Two-hundred and forty horsepower. Let that sink in.
A decade ago, that number would most often be associated with a purpose-built racing machine designed to compete in the deserts of Baja and Southern California. The 999cc powerplant found in most UTVs has struggled to make that many HPs without the aid of forced induction. And even when they are, they were often equipped with inadequate suspension and small wheel-and-tire combinations that made putting those ponies to the ground a difficult proposition.
But in the year 2026, the Average Joe can walk into a Can-Am dealership, throw down $47,999 (MSRP), and walk out with a machine that ten years ago would have cost them three-times as much to build themselves. Enter the 2026 Can-Am Maverick R X rc.
But before I share my thoughts on this thing, let’s talk about the numbers for a second.
The Maverick R X rc is powered by a Rotax 999T engine. A 999cc three-cylinder motor, it's turbocharged, liquid-cooled, and features an integrated intercooler and high-performance air filter, all of which is good for the aforementioned 240-horsepower. A seven-speed Rotax DCT transmission with High & Extra Low range gears sends those horses to all four wheels, too.
Up front, you’ll find forged aluminum knuckles and double A-arms with a sway bar, while the rear of the X rc features a 4-link trailing arm with forged aluminum knuckles. Suspending the new Maverick are FOX 2.5 and 3.0 PODIUM RC2 piggyback shocks (front and rear, respectively) with a bypass and both speed compression and rebound adjustments. All of that adds up to 25 inches of suspension travel at the front and 26 inches of travel at the rear.
Those are Trophy Truck specs in an over-the-counter package.
The X rc sits on 16-inch aluminum flow-formed beadlock wheels wrapped in 35-inch XPS Hammer King tires, with 32mm hydraulic triple piston calipers and 265mm discs up front, and 30mm hydraulic twin piston calipers with 255mm discs at the rear.
There’s a lockable front differential with exclusive Smart-Lok technology, offering riders the option of 2WD, 4WD with front differential lock, 4WD TRAIL ACTIV, 4WD TRAIL, and 4WD ROCK configurations, all of which can be selected via the 10.25-inch touchscreen display.
Honestly, those are some insane specs for a showroom stock vehicle. But it isn’t just about the numbers, the new Maverick R X rc was engineered and developed using data taken from the Can-Am Factory Race Team that competes at the grueling King of the Hammers (KOH) each year. A race that combines wide-open desert racing with technical rock crawling, KOH is the ultimate test of both capability and durability in the UTV category.
Last year, Kyle Chaney competed in the 4400 Unlimited Class with his Maverick R, racing against a field of purpose-built, V8-powered machines. At the end of the night, Chaney stood atop the podium, the first person to win the famed ‘Race of Kings’ in a UTV. That effort and the knowledge collected by Can-Am went directly into the development of the X rc (RC being an abbreviation for Rock Crawler, I presume).
I had the opportunity to drive the new Maverick R X rc during my time at KOH this year. The 35-inch tires were the first thing that stood out. Stuffed beneath the tall knuckles, the XPS Hammer King tires aren’t there for aesthetic reasons, but to increase rolling diameter and approach angle. There’s also a front-mounted Warn winch rated at 4,500 lbs with a synthetic cable and roller fairlead, along with heavy-duty HMW plastic skid plates, A-arm protectors, rock sliders, an anti-intrusion bar, and a more substantial front bumper.
Unlike the Maverick R X rs, which is designed to smash whoops across the desert, the X rc was built to go over obstacles.
So, to help with low-end torque, Can-Am threw in an extra-low gear for low-range rock crawling, as well as a FOX steering damper to prevent steering wheel kickback in jagged terrain. In all, the X RC looks like a more substantial machine than its desert-dwelling sibling, the X rs (which rides on sad little 32-inch tires).
Inside, you’ll find the same fit and finish as other Maverick R models, however, the roll cage has an added brace where the windshield would go. The touch screen is intuitive and easy to operate with gloves; however, there are also weather-protected push buttons that allow you to switch between ride modes, as well as lock and unlock the front differential. Like the other Maverick R models, there’s a push-button start, JL Audio Level 3 sound system, and a backup camera.
Fancy stuff for a side-by-side, but when you’re spending nearly $50,000, I’d expect nothing less.
Situated in my seat, with the 4-point harness keeping my keister from coming unglued, we tore off into the desert around midday. Along the sandy two-track trails that are cut indiscriminately across the desert floor of Johnson Valley, the X rc felt like an absolute missile. In Sport Plus mode, the turbocharger is pushing hot air through the three-cylinder motor like a high-powered hairdryer at beauty salon. Power comes on suddenly and severely, raising the front end of the X rc toward the sky ever so slightly. The 35-inch tires and 25 inches of suspension travel turn two-foot-tall whoops into minor abrasions as opposed to sandy speed bumps.
I cut into a wash, edged on either side by a crumbling bulwark of sand, stone and desert shrubs. It was narrow, with the X rc’s 72-inch wide footprint barely fitting between the walls of the arroyo. It cut left and right and then left again, with the massive tires churning sand as I snapped the steering wheel back and forth. I drove the X rc deep into a sandy corner; my foot planted to the floorboard as I began to straighten the wheel. Power came suddenly, the whooshing and wheezing sound of forced induction echoing over my shoulder. The front passenger wheel lifted, then the rear. I snapped the wheel opposite lock and watched as the chassis settled and the 35-inch tires grabbed earth again, ejecting me from the corner and into a full sprint down the remainder of the arroyo.
What a monster!
We wandered a bit that afternoon, crossing large sections of desert at speed. In Trail mode, the X rc is as tame as it can be, all things considered. Horsepower being applied to the wheels at a more measured pace. When we came to a rocky gulch, I shifted the X rc into 4WD ROCK mode and let the low gearing do the heavy lifting.
I’m no rock crawler, though, so when I had the opportunity to sit shotgun with Cameron Steele later that day as he scouted a few Rock Check Points (RCP) through ‘Her Problem’ - one of the trails that he would encounter the next day during the UTV Hammers Rock Race - I was able to see first hand just how capable the X rc is when presented with, well, a problem.
Walking ahead of Cameron’s X rc pre-runner to collect some video, I struggled to navigate the boulder field on foot that Dave Cole and the KOH crew call a “racecourse.” The X rc? Didn’t break a sweat.
With Cameron at the wheel, the machine made quick work of the multi-ton boulders and large, jagged rock obstacles, its massive tires clawing across the stone. This was obviously a machine engineered to do all the things. It didn’t mind ripping across the desert, and it didn’t care if a Toyota Camry-sized rock formation was placed in front of it.
We ended the day with a rescue mission, aiding in the recovery of a fellow journalist who shall go unnamed. The 4500-lb winch on the front of the X rc did its thing, pulling a Maverick R X rs from its perch atop a massive boulder. We then descended from the mountainside, into the dunes below, carving Crayon lines into the sand before heading back to basecamp in Hammer Town.
Sure, the Maveric R X rc is a lot of money ($47,999 MSRP, as mentioned), but what you get is something that ten years ago would have cost you a mint, a machine that was born and bred in the high desert of Southern California, designed to stop at nothing, and let nothing stop you along the way.
