If supercross and Canada were on Facebook and in a relationship, their status would be “It’s complicated.” Of course, Feld Motor Sports has visited Toronto a number of times for Monster Energy AMA Supercross, and even visited Vancouver a couple of times, but as far as standalone supercrosses go, Canada hasn’t always been able to make it work like France or Germany have, for example.
For a time in the mid- to early 1980s, there a Canadian Supercross Championship Series went to Vancouver, Calgary, Toronto, and Montreal that drew dome big from the U.S. Among the more noteworthy events was Toronto in 1980, when torrential showers flooded what was then and open-air stadium. Team Yamaha’s Donnie Cantaloupi took the win with Broc Glover second in a race where only the top two were moving when the checkers came out. A couple years later, at a dry Toronto race, Team Honda’s Johnny O’Mara won his first professional supercross. Suzuki’s Mark Barnett was a multi-time Canadian supercross winner. And like O’Mara, Damon Bradshaw’s first 250cc supercross win in North America was in Toronto, in ’89. Heck, I can remember drooling at the full works Honda RC250 that was sent up for Bob Hannah to ride when he won Calgary ’84.