Robby Gordon's ambitious plans to launch a new off-road stadium truck series got a big boost with the announcement that the new series will run a demonstration race at the Toyota GP of Long Beach, utilizing the famous 11-turn, 1.97-mile street course, augmented by metal jumps, just prior to Sunday's IZOD IndyCar Series main event.
It has been a long-held dream of Gordon's to personally redevelop and bring back this unique form of off-road stadium racing that was immensely popular more than 20 years ago, when it was known as the Mickey Thompson Off-Road Championship.
“Long Beach is going to be insane,” said Gordon. “Imagine these 600hp machines drifting around corners and hitting metal jumps, flying over 50 feet through the air on the famous road course that has seen icons like Mario Andretti, A.J. Foyt, Al Unser Jr. and many more. To run our Stadium SUPER Trucks Series here, it's truly a great thing for us as we get to bring even more fun and excitement to the Long Beach event and show racing fans what off-road trucks can really do on asphalt.”
Gordon, who himself competed regularly on the streets of Long Beach in the mid-1990s, scored a Trans Am win as well as a podium finish in the Indy car race there in 1994. Robby will be one of the many drivers who will take part in the Truck Series race, which will be the only event on the 2013 Stadium SUPER Trucks schedule slated to run on asphalt.
“We are excited to add Robby Gordon's Stadium SUPER Trucks to our Sunday program,” said Jim Michaelian, president and CEO of the Grand Prix Association of Long Beach. “This will bring a whole new dimension to the multitude of racing activities we have on our weekend program and the sights and sounds of those V8 trucks going down Shoreline Drive should be awesome.”
Race fans will certainly get an eyeful as the Stadium SUPER Trucks go to battle, powered by 600-horsepower engines, going door-to-door on the 11-turn, 1.97-mile street course circuit for this special one-of-a-kind event.
The Grand Prix exhibition will serve as the build-up to the Robby Gordon OFF-ROAD Stadium SUPER Trucks event scheduled the following weekend (April 26-27) at the L.A. Memorial Coliseum. The series then moves to San Diego's Qualcomm Stadium on May 4 and May 18 to round out the commemorative California portion of the inaugural 2013 season.
Gordon's new series, based in Charlotte, debuts April 6 at University of Phoenix Stadium in Glendale, Ariz., to launch a 12-race season. Other venues include Cowboys Stadium in Dallas, Soldier Field in Chicago, Atlanta's Georgia Dome, Edward Jones Dome in St. Louis, and the Metrodome in Minneapolis.