Toyota Thunder Valley National strikes Lakewood

SuperMotocross World Championships called sport’s ‘ultimate test’

BY JOHN RENFROW JRENFROW@COLORADOCOMMUNITYMEDIA.COM

The Pro Motocross Championship stopped in Lakewood on June 10 for the Toyota Thunder Valley National.

Dirt flew and mixed with the smell of exhaust in the air as riders battled it out at an altitude of 6,128 feet at Thunder Valley Motocross Park — the highest professional motocross track in the world. Opening ceremonies began at 12:30 p.m. on June 10 as part of a campaign in 10 U.S. cities to crown two American Motorcyclist Association national champions.

“The whole point of this championship is to challenge these athletes with the toughest, most grueling race tracks in the world,” said Brandon Short, media manager with Pro Motocross. “This championship has been around for a half century and it has been the ultimate test for any athlete that competes in this motocross discipline. It’s the ultimate showcase.”

The track is composed of many different levels of unique challenges, such as slope, length, and in this case: elevation. The motorcycles are “starving for oxygen” just like their riders, Short said. The terrain at Thunder Valley is constantly changing from lap to lap.

“[Thunder Valley] is the complete mix of the best of what makes motocross so special and what makes it a unique and captivating sport,” Short said. “A venue that challenges riders in every facet possible, and even challenges the motorcycles in every facet possible. It’s the magic mix of what you could ever ask for to watch a true spectacle and what is going to unfold on the racetrack.”

The Pro Motocross Championship is one of the centerpieces of the larger, new SuperMotocross World Championship, with over $5 million on the line in payouts to athletes.

Created in 2022, the comprehensive 31-race season combines the winter AMA Supercross Championship (which takes place on man-made racetracks in stadiums across the country from January to mid-May) and the summer Pro Motocross Championship, (the original outdoor sport that visits rural venues in off-road motorcycle racing from late-May through

August).

The ultimate champion of both will be crowned following the first SuperMotocross World Championship playoffs and finals this September.

“We have come together with AMA Supercross and Pro Motocross. They’ve always been separate, but they’ve always had the same athletes throughout. So we’ve got to a point where we’re better together than apart,” Short said.

“The organizers [of both] have come together to form the Supercross World Championship. We’ll have the champion for the winter. We’ll have our champion for the summer. But then we get to see who the ultimate champion is this fall.”

Motocross races have been held at Thunder Valley since 2005. The event marks the second of two recent SuperMotocross World Championship races in the area, following the Denver Supercross at Empower Field at Mile High in early May.

“The fan response has been tremendous,” Short added. “It seems like everybody is really embracing the atmosphere of what this combined championship has become.”