Arenacross Is Done; Welcome to Supercross Futures Amateur Events
All season long, we've heard rumors that Amsoil Arenacross was not long for this world and that the 2018 season may be its last. When Jacob Hayes clinched the 2018 AX Championship, he announced to the supercross crowd in Las Vegas he was "looking for a supercross ride next year."
Well, now the word is out, although not easy to find. In a press release today from Feld Motor Sports explaining supercross' continuing growth, we found this little explanation:
As Monster Energy Supercross continues to celebrate major milestones, the unveiling of Supercross Futures, an AMA Amateur National Championship, will transition AMSOIL Arenacross into the new Supercross Futures amateur events as we continue to improve the overall quality of Supercross. Building upon the success of 2018's four Supercross Amateur Racing events, which averaged over 700 entries, the ground-breaking Supercross Futures concept will introduce eight amateur racing events in 2019 and provide greater access to the sport's largest stage to further hone their skills on full-size Supercross tracks, while also allowing top amateur athletes to earn Road to Supercross points toward their professional AMA Supercross license.
So that's it. Amsoil Arenacross now becomes Supercross Futures and will compete at eight events next year, on Sundays after supercross. We're not sure if this will be a points-paying championship like arenacross, though, as the SX amateur events were run as stand-alone events in 2017.
We'll have more on this developing story, as there will be quite a bit of fallout for riders and teams.
RIP, arenacross.
