Here is a rundown of what got me thinking...
The Dakar Rally began, and a few notable names are already out. Formula E has confirmed it will not be returning to Hyderabad in 2024 as it is less than a week from the season opener. Formula One teams are announcing dates for announcements. Williams will be in New York. It has been a rather quiet opening week of the year in the motorsports world. Jett Lawrence made some noise, winning the Supercross season opener on debut from Anaheim, and Supercross is where we will continue...
Ten Years Late
If you were enjoying the Supercross season opener this weekend from Anaheim, you may have notice something different. You may have felt it Sunday morning. There might have been a little more spring in your step, less weight on your shoulders and in your face. A more relaxed feeling.
It is probably because you were not up until the early hours of Sunday morning for the 450cc main event. Instead of reading 1:00 am as you dropped into bed, it was 11:00 pm, a little late but not terribly late for a Saturday night, and you could easily slide under the sheets and into a slumber.
Though the race was in Anaheim, it began at 8:00 p.m. Eastern Time, 5:00 p.m. local. This is the new normal for Supercross in 2024 as the latest start time will be 8:30 p.m. Eastern. My only question is what took so long?
Over a decade ago, before Formula One was booming in the United States, NASCAR was starting to slip, American sports car racing was still split and IndyCar was still desperate for anything good, everyone looked at Supercross and Rallycross as future series to boom. The reasons? The races were short, accommodating to shortening attention spans, and they could be held in urban surroundings, easily fitting into a football or baseball stadium, places people regularly visit and can contain 40,000 to 70,000 people. Supercross and Rallycross were sold as geared to Millennials, a group that was in its teen years and the eldest were in their 20s
Last decade, Supercross was praised for its potential, and rightfully so. Supercross was having no issues filling venues while NASCAR and IndyCar notably saw fewer spectators coming through their turnstiles and many tracks removed seats. A race window wasn't a three-hour marathon, but a segmented experience building to a finale. There were consequences with the heat races and last chance qualifiers, and only 22 riders, a fraction that started the night, would compete for the victory. Not to mention, there was variety between the 250cc and 450cc classes. It was two for the price of one.
Supercross has made minor adjustments to how it does things but it has not shedded its identity. The races might now go to a time limit and semifinal races might be gone from a evening's program, but Supercross is the same. It has not increased gimmicks or tweaked the championship in hopes of increasing attention. Creating a championship that combines Supercross and Motocross seasons actually feels like something that should have been done a long time ago, the same with shifting start times.
The earlier start didn't seem to keep people away at the gate. Anaheim was full as it normally is, and I have a feeling other West Coast venues form San Francisco to San Diego, Seattle to Glendale, Arizona will not see a drop in attendance.
It does feel like this move came ten years late.
Over the last decade, I wondered why Supercross kept starting at 10:00 p.m. Eastern, especially when races were on Saturdays. These weren't Tuesday races like a Los Angeles Lakers game meant for the locals. This is a national series looking for a national audience and a fair number of its races were buried late at night. And Supercross consistently started at 10:00 p.m. Eastern. Even the season finales, whether it be from Las Vegas or Salt Lake City started that late. The championship was decided at 1:00 a.m. Eastern on a Sunday morning, lost to the night, and easily forgotten.
This is a prime time of the year for Supercross. It is the only motorsports in town in the United States, and it has two months to get everyone's attention. There is the 24 Hours of Daytona at the end of the month and the Daytona 500 isn't until the middle of February. Supercross has owned this window for decades, and it has always had the television coverage, whether it be on ESPN2, Speed, FS1, NBCSN, USA or Peacock. It does a good job, but it has left something on the table.
It should be bigger, not overwhelmingly bigger, but bigger. For as much as we talk about Supercross and praise it, it doesn't even have the attention of the motorsports crowd. Look at how rare it is to see Supercross on Racer Magazine's website. It has no presence on Motorsport.com. For a brief moment, The Athletic's Jeff Gluck was giving it serious attention, but that has since subsided.
The lack of attention isn't because of lack of action or lack of fans. It is just somehow forgotten though acknowledged for everything Supercross does right and as the only thing around in the early days of winter.
Though Supercross hasn't made this move until now, the series is doing fine. This hasn't been a bad decision that has put the series in a dire position. It has a following. It fills stadiums. The racing is good. Sponsorship is not lacking, but it could be better.
In 2024, Supercross has finally made the move to maximize viewership across the United States. It is a different time. The series is now mainly on a streaming service, Peacock to be specific, and while streaming is the future, there is still a more reliably audience on network television and cable. The prime position was a decade ago when it was on a cable sports network every Saturday night and could have become a destination. Competition has only increased. Supercross is still going up against the NFL playoffs, and we will see more basketball, NBA and college, over the airwaves as we wait for spring to arrive.
This move should have been done a long time ago, but hopefully this takes Supercross up a level. Those Millennials are getting older. The 15-year olds are now 25, hopefully out of college and making a living with some change to spend on live events. The 30-year olds are now 40, and might have a few kids of their own, developing their own interests and passions. Favorable start times is one less hurdle in the way for viewership. After many years of waiting, Supercross could finally be positioned for an upward bump.
Winners From the Weekend
You know about Jett Lawrence, but did you know...
RJ Hampshire won the 250cc season opener from Anaheim.
Dakar Rally Stage Winners:
Cars
Prologue: Mattias Ekström
Stage 1: Guillaume De Mévius
Stage 2: Stéphane Peterhansel
Bikes
Prologue: Tosha Schareina
Stage 1: Ross Branch
Stage 2: José Ignacio Cornejo
UTV
Prologue: Xavier De Soultrait
Stage 1: Rodrigo Varela
Stage 2: Gerard Farrés
Light Proto
Prologue: Eryk Goczał
Stage 1: Eryk Goczał
Stage 2: Eryk Goczał
Quad
Prologue: Francisco Moreno Flores
Stage 1: Marcelo Medeiros
Stage 2: Marcelo Medeiros
Truck
Prologue: Janus van Kasteren
Stage 1: Janus van Kasteren
Stage 2: Janus van Kasteren
Coming Up This Weekend
The Dakar Rally continues.
Supercross heads north to San Francisco.
Formula E starts its new season in 2024.
The Chili Bowl.
