From 2015 to 2021, the series also raced in Australia in support of the Supercars Championship. In 2020 and 2021, SST operated the Boost Mobile Super Trucks championship, which was sanctioned by Motorsport Australia and promoted by Boost Mobile.
By 2011, there was speculation that after his NASCAR career was over, Robby Gordon would bring back the concept of stadium off-road racing that Mickey Thompson had invented.[1] Gordon announced the formation of the Stadium Super Trucks (SST) on May 29, 2012, modeling the series after Thompson's MTEG stadium series;[2] early in his career, Gordon won the 1989 MTEG championship as a 20-year-old.[1] Gordon compared the concept of SST to that of the International Race of Champions; drivers and/or sponsors could take over a team for a year but the series provided everything else.[3] The trucks held an exhibition race at Crandon International Off-Road Raceway after the conclusion of the World Championship races on September 2.[4]
The Stadium Super Trucks began with a twelve-race season in 2013.[5] The series held their first official race at the University of Phoenix Stadium on April 6, 2013.[6] The race was won by Rob MacCachren, Justin Matney finished second, and Gordon passed the flipped-over truck of P. J. Jones on the final lap for third.[7] Gordon and MacCachren battled throughout the 2013 season, and Gordon won the championship by seven points.[8] As support events, the series scheduled monster trucks, quad bikes and Side by Side UTVs.[9]
Race at Crandon in 2013
On December 11, 2013, Gordon announced the series would be among the events held at the X Games Austin in 2014.[10] On March 4, 2014, the series was renamed to Speed Energy Formula Off-Road presented by Traxxas with the trucks retaining the SST name,[11] though the Formula Off-Road branding was quietly reverted by 2016.[12] The series' X Games final was held at Circuit of the Americas on June 8.[13]Apdaly Lopez won the gold medal; Sheldon Creed and Gordon earned silver and bronze, respectively.[14] The 2014 season also saw the series expand outside the United States and Canada by participating at the Race of Champions in Barbados.[15] In 2016, SST held the Mike's Peak Hill Climb Challenge at Mike's Sky Rancho in Baja California.[16] Beyond North America, the trucks had demonstrations in the Mongolian desert in 2016 and 2019,[17][18] while the 2017 schedule included a race in China at Beijing National Stadium.[19]
On September 23, 2014, sponsorship marketing company The Elevation Group purchased a 40 percent stake in the series.[20] In 2015, the series entered a partnership with all-terrain vehicle manufacturer Arctic Cat, which led to the creation of the Arctic Cat Stadium Side-by-Side (SXS) Racing Series as a support series to the SST.[21]
Although stadiums were gradually phased out in favor of street courses, SST returned to the former in December 2017 with the inaugural Stadium Super Trucks World Championship Finals in California's Lake Elsinore Diamond baseball park.[22] Although he did not compete in the weekend due to a rib injury, Paul Morris clinched the 2017 championship with Jerett Brooks driving his No. 67 truck.[23] During the 2018 season, SST organized the Robby Gordon Off-Road World Championships at Glen Helen Raceway from November 30 to December 2.[24] To close out the season, SST returned to the Race of Champions in 2019, now held in Mexico City, as both a competing category for ROC drivers and a standalone points race.[25][26]Matthew Brabham ended the season with his first series championship.[27]
In March 2021, SST partnered with the newly formed Great American Shortcourse (GAS) series to organize a championship weekend and the Off Road Race of Champions (ORROC), the latter of which was to take place at King of the Hammers; ORROC intended to have GAS class champions compete in stadium trucks with the winner receiving a full-time seat in SST for the 2022 season.[28] However, neither took place due to scheduling conflicts such as Gordon racing in the Baja 1000 and running his Speed UTV company.[29]
Racing in Australia
With the support of driver Craig Dontas and former Adelaide 500 general manager Nathan Cayzer, SST expanded into Australia for the 2015 season.[30] In May, the trucks were invited to the Goodwood Festival of Speed in England.[31]
In May 2018, Gordon formed a three-year partnership with Boost Mobile to keep the series in Australia beyond 2019. As part of the agreement, the series' Australian operations were handled by Cayzer and Morris' Paul Morris Motorsport.[30] However, in September, the Confederation of Australian Motor Sport (CAMS, now known as Motorsport Australia) revoked their license over safety concerns, a decision particularly spurred by an incident in the May race at Barbagallo Raceway in which Matt Nolan's truck's wheel came off during a wreck and hit a spectator bridge.[32][33] A court hearing overseen by the Supreme Court of Victoria took place a month later. The series' defense, led by Queen's Counselbarrister Stewart Anderson, said new wheels would be built with forged billet aluminium that makes them heavier and less likely to detach than the current cast alloy. Retired Supercar driver Larry Perkins also gave his support after inspecting them earlier in the year, comparing the trucks' safety to the Supercars. Anderson further stated CAMS and SST had formed an agreement in February in which the former expressed satisfaction at the series, yet CAMS made the decision to suspend the series in May and did not inform SST officials until July, which Gordon stated was a breach of contract.[33] On October 11, judge John Digby ruled in favor of CAMS.[34] Six days after the ruling, the series aligned with the Australian Auto Sport Alliance's Australian Motor Racing Series (AMRS) to remain in the country. The AASA, which is not affiliated with CAMS, and the NSW Sport and Recreation approved SST for competition in AMRS events following a risk assessment.[35] The trucks' first race weekend under the AMRS banner took place nine days later at the Sydney Motorsport Park.[36]
On August 20, 2019, CAMS and SST announced they had reached an agreement to lift the ban and form a three-year commercial rights contract.[37] Six days later, Adelaide 500 officials confirmed the series would make its return at the 2020 edition in February with safety improvements like smaller ramps.[38] SST's first race in Australia since the ban's conclusion took place in October 2019 with the Gold Coast 600 weekend at Surfers Paradise Street Circuit.[39]
Following the series' return, the trucks' identity in the country became known as the Boost Mobile Super Trucks.[39] As part of the new branding, starting in 2020, SST split into American and Australian championships called the Speed Energy Stadium Super Trucks and Boost Mobile Super Trucks, respectively. While both divisions had their separate standings and champions, they also conducted a co-sanctioned weekend together at Adelaide.[40] The Boost Mobile Super Truck operations were based at Paul Morris Motorsport's Norwell Motorplex in Norwell, Queensland.[41]
Supercars was acquired by Race Australia Consolidated Enterprises in 2021, and the new ownership failed to reach an agreement with the Boost Mobile Super Trucks to continue supporting the series for 2022. Boost Mobile head Peter Adderton, who attempted to buy Supercars, criticized RACE and claimed the consortium saw little value in the trucks despite their popularity. 12 stadium trucks were returned to the United States on January 19, 2022.[42] Conversely, new Supercars CEO Shane Howard told Auto Action in February that he believed the trucks were sent back due to ATA Carnet import laws, but he was open to bringing them back in 2023.[43]
Gordon's other former discipline IndyCar has also seen crossovers into SST. In addition to those with experience in stock cars like Jones, Champ Car veteran Max Papis and 2003 championPaul Tracy have run races; the 2016 Honda Indy Toronto round featured all three drivers.[55][56] Former IndyCar driver E. J. Viso, who led the most laps and finished second in his SST debut,[57] has seven wins.[58]
Eventually, SST focused almost exclusively on street courses like the Long Beach Grand Prix, Honda Indy Toronto, Detroit Belle Isle Grand Prix, and Grand Prix of St. Petersburg. Gordon explained in a 2017 interview that the transition to street circuits "brings [the trucks] to a completely different fan audience."[66] On the street courses, aluminum ramps are placed on the track;[9] the ramps are 17 feet, 6 inches long and 2'8" high, and trucks enter them at speeds of 70 miles per hour (110 km/h).[67] In June 2017, the series made its debut on an oval track at Texas Motor Speedway, running as a support event for IndyCar's Rainguard Water Sealers 600.[68] Although stadiums decreased in hosting races over time, SST continued to occasionally race in such venues. For instance, in July 2017, the first Chinese-based SST event was held with Monster Jam at Beijing National Stadium.[19][69]
Powered by a 600 hp (450 kW) ChevroletLS V8 engine,[79] the trucks weigh 2,900 pounds (1,300 kg) and are built with a steel-tube frame and fiberglass body. The trucks are 13'5" (4.09 m) long and 5'2" (1.57 m) high, feature a three-speed transmission and can reach speeds as high as 140 mph (230 km/h).[67] A portion of the frame protects the driver from rolls. Next to the driver is a 5-US-gallon (19 L) jug that catches fluids which may have spilled from damage that the truck sustains.[80] Each truck may race with tires from Toyo Tires or Continental Tire,[81][82] while Hawk Performance provides brake pads.[83] During the series' inaugural season, Toyo was one of three tire brands alongside Pro Comp and Yokohama.[84][85][86]
The trucks are identical to each other, though drivers are allowed to change some aspects of their trucks, such as the spring rates, ride heights and camber.[87] Drivers receive their trucks on race weekends via random draw, which ensures they do not have the same vehicle for each race, but they may swap with others if they are unsatisfied with their current one.[2][88] Gordon, who departed NASCAR with the belief that the top teams had a large advantage over the smaller teams due to the amount of money spent, designed the trucks as such as he wanted SST to be a "drivers' series".[89] He described the stadium trucks as resembling Monster Jam trucks for their size and NASCAR and IndyCar vehicles for their ability to handle in corners.[18]
Media coverage
The 2013 SST events were televised tape-delayed on NBC and NBC Sports Network;[90] seven were televised on NBC and five on NBC Sports Network.[5] Most of the twelve races in 2013 were televised on Sunday afternoons.[91] In 2014, NBCSN returned to broadcast the season's races, but was later replaced by CBS Sports Network in September.[92][93] The X Games events were aired nationally on ABC.[49][94]
Races are streamed live on the series' website and Facebook page. When the series races in Australia, viewers in the country and New Zealand are prohibited from watching online and instead watch on Fox Sports.[95]
The trucks have been featured in various video games as playable vehicles. Gordon's No. 7 Speed Energy truck appears in an expansion pack for the 2014 game Forza Horizon 2.[96] In 2020, the SST was included in Project CARS 3.[97]
Race format
A race weekend is three days long, with qualifying on the first and two races on Saturday and Sunday. Races are split into either 12 laps or 20 minutes depending on which is completed first, while competition cautions are used at the halfway point to group the drivers together for closer racing to the finish. A standing start is used to begin a race, while restarts utilize rolling starts.[98]
American SST races are sanctioned by the United States Auto Club (USAC), with racing decisions being overseen by a race control unit.[99][100] Radio communication between the two and drivers is one-way, which allows for messages from the former to be available for all drivers, though competitors cannot respond to Race Control nor USAC.[98] In Australia, Motorsport Australia served as the sanctioning body.[37]
Points are awarded based on finishing position, with bonus points given for the fastest qualifier, heat race winner, the driver who leads the most laps in the main event, and for each position gained in a race. A driver may also earn points on behalf of another by racing with their number plate.[101] At the end of a race weekend and season, the driver with the most total points is named the overall weekend winner; ties are broken based on wins followed by the best finish in the final event.[102][101]
The Boost Mobile Super Trucks had their own points system that provided just one bonus point to the fastest qualifier. If a race was suspended after 50–75 percent of the duration had been completed, half points were to be awarded. A full payout would be given if more than 75 percent of the race had been completed.[102]
^McDonald, Norris (July 17, 2016). "Paul Tracy makes early exit in truck race". Toronto Star. Retrieved July 18, 2016. The other Canadian in the trucks race, Russell Boyle of Toronto, finished 10th Sunday in a field that included ex-NASCAR/CART star Robby Gordon, Max Papis and former Indy car pilot P.J. Jones, son of 1963 Indy 500 winner Parnelli Jones.
^Murray, Richie (July 26, 2017). "Swanson and Coons' Silver Crown Stride Unbreakable Thus Far at Toledo". United States Auto Club. Retrieved July 27, 2017. (Joe) Liguori has stepped out of his own No. 4 to wheel the Fred Gormly-RPM No. 98 after regular driver Davey Hamilton, Jr. got the call for a drive this weekend in Beijing, China with the Robby Gordon Stadium SUPER Truck Series.
^"ABOUT TAYLOR..."Taylor Snyder. She currently works as the field reporter for "SPEED Energy Formula Off Road Presented by Traxxas" (Stadium Super Trucks) which airs on "CBS Sports Network" (previously shown on "NBC Sports Network").
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