Dean Bulloch and the crew from D&P Performance in Cedar City, Utah, built this one-of-a-kind Wildcat “Super” Sport to tackle monster rock crawling events like the King of the Hammers competition.
Bulloch (above) and co-driver Karl Mumford are wily veterans of off-road racing, having competed in most of the biggest and prestigious desert events over the past few decades. With a racing career that includes NHRA drag racing, snowmobile racing, motocross and more, Bulloch is one of those rare birds who truly has done it all. But more than just a pilot, Bulloch has the mind of an engineer and the skills of a machinist. Hence his latest creation.
D&P Performance is an Arctic Cat dealership with close ties to the factory. For this project, Bulloch shoehorned a 9000-Series 998cc triple turbo snowmobile engine into the Wildcat Sport chassis. With more than 200-hp on tap (nearly three-times the power of the stock Sport), the D&P Super Sport will have the kahunas to match nearly any comparable UTV.
When it comes to crawling, Bulloch prefers A-arm suspensions over trailing-arm designs because they’re less likely to hang-up or catch rocks. A custom double A-arm front sees the shocks mounted on the lower A-arm instead of the upper arm, enabling a more upright shock position and increased shock travel (in relation to wheel travel).
Out back, the custom double A-arm design (with swaybar) is beefed up and burly. Massive 2.5-in. Elka Stage 5 shocks provide the damping on both ends.
Suspension travel is 21/18 in. front/rear.
The build includes 15-inch Raceline beadlock wheels and Arisun Aftershock XD tires. According to Bulloch, the Super Sport has a 98-in. wheelbase and is 68 in. wide. By comparison, a stock Wildcat Sport is 84/60 in., a stock Wildcat X is 95/64 in., a Polaris RZR XP Turbo is 90/64 in. and a Can-Am Maverick X3 RS is 102/72 in.
After a devastating fire took down the D&P Dealership this past winter, the crew has been busy rebuilding a new, beautiful showroom. That project gave pause to Bulloch and Mumford’s plans to tackle this year’s King of the Hammers competition. I for one am REALLY looking forward to these two ripping next year’s Hammer aboard this amazing machine.
Thanks to UTVGuide.net for some of the sweet pix.
And thanks for reading.
I saw this rig at Rally on the Rocks!! What a sweet Wildcat! I hope Textron Offroad builds this unit! It will definitely silence ALL the competition!