Nitrocross, a racing series created by Travis Pastrana, has made some changes to the 2024-25 schedule.
There will be five destinations on the schedule for the racing series where “cars fly.” Each will host a doubleheader to make a 10-round championship season, starting with Richmond Raceway.
Formerly known as the Action Track, Richmond Raceway is a mainstay on the NASCAR schedule. It hosts two races each season, one in the spring and one in the summer.
On Sept. 7-8, however, the .75-mile short track will be the home of Nitrocross after Pastrana and the Nitrocross crew construct a temporary track in the infield. There will be a mix of dirt and asphalt, a formula the series has used throughout venues across North America.
The second addition to the 2024-25 schedule is Miami, Florida. The racing series will head to Biscayne Bay on Jan. 11-12, 2025, for the penultimate race weekend of the season. Miami will replace Glen Helen Raceway in California, which had been a series mainstay.
According to Racer, the reason for the change is severe winds that have disrupted past Nitrocross events.
Nitrocross has a history in Florida. The series, known as Nitro Rallycross at the time, closed out the 2021 season at the FIRM, a venue near Jacksonville.
Another change for the season is the removal of Calgary. Nitrocross previously made two trips north of the border for ice races and had originally planned a return for Jan.31-Feb. 1, 2025. Now, however, Nitrocross will go straight from Miami to Las Vegas, Nevada, for the championship rounds on Mar. 1-2.
All of the Nitrocross events will air live — and for free — on the Rumble video platform.
Nitrocross has multiple vehicle types
Nitrocross has multiple racing series that make up each weekend — Group E, Next, SxS, and Baja Bugs — all of which offer something different for the fans.
Group E serves as a showcase for the series’ best drivers and its fastest cars. Figures such as Travis Pastrana, Oliver Erikkson, Fraser McConnell, and Robin Larsson among others have controlled the all-electric FC1-X.
This electric racer has a peak power output of 787kW (1055 hp) and 811 lb-ft of torque. It can go from zero to 60 mph in 1.4 seconds. The lightweight body (2744.755 pounds) and four-wheel drive system mean the FC1-X is better able to handle ice, dirt, asphalt, and jumps throughout each race weekend.
The Next series will have a new car for the upcoming season. The second-tier series previously relied on the SuperCar Lites produced in Sweden. Now it will feature the FC2, an upgrade kit for the SuperCar Lites that improves the race vehicle while keeping the costs on the lower end. The cars will have the name Next Evo.
The SxS class showcases drivers competing in identical Can-Am Maverick X3s, high-performance side-by-side vehicles. The rotating lineup has featured such names as Brian Deegan, former UFC fighter Donald “Cowboy” Cerrone, Mika Block, and motocross competitor Banks Hovey.
Finally, there is the Baja Bugs class. This class features revved-up Volkswagen Beetles from the 1960s and ’70s. The goal is to find the fastest car under 100 horsepower.
Unlike Group E, the support classes do not take the gap jump on the purpose-built tracks. They simply slide around in the dirt or on the pavement while occasionally slamming doors.