Nitro Rallycross Announces Global 2022-23 Schedule; 10 Events, Six Countries on Tap
Image via Red Bull Content Pool
The second full season of Nitro Rallycross will see the series make its first trip across the Atlantic Ocean, kicking off with three events in Europe, before completing the majority of the balance of its campaign in North America. The festivities kick off in June at the historic Lydden Hill Circuit, the birthplace of the sport, as it hosts its first international-level event in five years.
The full 2022-23 Nitro Rallycross schedule is as follows:
· June 18-19: Lydden Hill, England
· July 30-31: Sweden
· August 27-28: Finland
· October 1-2: Minneapolis, MN
· October 29-30: Los Angeles, CA
· November 12-13: Phoenix, AZ
· December 10-11: Saudi Arabia
· January 21-22: Quebec
· February 4-5: Alberta
· March TBD: United States TBD
The 2022-23 NRX schedule will include the debut of Group E, featuring the electric First Corner FC1-X that produces 1,070 horsepower, alongside the return of the Supercar and NRX Next classes. The A SHOC Energy #GoNitro Star Car, run by NASCAR champions Chase Elliott and Kyle Busch among others last season, will also migrate to the Group E division.
Analysis/Speculation
When Travis Pastrana and Thrill One announced their commitment to taking NRX to the next level for this season, they weren’t kidding. Doubling the schedule in size, adding five new countries to the mix, and adding the 1000-horsepower FC1-X in its own class alongside the beloved Supercars are all statements of serious ambitious intent on the part of the series and its competitors. Pastrana’s comments about redesigning tracks to put even more opportunities to pass in the drivers’ hands have surely also been well received, both inside the paddock and out of it.
On the European portion of the schedule: heading to Lydden Hill is certain to be a popular move, as its loss on the FIA World Rallycross calendar has been felt for years. Red Bull Global Rallycross attempted to head there in 2018, but the series collapsed before turning a wheel that season. There are numerous quality track options in both Sweden and Finland, and many of them are a part of the RallyX Nordic schedule; Olsbergs MSE’s Andreas Eriksson, whose team builds the FC1-X machines, has a huge hand in that series, so don’t be surprised if those tracks are also on that schedule.
Assuming the Minneapolis, Los Angeles, and Phoenix dates remain at ERX Motor Park, Glen Helen Raceway, and Wild Horse Pass Motorsports Park, NRX will also accomplish something that both GRC and Americas Rallycross failed to do: build both venue and date equity. ERX and Wild Horse Pass would each be returning to their 2021 race weekends, and Glen Helen would be moving up a few weeks to prevent the back-to-backs that made last year’s events tougher on teams.
Less is known about the Saudi Arabian and Canadian events, although ice racing venues have been rumored in North American rallycross for years. The to-be-determined American finale also opens the door for a return to either Utah Motorsports Campus or The FIRM Rally School, last year’s venues that were left off today’s announcement.
What may quietly be the most innovative move of all, though, is moving the Star Car to Group E. If big names like Busch and Elliott want to continue to sample NRX machinery in the series car, it’ll force them to go electric—and if the car is as good as advertised by those who have already sampled it, it may be the first step towards truly making electric racing cool in the United States.