Why Was Infront Moto Racing CEO David Luongo (Head of MXGP) at Indianapolis SX?
Last weekend, David Luongo, CEO of Infront Moto Racing (promoters of the FIM Motocross World Championship), was in town for the Indianapolis Supercross. This was his first-ever visit to a Monster Energy AMA Supercross event, and Luongo was on the Race Day Live broadcast and then appeared on Thursday’s SMX Insider show alongside Dave Prater, Vice President – Supercross for Feld Entertainment and Tim Cotter, Vice President of MX Sports that runs the AMA Pro Motocross Championship.
So, with an MXGP round in Spain this weekend and a lot of traveling to do in between—as Davey Coombs noted in his Racerhead #12 column on Friday—why was Luongo in the United States?
Well, the short answer: Infront and MX Sports are working together with hope to bring the Monster Energy FIM Motocross of Nations back to the U.S. in the near future. Coombs stated in Racerhead that, while in the U.S., Luongo and the MX Sports crew—Cotter, along with Carrie Coombs-Russell, CEO of MX Sports and Coombs himself, president of MX Sports (sister company of Racer X)—checked out both Ironman Raceway in Crawfordsville, Indiana, and High Point Raceway in Mt. Morris, Pennsylvania, as potential hosting venues for a MXoN event (even as early as 2025). Note, a location has yet to be confirmed for the 2025 event.
So, the long answer to why the Infront crew came to the U.S.: collaboration. Being on the same page for MXoN, and different behind-the-scenes topics will help progress the sport as a whole. Also, a potential MXGP-AMA Motocross cross over event—even another USGP—could be on the table in the future as well, as Coombs noted in his Racerhead column.
“It is a collaboration between all parties and to make motorcycling in the world better,” Cotter said during the SMX Insider interview. “And to make our racers, our athletes, prepared. …By all of us working together for a common goal, it can only be better. We’ve had a wonderful time in the last several years working with our friends from Feld, and now with David and his team here, I think that collaboration will only get better.”
“Yeah, fully agree,” Luongo responded. “Sometimes Feld will have great idea, sometimes MX Sports, sometimes Infront, so it’s good to share, because this family—this motorsport—is not big enough to fight against each other, you know. By being together and collaborating, we lift up the whole system all together.”
“Our aim and our target, is to make in five, six, seven years, all these champions to make more money, to have this sport more professional, this sport more popular,” he added. “So, the whole world is getting better. This is the common target we have.”
USA has hosted five total MXoN events, first in 1987 at Unadilla Valley Sports Center, then in 2007 at Budds Creek Motocross Park, 2010 at Thunder Valley MX, 2018 at RedBud MX, and again in 2022 at RedBud MX when the U.S. team took the victory. The 2024 MXoN event is already scheduled for Matterley Basin in the United Kingdom.
Watch the SMX Insider show below.
Film/text: SuperMotocross
The SMX Insiders are back from the circle city and round 10 of Monster Energy Supercross season. In this episode, you don’t want to miss our biggest Big Interview yet: The Jasons are joined by Dave Prater, Vice President – Supercross for Feld Entertainment, Tim Cotter, Vice President of MX Sports that runs Pro Motocross, and David Luongo, the CEO of Infront Moto Racing who runs the MXGP championship. If three of the most powerful men in racing are not enough for you, the Insiders have their usual analysis of Jett Lawrence’s and Cameron McAdoo’s wins in Indy, a look at the struggling Chase Sexton and Malcolm Stewart, a look at the SMX playoff Standings and much more. In SMX Facts, Clinton Fowler tells us why we should be enjoying Jett Lawrence’s rookie year. Here is a hint: Seasons like this don’t happen very often.
