Kit Palmer | January 21, 2016
When 2016 FIM MXGP schedule was released last month and two U.S. rounds were on the schedule many were surprised, but not as surprised that one of those two venues was planned for Charlotte, North Carolina, and its famed Charlotte Motor Speedway (the other round will again be at Glen Helen Raceway). Seems like a strange place to host GP, right? Yes. But it gets stranger. It’s actually going to be held on the facilities drag strip!
JGRMX team owner Coy Gibbs, Youthstream’s Giuseppe Luongo and Jeremy McGrath attended the Charlotte MXGP press conference at zMAX Drag Way. Photography Kit Palmer
Yes, that’s the plan. The 2016 Monster Energy MXGP of the Americas will be held at zMAX Dragway, located right next to the massive speedway. At first, it would seem impossible to hold a motocross race—and a big one at that—at a drag strip but zMAX Dragway is not your ordinary drag strip. It’s a four laner that evidently has enough room to facilitate the required minimum length of about one mile for an official MXGP track. Still, that’s hard to believe, but it’s true, and we saw it with our own eyes.
All the big players that got together to make this seemingly impossible dream happen held a press conference at the facility this week in Charlotte. In attendance included Youthstream (owner of the MXGP series) President Guiseppe Luongo and Youthstream Director David Luongo (Guiseppe’s son), CEO of Speedway Motorsports, Inc. (SMI) Marcus Smith, Monster Energy’s Vice President of Sports Marketing Mitch Covington, and the man who helped make it all happen, Eric Peronnard, who has in the past produced and/or helped produce such events as the Monster Energy Cup, U.S. Open, EnduroCross and Red Bull Straight Rhythm, were all on hand to pitch the event. Also in attendance was pretty much the entire AutoTrader.com/Toyota/JGRMX Yamaha Team (which is based in Charlotte), including team own Coy Gibbs, team manager Jeremy Albrecht, riders Phil Nicoletti and 250 East Supercross contender Marshal Welton, and Monster Energy spokesman Jeremy McGrath. The conference was also held in conjunction with an NHRA conference, announcing its new association with Fox Sports TV. This was also a chance for the NHRA press members—and there were literally busloads of them—to see what this motocross stuff is all about and why it is going to take over their drag strip for a weekend later this summer.
The four-line drag strip makes it possible to squeeze in a mile-long MXGP track. Grandstands are located close to the track.
Giuseppe Luongo said, “It’s a pleasure and honor to work together with Speedway Motosports, Inc. and to bring MXGP to this outstanding venue. The area of the zMAX Dragway is perfect to build a spectacular racetrack where the best motocross riders in the world can race in front of thousands of spectators who will be seated comfortably in the grandstands. The event will be followed live worldwide by a massive TV audience. We want to thank Monster Energy for their support, the cooperation with SMI is fantastic, so I am sure that all together we will organize an event which will remain in the memory of all the fans”.
“At Speedway Motorsports, Inc., we are always committed to bringing world-class events to our facilities, and there is no bigger motocross event in the world than the Monster Energy MXGP of the Americas,” said Smith. “Youthstream, the owner of MXGP, is an excellent partner with a grand vision. Not only will we have an opportunity to host competitors and fans from three continents and 16 countries, we’ll be able to showcase our facility and Charlotte on the world stage with the Monster Energy MXGP of the Americas.”
The two grandstands can hold 15,000 spectators each.
The Charlotte MXGP will be unique in many ways, not just that fact that it will be held on a drag strip. For one, it will also be held at night, on a Saturday night (typical GPs are held Sunday afternoons), with qualifiers being held the night before on Friday evening. Grandstands flank each side of the strip for easy and comfortable viewing; each side can hold 15,000 spectators. There is no doubt the Monster Energy MXGP of the Americans will have a supercross vibe.
“It’s going to be an amazing race course and an amazing weekend,” said McGrath. “The course is going to be tough and tight.”
The Charlotte race has been in the planning stages for about a year. “It’s almost a year-old project,” said Peronnard. “I got contacted by SMI and they told me they wanted to get involved in the motocross business and did my best to tell them what it [motocross] is and all of the possibilities they had, from going to a national motocross, or motocross GP, or a marque race, like Monster Cup/U.S. Open, we did our homework together, talked to a lot of people and the conclusion was made that a GP would be a good choice. I believe it’s a great opportunity for the fans of the southeast to see a first-class motocross show.
“Originally, we were planning to be in the speedway but there were a lot of things that were too big in a speedway to start [a new race], maybe we’ll end up in the speedway one day, but right now, I think the drag strip is better suited for what we’re doing. It’s a more condensed and controlled venue, and I’m really excited.”
But why at night? “Because of the temperature, and I think it will be a better show at night, nobody argued it and thought it was a better idea [to have the race at night]. It’s going to be September, so we’ll be racing in 80-degree temperatures rather than the 90s. Plus, it looks good here at night.”
A short demo with JGRMX riders Phil Nicoletti and Marshal Welton was held during the press conference, which also took place in front of the many NHRA press members that were on hand.
Peronnard said they have plenty of room to build a first-class, one-mile MXGP track. “It’s very easy when you have four lanes that are a quarter-mile long. We barely had to bring out the tape measure!”
“It’s going to be great,” said Luongo who saw the facility in person for the first time. “We are very impressed with the infrastructure, the organization, the people in Charlotte. They are very professional; I’m so happy.”
So what were Luongo’s thoughts when he first laid eyes on the venue? “I closed my eyes to [see] the lights, to see a fantastic race with many riders from America, GP riders and the grandstands full! It’s possible, maybe not, but I think with good work with promotion I think it will be possible. We will see what happens.”
The race will take place over the Labor Day Weekend, September 2-3, right after the conclusion of the AMA outdoor nationals, but it’s too early to know exactly which top American riders will compete, though you can count on the entire AutoTrader.com/Toyota/JGRMX Yamaha Team to be there, and we also presume that Chad Reed, a Monster Energy-sponsored rider, to race, as well. The Glen Helen GP is set for the following weekend.
This won’t be the first time an off-road motorcycle race will be held at the Charlotte facility, a few supercross rounds were held inside the speedway in the 1990s. Both Kevin Windham (1997) and John Dowd (1998) got their first-career 250 supercross wins at Charlotte.
It will be a busy time in the North Carolina area when the GP takes place. Within a two-week period, you’ll have the Tennessee Knockout (August 20-21), Atlanta EnduroCross (August 27) and the MXGP of the Americas (September 2-3).
Tickets for the Monster Energy MXGP of the Americas begin at $59 for a weekend, which includes two-day paddock passes. Special hotel offers will be available, as well camping in adjacent lots with ticket purchase. Visit www.charlottemotorspeedway.com/tickets/mxgp/.
