In late June, the FIM announced it was ending its sanctioning agreement with Feld Entertainment for Monster Energy Supercross. Now the Worldwide sanctioning body for motorcycle racing appears to be looking to start up elsewhere. On Friday afternoon, Lewis Phillips of MX Vice dropped that the FIM is actively looking for a World Supercross promoter. Any potential promoter would do so for the next decade, 2022-2031.
Call For Expression of Interest
That is what the FIM is asking any interested parties. Even more interesting is that the deadline to do so is October 15 of this year. Cannot say that is an ideal timeline for any interested party, but it is there nonetheless. Outside of some of the expected responsibilities, securing venue dates, securing a television deal, etc, there are also some other interesting notes. The First would be, “Technological evolution of Supercross motorcycles. Championship open to new energies other than fuel combustion.” Not much of a surprise but this is absolutely worth noting. Do not be surprised to see a focus on this in the states as well in the coming years.
Another note was the insinuation that this would be a European-centric series. Specifically mentioning, “dates outside of Europe”, when talking about formating and a calendar. For context, the 2019 MXGP season (last pre covid season) had nearly 75 percent of its schedule located in western Europe. Expect this new championship to likely be similar. Outside of those two notes, the rest of the “Call For Expression” feels par for the course.
SMX Dibocal
A number of years ago, the FIM attempted a Supercross event in Germany, labeled as SMX. Along with some current MXGP stars like Tim Gajser and Jeffery Herlings, they also managed to snag a number of AMA riders to boot. These included Ryan Dungey, Marvin Musquin, Zach Osborne, and Jake Weimer. The event was split up into a riders championship, and a manufactures championship, which KTM won with Dungey, Musquin, and Herlings. Dungey would also win the riders championship, going 2-3-2 in the three Main Events.
The event as a whole…happened. The track felt very tame, edging more towards an indoor Motocross track, and did not see an overwhelming crowd. In contrast to the yearly Paris-Bercy Supercross event, which has the look and feels of a Monster Energy Supercross Event. In addition to great crowds and rider lineups. Long story short, the FIM’s previous attempt at Supercross was not too great.
Is A Second Premier Supercross Series Necessary?
If you are the FIM, making another Supercross series makes sense for you. Losing Monster Energy Supercross was a relatively big loss, so something to fill that void makes sense. With that all said, any optimism for success just is not there right now. Scheduling is a big concern right off the bat. There would likely be good markets available in western Europe, but the MXGP series has neglected places like the United States, Canada, and Australia for years now, all great markets. On top of going to places like Turkey, and Indonesia for MXGP, seeming just for profit with no other visible gain.
Next is the ability to get premier riders to participate. Would assume the chances of riders in America making the jump would hypothetically be equivalent to a New York Jets Super Bowl in the next five years (zero for those outside the United States). On top of MXGP riders being unknowns at this point, this could turn into a gigantic potential issue. Also, there is the whole issue of Monster Energy Supercross not going anywhere either unless something unforeseen happens.
So with the likely lack of premier riders, schedule shenanigans, and not even mentioning a World Championship caliber series already active, this feels like an exercise in futility. For all intents and purposes, Monster Energy Supercross is still the World Championship until proven otherwise.
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