{convert|400|mi|km|abbr=on}} | Surface = Desert off-road }}
The '''Mint 400''' is an annual American desert off-road race held in Nevada, near Las Vegas. First run in 1968 as a promotional event for The Mint Hotel and Casino, it became known as "The Great American Off-Road Race".<ref name="history">{{cite web |title=History of The Mint 400 |url=https://themint400.com/history/ |website=The Mint 400 |access-date=1 June 2026}}</ref>
The event includes multiple off-road vehicle categories, including motorcycles, UTVs, buggies, cars and trucks. After a long hiatus following the late 1980s, the race was revived in 2008 and later became part of modern desert-racing series competition.<ref name="history" />
==History== The Mint 400 was created in 1968 by Norm Johnson, promotions director of The Mint Hotel and Casino. It began as a public-relations event connected to the hotel, but quickly developed into a major desert race.<ref name="history" /> The first race, officially called the "Mint '400' Del Webb Desert Rally", sent more than 100 vehicles across roughly {{convert|400|mi|km}} of desert, with the route beginning and ending at The Mint Hotel in Las Vegas.<ref>{{cite news |title=Mint Names Starter For Desert Rally |work=Las Vegas Review-Journal |date=25 February 1968}}</ref>
During the 1970s and 1980s, the race attracted competitors from several branches of motorsport, as well as celebrities from film, television and entertainment.<ref name="history" /> Early notable competitors included Parnelli Jones, Al Unser, Rick Mears, Rodger Ward, Mickey Thompson, Ivan Stewart, Walker Evans, Rod Hall, James Garner and Steve McQueen.<ref name="history" />
The future of the race became uncertain after the sale of The Mint Hotel. The event continued into the late 1980s, including the 1989 Binion's Nissan Mint 400, but the Mint 400 name then fell inactive for nearly two decades.<ref>{{cite news |last=Glick |first=Shav |title=Once Again, Mint 400 Will Be a Battle for Survival |url=https://www.latimes.com/archives/la-xpm-1989-04-20-sp-2432-story.html |work=Los Angeles Times |date=20 April 1989 |access-date=1 June 2026}}</ref><ref name="history" />
The race was revived in 2008 with the support of General Tire and the Southern Nevada Off-Road Enthusiasts.<ref name="history" /> In 2011, the Martelli Brothers acquired the event and formed a partnership with Casey Folks and Best in the Desert for the 2012 race.<ref>{{cite press release |title=Mad Media & Best in The Desert to Produce the Greatest Off-Road Race in the World - The Legendary Mint 400 |url=https://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/mad-media--best-in-the-desert-to-produce-the-greatest-off-road-race-in-the-world---the-legendary-mint-400-135530103.html |publisher=PR Newswire |date=13 December 2011 |access-date=1 June 2026}}</ref> The partnership with Best in the Desert ended after the 2019 season, with the Mint 400 operated independently from 2020.<ref>{{cite web |last=Bowe |first=Anthony |title=The Mint 400 Ends Partnership with Best in the Desert |url=https://theshopmag.com/news/mint-400-ends-partnership-best-desert/ |website=The Shop |date=30 April 2019 |access-date=1 June 2026}}</ref>
In 2023, the Martelli Brothers formed Unlimited Off-Road Racing, whose events included the Mint 400, the California 300 and the Parker 400.<ref>{{cite web |title=About UNLTD Off-Road Racing |url=https://unlimitedoffroadracing.com/about/ |website=UNLTD Off-Road Racing |access-date=1 June 2026}}</ref> In 2025, Unlimited Off-Road Racing and Best in the Desert announced the formation of the American Off-Road Racing Championship.<ref>{{cite web |title=Best In The Desert and Unlimited Off-Road Racing Unify to Form the American Off-Road Racing Championship |url=https://themint400.com/news/best-in-the-desert-and-unlimited-off-road-racing-unify-to-form-the-american-off-road-racing-championship/ |website=The Mint 400 |date=16 August 2025 |access-date=1 June 2026}}</ref>
==Format and classes== The modern Mint 400 is run over a desert course of roughly {{convert|400|mi|km|abbr=on}} and includes separate races for different vehicle categories. Current classes include unlimited trucks, limited trucks, open-wheel desert cars, UTVs, stock-production vehicles, vintage vehicles, motorcycles, youth classes and other specialty divisions.<ref>{{cite web |title=UNLTD Off-Road Racing Classes |url=https://unlimitedoffroadracing.com/classes/ |website=UNLTD Off-Road Racing |access-date=1 June 2026}}</ref>
==Winners==
===Modern overall four-wheel winners=== The following table lists overall four-wheel winners since the race was revived in 2008.
{| class="wikitable sortable" ! Year !! Winner |- | 2008 || Brian Collins and Chuck Hovey |- | 2009 || Andy McMillin |- | 2010 || Roger Norman |- | 2011 || B. J. Baldwin |- | 2012 || Robby Gordon |- | 2013 || Bryce Menzies |- | 2014 || Steve Sourapas and Andy McMillin |- | 2015 || Justin Lofton |- | 2016 || Justin Lofton |- | 2017 || Rob MacCachren |- | 2018 || Bryce Menzies |- | 2019 || Justin Lofton |- | 2020 || Luke McMillin and Jason Duncan |- | 2021 || Rob MacCachren and Cayden MacCachren |- | 2022 || Kyle Jergensen and Shawn Shanks |- | 2023 || Eric Hardin and Andrew Myers |- | 2024 || Adam Householder and Trevor Ellingham |- | 2025 || Adam Householder and Trevor Ellingham<ref>{{cite web |title=BFGoodrich Racing rides high at 2025 Mint 400 |url=https://news.bfgoodrichtires.com/bfgoodrich-racing-rides-high-at-2025-mint-400/ |website=BFGoodrich North America Newsroom |date=10 March 2025 |access-date=1 June 2026}}</ref> |- | 2026 || Kyle Jergensen and Shawn Shanks<ref>{{cite web |title=BFGoodrich Racing conquers 2026 Mint 400 |url=https://news.bfgoodrichtires.com/bfgoodrich-racing-conquers-2026-mint-400/ |website=BFGoodrich North America Newsroom |date=12 March 2026 |access-date=1 June 2026}}</ref> |}
===Motorcycle winners=== Motorcycles were part of the early Mint 400 and returned in the modern era.
{| class="wikitable sortable" ! Year !! Winner |- | 1968 || J. N. Roberts and Gunnar Lindstrom<ref>{{cite web |last=Orr |first=Ed |title=Mint 400 |url=https://magazine.cycleworld.com/article/1968/6/1/mint-400 |work=Cycle World |date=1 June 1968 |access-date=23 July 2024}}</ref> |- | 1969 || Mike Patrick and Phil Bowers<ref>{{cite web |last=Rusz |first=Joe |title=The Mint 400 |url=https://magazine.cycleworld.com/article/1969/6/1/the-mint-400 |work=Cycle World |date=1 June 1969 |access-date=23 July 2024}}</ref> |- | 1970 || Mike Patrick and Phil Bowers<ref>{{cite web |last=Farnsworth |first=Bryon |title=The Mint 400, '70 Style |url=https://magazine.cycleworld.com/article/1970/6/1/the-mint-400-70-style |work=Cycle World |date=1 June 1970 |access-date=23 July 2024}}</ref> |- | 1971 || J. N. Roberts and Max Switzer<ref>{{cite web |last=Sanford |first=Bob |title=The Mint 400 |url=https://magazine.cycleworld.com/article/1971/7/1/the-mint-400 |work=Cycle World |date=1 July 1971 |access-date=23 July 2024}}</ref> |- | 1972 || Rolf Tibblin and Bob Grossi<ref>{{cite web |title=Archives Column: The Mint 400 - 1972 |url=https://www.cyclenews.com/2024/05/article/archives-column-the-mint-400-1972/ |website=Cycle News |access-date=22 July 2024}}</ref> |- | 1973 || Rolf Tibblin and Mitch Mayes<ref>{{cite web |last=Nicholls |first=B. R. |title=Mint 400 |url=https://magazine.cycleworld.com/article/1973/7/1/mint400 |work=Cycle World |date=1 July 1973 |access-date=7 July 2024}}</ref> |- | 1974 || No race |- | 1975 || Mark Mason and Jack Johnson<ref name="rd-early">{{cite web |title=The Mint 400: 1968 to 1976 |url=https://www.race-dezert.com/home/off-road-racer-mint-400-1968-1976-120388.html |website=Race-Dezert |access-date=30 July 2024}}</ref> |- | 1976 || Rolf Tibblin and Jack Johnson<ref name="rd-early" /> |- | 2019 || Ricky Brabec and Kendall Norman<ref name="results">{{cite web |title=Results |url=https://themint400.com/results/ |website=The Mint 400 |access-date=1 June 2026}}</ref> |- | 2022 || Dalton Shirey and David Kamo<ref name="results" /> |- | 2023 || Dalton Shirey<ref name="results" /> |- | 2024 || Preston Campbell<ref name="results" /> |- | 2026 || Ciaran Naran and Lyndon Snodgrass<ref>{{cite web |title=Ciaran Naran, Lyndon Snodgrass Win 2026 BFGoodrich Tires Mint 400 Motorcycle Race |url=https://themint400.com/news/ciaran-naran-lyndon-snodgrass-win-2026-bfgoodrich-tires-mint-400-motorcycle-race/ |website=The Mint 400 |date=8 March 2026 |access-date=1 June 2026}}</ref> |}
==Notable entrants== The Mint 400 has attracted competitors from several areas of motorsport and entertainment. Notable entrants have included Parnelli Jones, Al Unser, Rick Mears, Rodger Ward, Mickey Thompson, Ivan Stewart, Walker Evans, Rod Hall, James Garner, Steve McQueen, Mort Sahl, Gordon Cooper and Ted Nugent.<ref name="history" /> Stone Cold Steve Austin served as grand marshal of the 2025 race and competed in the UTV class.<ref>{{cite web |title=“Stone Cold” Steve Austin to be Grand Marshal of the 2025 BFGoodrich Tires Mint 400 |url=https://themint400.com/news/stone-cold-steve-austin-to-be-grand-marshal-of-the-2025-bfgoodrich-tires-mint-400/ |website=The Mint 400 |date=24 February 2025 |access-date=1 June 2026}}</ref>
==In popular culture== The Mint 400 is closely associated with Hunter S. Thompson's ''Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas'', which began with Thompson's assignment to cover the 1971 race. The race also appears in the 1998 film adaptation, ''Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas''.<ref>{{cite web |title=Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas |url=https://www.britannica.com/topic/Fear-and-Loathing-in-Las-Vegas-by-Thompson |website=Encyclopaedia Britannica |access-date=1 June 2026}}</ref>
==References== {{reflist|colwidth=35em}}
==External links==
* {{Official website|https://themint400.com/}} * [https://themint400.com/results/ Official results]
{{Off-road racing}}
Category:Motorsport in Las Vegas Category:Rally raid races Category:Motorcycle races Category:Recurring sporting events established in 1968 Category:1968 establishments in Nevada Category:Annual sporting events in the United States