Investors in UFC, Yankees/Nets and IMG Place Big Bet on Global Supercross Series as SX Global Unveils Plans for FIM Supercross World Championship Series.
Global Series Promises to Elevate the Sport & Expand Global Fanbase, Offering Unprecedented Financial Support for Teams & Riders, Along with the Sport’s Richest Prize Purses
SX Global, the Australian company that recently earned the exclusive rights to manage and promote the FIM Supercross World Championship, today unveiled plans for the comprehensive global championship series. Featuring an independent team-ownership model, unprecedented financial support for teams and riders, expanded opportunities for global and local sponsors and innovations to elevate the broadcast and in-stadium experience; the FIM Supercross World Championship represent the most progressive and ambitious platform to elevate the sport and expand its appeal across the world.
The series will feature a highly exclusive structure, with only 10 team licenses available to independent owners, and an unparalleled level of financial support for teams, including seed funding for every team entering the series, appearance fees at every event, and logistics and freight support throughout the series. In total, more than $50 million has been designated specifically for team and rider support over five years. In addition, the independent ownership model opens the door for significant sponsorship opportunities on global and local-event levels.
SX Global is a company out of Queensland who recently earned the rights to the FIM (International Federation of Motorcycles) badge and is pursuing the development of a legit FIM World Supercross Championship. SX Global is led by Tony Cochrane who is the man behind the V8 Supercars series out in Australia. It’s become a very legit series and has expanded internationally with events in US, Japan, Bahrain, etc. In addition to Cochrane, two long-time motocross veterans are spearheading this venture with Cochrane: Adam Bailey, who’s a former pro motocross rider-turned event promoter, and Ryan Sanderson. These two have built and managed the Aus-X Open since 2015.
Image from the Monster Energy Aus-X Open at Marvel Stadium, Melbourne on November 30th, 2019.
Plans for the global Championship series were underscored today by the news of Mubadala Capital’s investment in SX Global, bringing an unprecedented level of financial support and development resources on behalf of the FIM Supercross World Championship. Mubadala Capital, the asset management arm of Mubadala Investment Company, a sovereign investor with $243 billion in assets under management, brings a wealth of experience in funding the development of global business and sports ventures.
“There is a massive fanbase and untapped demand for supercross outside the United States and backed by the financial support and significant resource of Mubadala Capital, we intend to feed that, bringing the sport to new regions through the most exciting and lucrative World Championship series in the history of the sport,” said Tony Cochrane, president of SX Global. “We have created an entirely new model for supercross – one that emphasizes expanded financial support and opportunities for riders and teams, expanded opportunities for sponsorship and an elevated experience for fans.”
Aus-X Open 2019 International Supercross and FMX Marvel Stadium, Melbourne VIC Saturday 30 November 2019 © STL / Jeff Crow
While professional supercross has seen success in the United States for decades, there has yet to be a definitive global series to lay claim to a true FIM-sanctioned World Championship. Highly successful events are held throughout Europe and Australia every year, normally around September–December. However, these events are not currently linked by any official FIM ‘championship’ status, and this remains a significant untapped opportunity for the sport’s ongoing credibility and evolution, as well as a significant opportunity for riders and teams to expand their influence and financial prospects.
“Over the years, there have been various attempts to build a true World Championship series for supercross, but none of them have succeeded, due to deficiencies in funding and resource, lack of global and regional relationships and a variety of other factors,” said Adam Bailey, managing director, Motorsport, for SX Global. “Our team possess the necessary supercross and international event background, relationships and expertise, and the funding to make this World Championship a reality.”
SX Global brings a team of highly qualified motorsports and entertainment executives, armed with the experience to successfully deliver a series of this magnitude. SX Global President, Tony Cochrane, spearheaded the development and success of V8 Supercars, an Australian-based auto racing series that became one of Australia’s most successful motorsports, eventually expanding with events in Shanghai, the United States, Bahrain, Abu Dhabi and New Zealand. In addition, proven supercross event veterans Adam Bailey and Ryan Sanderson have been the driving force behind Australia’s highest-profile supercross offering, the AUS-X open. The duo has promoted five years of consecutive sold out AUS-X Open events in Sydney (2015-2018) and Melbourne (2019), along with successful events in Auckland, New Zealand in 2018 and 2019.
“Our entire careers have been driven by a passion for motorsport and entertainment, and our motivations are as pure as they come – to continue to evolve and elevate our sport and its incredible athletes to new levels of global relevance and success,” said Ryan Sanderson, managing director, Commercial, for SX Global “Our aim is to take the amazing sport of supercross global and reveal its greatness to millions of new fans all over the world.”
The Money
On the financial front, SX Global is funded by Mubadala Investment Company, a heavy-hitting venture capital entity based in UAE. This is a power group holding major stakes in IMG/Endeavor, Yankees/Nets Entertainment, UFC and a variety of other sports holdings. All totaled, this group has $243 BILLION under management.
That is Billion with a BIG CAPITAL B
This is not some rinky-dink venture for SX Global, the dollar amounts they are working with and allocating to riders and teams is pretty staggering in comparison to the financials that Supercross/motocross riders and teams have been afforded to date. There have been groups that have tried to pull this off over the past 20 years, but none had enough money, or enough experience in big-time motorsports events/business, or the necessary motocross relationships/credibility, or they didn’t have the staying power to stick it out and truly build it properly. This group has ALL of that.
This is a topic that is drawing an enormous amount of debate, opposition and more here among the US motocross industry. This will definitely create controversy.
In our opinion, if you speak to American Motocross industry players such as; American manufacturers, Feld, AMA, etc., you’re likely to get a very skeptical and pessimistic perspective about SX Global and its prospect of making this global series a reality. They will probably site a number of reasons, including ”not the right people to do it…there’s no way they’ll get the top riders…they won’t have enough money or staying power to make it real…the American manufacturers won’t invest the time, energy and money for it”…etc. etc.
Marvel Stadium opening ceremony for 2019 AUS-X Open
What is being announced, along with details about their plan, and how they plan to compensate riders and teams is at a level never seen in motocross or Supercross in the US. BIG appearance fees for every event.
Plus, the biggest prize purses ever offered in motocross or Supercross events. Even more, the series is covering all travel, logistics/freight costs for each team. They are going to feature an independent-ownership model, much like you now see in F1, NASCAR or the major stick and ball sports, and a limited 10-team model, so the teams have significant value for sale or purchase down the line. And to incentivize ownership entry, they are offering start-up “seed” money to help teams get rolling. It’s crazy money they are working with.
The Future of AMA Supercross and Pro Motocross
Currently, the best Supercross racing is here in the United States with the Monster Energy AMA Supercross series. But there really is no other options/competitor. To this point, Feld Entertainment, the group that runs the Monster Energy AMA Supercross series here in America, can claim that the current Supercross circuit is the epicenter of global racing and with the amount of foreign riders currently competing in the series, that have the facts to back up that claim.However to claim that Monster Energy Supercross is enough would be totally ignoring the demand for the sport abroad, as well as the financial and marketing opportunities for riders, manufacturers, and sponsors that a global series and going into new markets, starving for stadium-format motocross entertainment, represents. After the 2021 season, Feld chose not to renew its FIM license, because it felt it was unnecessary and irrelevant to its credibility and success. That’s the reason it was even up for grabs in the first place. And here in the US, it may be true that the FIM badge is insignificant. But ask a manufacturer or sponsor overseas in Japan, Europe or elsewhere, and they’ll tell you that the FIM badge and sanctioned FIM events mean A LOT. It’s a big deal outside of the US.
Monster Energy AMA Supercross Championship; 2022 Season; Round 3; Petco Park; San Diego, California; January 22, 2022; Photo: Tyler Tate/T Squared Sports Media