Superstar Racing Experience, the short-track series being started by Ray Evernham and Tony Stewart, will add a “Cinderella” element of “all-star amateurs” to its lineups for the first five races of its inaugural season.
Doug Coby, Brian Brown, Kody Swanson and Bobby Santos III will join the SRX at select races, competing against a field of veteran champions and winners from IMSA, IndyCar and NASCAR.
“We wanted to add to the drama and excitement SRX will bring fans by adding a Rocky Balboa or Cinderella story to each week’s race,” said Ray Evernham, co-founder of SRX, said in a release. “Our amateur all-stars will have the opportunity to prove they’re more than just the hero at their home track – that they, in fact, have what it takes to get up on the wheel against the best in the world.”
SRX later decided that “amateur” was a less than popular title with its fans and has started a vote on how to brand the crop of grassroots champions.
Okay, amateur is out! What should we call our new additions? #FansFirst
— Superstar Racing Experience (@SRXracing) April 9, 2021
The SRX series, which is expecting to have a dozen drivers in each race, already has confirmed Tony Stewart, Helio Castroneves, Bobby Labonte, Paul Tracy, Tony Kanaan, Willy T. Ribbs, Bill Elliott, Ernie Francis Jr., Marco Andretti and Michael Waltrip in its lineup (Formula One veteran Mark Webber, previously announced as an entrant, has bowed out of the series). SRX was co-founded by NASCAR Hall of Famers Stewart and Evernham and was unveiled last July.
🚨 #DriverAnnouncement 🚨 Excited to welcome our Amateur All Stars to @SRXracing!
— Superstar Racing Experience (@SRXracing) April 9, 2021
STAFFORD - Doug Coby
KNOXVILLE - Brian Brown
ELDORA - Kody Swanson
LUCAS OIL - Bobby Santos III
SLINGER - Slinger Nationals 2021 Champion pic.twitter.com/5xEzHS1Q0Z
Coby, a six-time Modified champion will race in the season opener June 12 at Stafford Motor Speedway in Connecticut. Brown, a four-time Knoxville Raceway track champion, will compete in the SRX’s June 19 race at the famed dirt track in Iowa. Swanson, a five-time champion in USAC Silver Crown, will be in the June 26 race at Eldora Speedway, and Santos, a winner in USAC and NASCAR Whelen Modified, will race July 3 at Lucas Oil Raceway.
The winner of the Slinger Nationals, the prestigious short-track race for Super Late Models in Wisconsin, will be invited to race July 10 with the SRX at Slinger Speedway.
From the SRX release:
--Coby, 41, has scored 29 career feature wins at Stafford – 12 on the Whelen Modified Tour, eight in Pro Stock, five in SK Modifieds, and four in Late Models. The Milford, Connecticut, native is the only winner of four consecutive Modified Tour championships (2014-2017).
--Brown, 42, has 180 career feature victories, including five in the World of Outlaws Sprint Cars. The Grain Valley, Missouri, native is the four-time and reigning 410 Sprint Car champion at Knoxville (2007, 2010, 2019 and 2020), where his 52 wins place him fifth on the track’s all-time list.
--Swanson, 33, has five USAC Silver Crown championships (2014, 2015 2017, 2018 and 2019), the most in series history, along with 30 career wins and 31 poles. The Kingsburg, California, native holds the Silver Crown record for most consecutive wins (five) and he is the all-time series leader in podium finishes and laps led.
--Santos, 35, has 149 starts on the Whelen Modified Tour with 19 victories, 54 top-five finishes and 18 pole positions. The Franklin, Massachusetts, native won the 2010 series championship.
