Racing returns. Supercross announces 2021 schedule.

Not only did Supercross and Feld Entertainment show that love sports could be done, they showed the sporting world how it could be done. Today, Supercross and Feld Entertainment announced their 2021 season schedule bringing back racing once again.

Even though the race schedule does not look normal, with no races in California at all, and some races run on a Tuesday, race wins will be happy to see the gates drop in January as they have done every year since 1974.

Since the series began in 1974, California has hosted most of the season openers, as the city of Anaheim has become synonymous with the start of the Supercross season. For the first time in 25 years the series will start in another state by opening at NRG Stadium in Houston, Texas, for the first three rounds and for the second consecutive year, the season will conclude in Utah, as the “State of Sport” once again hosts the season finale, although this time with fans in attendance.

Supercross was the first sport to complete its season and championship in a bubble environment in 2020 due to the pandemic. Bubbles are now widely popular and being used by the NBA, NHL, WNBA, and MLB to great success. The NFL was one of the first sports to welcome fans back to stadiums and Supercross is excited to follow their lead while also using some of their own bubble-environment tactics in the 2021 season by hosting multiple races in a single location.  

“The Salt Lake City model worked well for us and we learned a lot on how we can proceed forward in finding ways to brings fans in attendance but also back to the pits as well,” said Dave Prater, Senior Director of Operations, two-wheel, Feld Entertainment, Inc. “We have always held ourselves to a high standard to create a great product not only on the field, but a quality fan experience as well. We will create both. We will do everything in our ability to keep everyone safe.”

Fans in the pits would be a massive step forward to the overall race experience but may be one that the race teams push back at. Knowing that the teams can isolate themselves in their paddock area and remain healthy is their preferred situation.

One of the unexpected surprises of racing in the bubble in Salt Lake City was the creation of mid-week races due to the condensed nature of the schedule. Racing every Wednesday during the three-week stretch became a fan-favorite while also boosting television ratings in an otherwise non-traditional broadcast window for Supercross. With that in mind, Supercross will host four SuperTuesday races, one in each of the host cities – Houston, Indianapolis, Glendale and Arlington, a first in the sport’s 48-year history.  

“When we looked at the engagement from the Wednesday races during the final seven rounds in Salt Lake City in 2020, the numbers were really positive,” said Prater. “Looking towards these Tuesday races, we expect to see a similar response.”

Rounds 13–16 of the 17-race championship will be announced at a later date as Supercross continues to work with stadium partners and the local governments and health departments, while also staying current with national mandates and CDC guidelines. Additionally, the remaining Eastern Regional and Western Regional 250SX Class races, Triple Crown and East/West 250SX Showdown events will also be announced later.   

Storylines abound for the 2021 Supercross season as the 450SX Class continues to feature what has become an ever-expanding, deep array of talent. For the first time in five years, three Supercross champions will be competing for another title – Jason Anderson, Cooper Webb and Eli Tomac, while a continually-evolving corps of deep threats will be on the hunt to dethrone and wreak havoc by winning races of their own – Marvin Musquin, Ken Roczen, Justin Barcia, Adam Cianciarulo, plus premiere class rookies Dylan Ferrandis, Chase Sexton and Shane McElrath.    

Tickets for the first twelve Rounds will go on sale to the general public on Tuesday, December 8. Preferred customers can sign up in advance for early access to purchase tickets a week prior, starting Tuesday, December 1 by visiting SupercrossLIVE.com.