NBC Sports Network (NBCSN) announced Thursday that it will broadcast eight of the nine SPEED Energy Formula Off-Road Presented by Traxxas races in 2014.
Races will air in primetime on the U.S. west coast due to the immense popularity of off-road racing in the Central and Pacific time zones.
The SPEED Energy Formula Off-Road Presented by Traxxas series was influenced by the former Mickey Thompson Stadium Off-Road Racing Series, where drivers such as Robby Gordon, six-time NASCAR champion Jimmie Johnson and fellow NASCAR Sprint Cup driver Casey Mears got their racing start.
Gordon created Stadium SUPER Trucks to capitalize on the public’s overwhelming interest in trucks and SUVs as well as the fact that the majority of automotive aftermarket parts are marketed for trucks.
Formula Off-Road Presented by Traxxas begins its second season of competition on March 28-30 at the Grand Prix of St. Petersburg in conjunction with the IndyCar Series.
The trucks will race five times with IndyCar in 2014 at a number of the series’ most popular venues including St. Petersburg, Long Beach, Indianapolis, Detroit and Toronto.
Stand-alone Formula Off-Road Presented by Traxxas events will take place at Orange County’s (Calif.) Sand Sport Super Show, the Coronado Speed Festival in San Diego and along the Las Vegas Strip in November.
The Stadium Super Trucks that race in the series will hit huge man-made ramps at more than 100 mph at multiple locations throughout each of the circuits, hurling drivers nearly 20 feet in the air and 150 feet down course.
Gordon created the series to bring the excitement of Baja-style desert racing to large crowds of race fans. With a revamped and expanded schedule for 2014, the series expects to race in front of more than 750,000 fans in addition to its television audience.
The series features identically prepared trucks which are made to resemble their scaled-down Traxxas radio-control-car counterparts. Like their Traxxas namesake, the trucks are designed to take flight. However, unlike RC trucks, they produce 600 horsepower, generating speeds upwards of 130 miles per hour.
For more news of SPEED Energy Formula Off-Road Presented by Traxxas and Stadium SUPER Trucks, check out http://www.stadiumsupertrucks.com.
2014 Formula Off-Road Presented By Traxxas Broadcast Schedule
Event
Broadcast Date/Time
Grand Prix of St. Petersburg
April 17, 10 p.m. PT (April 18 1 a.m. ET) NBCSN
Long Beach Grand Prix
May 1, 10:30 p.m. PT (May 2 1:30 a.m. ET) NBCSN
Indianapolis
June 12, 9 p.m. PT (June 13 Midnight ET) NBCSN
Detroit Belle Isle Grand Prix
June 20, 10:30 p.m. PT (June 21 1:30 a.m. ET) NBCSN
X Games Austin, Texas
June 8 (Live/Time TBA) ABC/ESPN
Toronto Grand Prix
July 31, 10:30 p.m. PT (Aug. 1 1:30 a.m. ET) NBCSN
Orange County (Calif.)
Oct. 9, 10 p.m. PT (Oct. 10 1 a.m. ET) NBCSN
San Diego/Coronado Speed Festival
Oct. 10, 11 p.m. PT (Oct. 11 2 a.m. ET) NBCSN
Las Vegas
Nov. 20, 9:30 p.m. PT (Nov. 21 12:30 a.m. ET) NBCSN
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