SX Global unveils plans for FIM Supercross World Championship Series

The first details for the all-new FIM Supercross World Championship have been unveiled by series promoters SX Global.

It’s a fresh new era for the Supercross discipline, which has established itself as an American sport. Whilst there are events which take place in Europe and Australia, they don’t come under the official FIM banner. The FIM and AMA, organisers of the Monster Energy Supercross series, went their seperate ways last year.

Related articles from MCN

• Pecco Bagnaia signs new two-year Ducati contract
• MotoGP Unlimited trailer and release date revealed
• Livio Suppo returns to become Suzuki Team Manager

The World Championship will use an independent team-ownership model, with 10 team licenses available to independent owners. At each event, a total of $250,000 will be up for grabs. The championship will follow the established two-class format, with each team fielding four riders: two in the 250cc class and two in the 450cc class. Each round of the championship will also allow for two wildcard entries in each class.

The season will take place in the second half of the year, with five events running between September and November, to allow for a stable and positive relationship with the Monster Energy Supercross series in the USA. All being well in the “pilot season’, the series will then expand annually between June and November.

Each Supercross team will receive financial support, including seed funding, appearance fees at every event, and logistics and freight support throughout the season. The independent ownership model also provided opportunities for sponsorship opportunities on global and local event levels.

Overall, more than $50 million has been designated specifically for team and rider support over five years by SX Global – which has received “investment from Mubadala Capital (the asset management subsidiary of Mubadala Investment Company, one of the world’s leading sovereign investors). Other organisations within their portfolio include EMI Music Publishing, Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC) and the Yankees Entertainment and Sports Network.

“There is a massive fanbase and untapped demand for Supercross outside the United States and backed by the financial support and significant resource of Mubadala Capital, we intend to feed that, bringing the sport to new regions through the most exciting and lucrative World Championship series in the history of the sport,” said Tony Cochrane, President of SX Global.

“We have created an entirely new model for Supercross – one that emphasises expanded financial support and opportunities for riders and teams, expanded opportunities for sponsorship and an elevated experience for fans.”

Previously, Cochrane helped to develop the V8 Supercars series in Australia, which now holds events in other countries such as Abu Dhabi, Bahrain, and New Zealand.

Supercross veterans Adam Bailey and Ryan Sanderson are also working on the World Championship project as managing directors. Together, they spearheaded the AUS-X Open series in Australia, producing promoted five years of consecutive sold out events in Sydney, Melbourne, and Auckland.

Bailey commented: “Over the years, there have been various attempts to build a true World Championship series for Supercross, but none of them have succeeded, due to deficiencies in funding and resource, lack of global and regional relationships and a variety of other factors.”

“Our team possess the necessary Supercross and international event background, relationships and expertise, and the funding to make this World Championship a reality.”

The FIM Supercross World Championship will commence in late 2022. SX Global are also promising to deliver and “elevated experience” for Supercross fans through unique race formats, broadcast innovations and in-stadium attractions and entertainment. Currently, no destinations have been revealed for the maiden season.