SX: 2015 Monster Energy Supercross season kicks off Saturday night
This Saturday night inside the Angel Stadium of Anaheim in Anaheim, Calif., the stage will be set to determine #WhosNext as the 2015 Monster Energy AMA Supercross kicks off with a parity-packed lineup of the world’s top racers.
Saturday night’s race will air LIVE on FOX Sports 1 at 10 p.m. ET, and on the FOX Sports GO app.
Some insights heading into the 2015 Monster Energy Supercross Championship:
• The winner of the opening 450SX class race of the year has gone on to win the championship in 17 of the 41 seasons
• For the first time in four seasons, a new 450SX Class champion will be crowned in 2015.
• Just two former titleholders will line up on the 450SX Class gate to start the 2015 season - Chad Reed and Ryan Dungey.
• A total of nine Main Event winners will highlight the 450SX Class field.
• Four former 250SX Class winners will embark on their rookie 450SX Class season in 2015 - Jason Anderson, Blake Baggett, Cole Seely and Dean Wilson.
• A total of 13 of the most prominent competitors in the 450SX Class will compete on a new brand of motorcycle and/or with a new team in 2015.
• With Davi Millsaps missing all of 2014, can he build off of the success he enjoyed in Anaheim back in 2013 when he won the season opener?
• Can Ken Roczen give RCH Racing its first victory and establish it as a championship contender?
• Will Justin Barcia be able to get back on top of the podium with JGRMX and give the team title aspirations?
• Fully healthy, can Trey Canard return to the level that helped him challenge for a title as a rookie in 2011 and end Honda's 11-season championship drought?
• At the age of 32 can Reed, the sport's oldest full-time competitor, rekindle the magic he had last season before a major injury ended his championship hopes?
• Will Dungey's impressive consistency as a 450SX Class competitor, top three championship finishes in each of his five seasons, lead him to a second career title and the first for KTM?
The absence of reigning four-time Monster Energy Supercross Champion Ryan Villopoto this season means the upcoming battle for the 2015 title will be arguably the most competitive in history thanks to one of the most talented field of competitors ever assembled.
In Villopoto's absence, a trio of former Monster Energy Supercross champions - Dungey, Reed and James Stewart - were immediately seen as the heavy favorites for the 2015 title as a result of their past success. However, in mid-December the landscape of the 2015 season changed again when Stewart was given a 16-month suspension by the FIM for failing a drug test at the Seattle stop of the 2014 season. As a result, the sport's two winningest riders over the past eight seasons, and winners of five of the past six championships, would not factor into the 2015 title fight at all.
As a whole, the lineup set to battle for the open Monster Energy Supercross championship is filled with veteran talent, youthful exuberance and a list of riders who know how to win. With no one standing in their way, each competitor will lay it all on the line to stake his claim for the title, which could make for one of the most parity-driven seasons of all time.
Headlining the 2015 Monster Energy Supercross television package will be the first-ever live FOX network broadcast from MetLife Stadium in East Rutherford, N.J., on Saturday, April 25 at 3pm E.T.
FOX Sports 1 will broadcast 12 races live and FOX Sports 2 will broadcast 3 races live. Each race will include a next-day re-air on FOX Sports 1. In addition, the authenticated FOX Sports Go app will live stream each race.
Nearly 200 countries will televise the season and, as a precursor to the live television, don't forget to catch all of the pre-race coverage with Supercross Race Day Live, which will stream on www.SupercrossLive.com from 12:50 - 4:30 p.m. local race time each Saturday during the season. Practice, qualifying, behind the scenes features, and key rider interviews will all be highlighted on the Supercross Race Day Live webcast.
"This is an exciting time for Monster Energy Supercross as we enter the 2015 season with the most robust media package in history, spanning across multiple platforms with new cutting edge content," said Ken Hudgens, COO, Feld Motor Sports. "The global television distribution has hit record numbers, and the first ever race on Fox Broadcast Channel elevates the sport to an entirely new level."
In addition, Monster Energy Supercross Behind the Dream has expanded to an 8-episode series in 2015, exclusively on FOX Sports 1. Never before have viewers been given such a personal look into the lives of the sport's athletes who lay it all on the line over the course of 17 weekends. From training routines, to family dynamics, to triumphs and hurdles, viewers will be provided with an insider's perspective of what it takes to be successful in the world's premier off-road motorcycle championship - on and off the track. The first episode will air on Sunday, Jan. 18 and will focus on #WhosNext in the sport, in addition to a roundtable discussion with some of the legends of Monster Energy Supercross.
Never miss a race next season, add all the 2015 Monster Energy Supercross races to your calendar! Tweet#SXonFOX to @FOXSports1 and then check your notifications. You can also click HERE to get all the 2015 races added directly to your calendar.
