Superstar Racing Experience (SRX), officially known as the Camping World SRX Series, is an American stock car racing series founded by Tony Stewart, Ray Evernham, Sandy Montag and George Pyne.[1] The formation of the series was announced on July 13, 2020, and debuted on June 12, 2021, televised on CBS on Saturday nights.
On January 31, 2022, the series was renewed for a second season that premiered on June 18, 2022 and was also aired on Saturday nights.[2] Its third season aired on July 13, 2023, on ESPN with the series moving races to Thursday nights.
On January 11, 2024, with 5 of 6 races scheduled, it was announced that the 2024 season was postponed due to market factors.[3] Evernham later stated in an interview with Forbes that the poor television ratings for the third season was the primary market factor for the cancellation of the series.[4]
On March 22, 2024, the Skip Barber Racing School announced that it had acquired the series and is forming a plan for a 2024 season.[5] The sale was reported to have fallen through in August, resulting in SRX management filing a lawsuit.[6]
History
On July 13, 2020, it was reported that SRX was in preparation for a 2021 debut season. The series' founders included former NASCAR driver and current team owner Tony Stewart, former NASCAR team owner and crew chief Ray Evernham as well as former NASCAR executive George Pyne and sports agent Sandy Montag.[1] Initially, series management was split between New York City and Charlotte, North Carolina.[1]
On January 20, 2022, Don Hawk was named CEO of SRX.[8] On March 30, Evernham announced via Twitter that he was no longer in charge of SRX, but has kept his role as an investor of the sport.[9][10]
Championship
SRX draws direct contrast from NASCAR when aiming for shorter races at shorter tracks, and also with the random pairing of driver and crew chief for each race.[11] Founder Tony Stewart compared it to IROC by comparing the aspects of identical cars and an all-star cast of drivers.[12]
Cars
SRX cars were completely designed by founder Ray Evernham and were in concept stage when the series was founded in July 2020.[13] Teaser photos of the car showed it has a high rear spoiler and is said to have high horsepower and low downforce.[14]Fury Race Cars serves as the cars' chassis designer and builder.[15] The cars use naturally aspirated Ilmor V8 396 cui engines, which are primarily featured in the ARCA Menards Series, with components from Edelbrock,[16] while brakes are provided by Performance Friction Corporation (PFC).[17]
Drivers receive their cars before each race via random draw.[18] A driver's car retains its color for the full season for easy identification.[19]
Drivers
The series' lineup is made up of younger up and coming drivers looking for exposure in addition to the older and retired drivers.[20] In addition to those running the full schedule, the series provides a "Rocky Balboa" car for a local champion at each track and a "ringer" entry for notable drivers making cameo appearances.[21][22]
Races last 90 minutes without pit stops, though there is also a "halftime" for adjustments to be made to the car.[24]
Two 12-minute heat races take place before the feature; the final lap begins when time runs out and the leader crosses the start/finish line.[19] A random draw sets the starting lineup for the first heat, while the second is determined by an inversion of the first race's finishing results.[18] The duration of the heats was originally set to 15 minutes before being changed following the inaugural race.[19]
The feature race is 100 laps long at all paved ovals but Slinger, where the distance is 150 laps, while the dirt tracks have 50-lap features.[19] The starting order is based on average finishing position between the two heats. There are also unlimited attempts at a green–white–checker finish.[18]
Bestwick, Yocum, Daugherty, and Czarniak returned for the 2022 season, while 2021 driver Willy T. Ribbs joined the broadcast team as an analyst. Conor Daly was signed as a driver analyst.[28]
For the 2023 season, races were held on Thursday nights and televised on ESPN, reviving its former Thursday Night Thunder branding, which had been used from 1989 to 2002 for primetime broadcasts of short track races.[30][31]
Notes
^During the first race of the 2022 SRX Series Season at Five Flags Speedway, Marco Andretti was given a late order to pit. Due to this, Andretti started 12th in Heat #2, instead of 9th. Andretti was awarded 3 additional points, to make up the three positions and address this late call. This issue ended up playing a major part in deciding who won the 2022 SRX Series Season Championship without this solution, Marco Andretti would've finished with 192 points, 1 behind Ryan Newman who finished with 193 points. [25]
