Why no USGP?

Nobody went. I went to the USGP’s they had at Glen Helen in 10, 11 as well as 15, 16. Place was empty every time 

People don’t fill gyms for JV. 

Bottom line: Historically they have had low attendance and do not make money. The fact that the FIM is difficult to deal with only adds to the problem. 

I wonder if turnout would be better if it was somewhere like Millville, Red Bud, Budds Creek, or Thunder Valley? The casual So Cal fan is not going to watch Euros race but I could see fans around the tracks I listed turning out. 

The only place it should go is Unadilla. But the days of us vs the world that drove the events intrigue are well behind us. Toss in the sanctioning fee and it's just not financially feasible. 

Next best thing is MXdN which thankfully comes on a regular basis. 

To miss an opportunity to see MXGP riders at a track like Glen Helen is blasphemy!  Especially this year with the talent that MXGP has. What a bummer. 

And I really wish the personalities involved could get over their petty little squabbles and get the National back at Glen Helen. I watched the 2015 Glen Helen National last night and I really believe that is one of the best race tracks on the circuit. Hands down better than Pala. The only place that could be better is if Cahuilla could combine the Main and VET track into a 3:30 minute lap time national track. 

I was at Glen Helen in 15 and also WW Ranch…. Would go again if they came over.  But yeah, not filling the stands is a problem.  And the heat kills those guys.

The top Americans stopped going. It used to be that Unadilla and Carlsbad were two of the most prestigious events you wanted to win, along with the MXdN. Hell, the only time we got on TV was the USGP after about a month or so. 

Riders stopped giving a shit. Not gonna pay me? Fuck off. No championship on the line, fuck off, again. Top factory riders used to ride the SUPPORT class at USGPs just to prove their worth for being chosen for the MXdN team, 

It's a shame. Get off my fucking lawn. 

the US racers didnt go because there was no money for them to do so,  no prize money, no bonuses from the factorys, 

the fans didnt show, cause the US based riders didnt go, 

no US state or local govt pays for the pleasure of having GP's show up, 

When the Americans domineted motocross and easily won..they did come... so it is not just about money

But were they getting paid back in old days? I definitely think there used to be a lot of national pride back in the day. 

I don't know if they were paid, but I think it would be quite nice for an american to win the usgp once , but which american can still win in mxgp..........only tomac and deegan can do that I think

I would absolutely travel a days drive to see a USGP. I based a vacation around the 2015 USGP, but that was originally to see a RV/Cairoli showdown that never happened. Can confirm the 2015 GH GP was super easy to move around because very few people showed up. 

Lakewood, Millville, Red Bud, Ironman, or High Point would get me out if they got a GP

I went to the Charlotte MXGP. I thought the crowd size was decent. I drove 14 hours to get there. It was a great race, a great time. I would attend again if my work schedule alignes properly like it did in 2016. It was really cool to watch that Webb/Herlings battle. Worth the money and time invested, no doubt. 

The charlotte gp was never going to work. 

I bet if that gatorback thing hadn’t almost caused it to shut down that place would have been full to the brim. 

There was talk last year of having a combined US National/MXGP in an interview with Davey. I dont think it has been mentioned since.

Budds Creek had a few and getting the USA riders racing it was scarce and so were the spectators. Back then They had to do it in order to get a MXoN.

Even the Charlotte MXGP wasn’t flooded with spectators and that was with 1 large grandstand like a SX.

Funny part was the Charlotte USGP was originally going to be built on the drag strip then they changed it to the stock car dirt track up the hill and had to tear down the fencing and make the track all around it.

lumpy790 :

"Even the Charlotte MXGP wasn’t flooded with spectators and that was with 1 large grandstand like a SX."

They had a pretty good turnout though - considering, if I recall correctly, a 'monster ' storm was coming towards the area.

With how it appears now that the MXdN seems to be set for being in the USA, every 2 years / perhaps 3 , there'll be no GP in the future, I suspect. 

The MXdN gives Luongo / Infront, and the local organizer / partner ( DC / MX Sports I think) a great pay day. As is needed for putting on such an event. 

The comments about low attendance are relevant to Glen Helen but not WW (it was fine) or Charlotte (that was very successful)...

The official line from Infront is that the USGP's taken a back seat in favor of the combined Pro Motocross/MXGP race and MXoNs.

With the other points, the first round of 2026 was very nearly in Dubai (with Argentina as round two). Infront has been in negotiations with Brazil for a decade, it seems, and that's always rumored to be on the following calendar. Indonesia's only just fallen off (they didn't pay their bills) and should be back if they pay.

SMX has put even more of a squeeze on the USGP.

Previously, it strategically took a spot in September so that the American industry could support it.

How could it possibly run now? Squeeze into an off weekend in the outdoors? That seems impossible on both sides.

Nah. Those boys are quick. In 10 or 11 Cairoli pulled over and waved alessi by and then just messed with him till he wanted to pull away again 

I'd wonder if any of those tracks would like to deal with the GP brass and how they do things.

Same here, if one does comes back to GH again I'm all over it. Might have sucked for the bean counters but an International MXGP with a crowd like an oldtimer national was pretty sweet from a fan standpoint. We didn't mind the lack of people one bit 😄 

SAD BUT TRUE. I HATE THIS TOO BECAUSE, GROWING UP IN THE 1980S, THE USGP RACES WERE CONSIDERED ONE OF THE YEARS BIGGEST RACES AND EVERY TOP STAR RACED THEM, THE ONLY QUESTON WAS WHICH CLASS WOULD THE TOP AMA STARS RACE? 125, 25. OR 500 BECAUSE  ALL 3 WERE A BIG DEAL

Need 2 rounds of MXGP and AMA pro MX combined every season with points paid to each respective series 

Just like AMA Out doors, the tracks have to pay the sanctioning body to host a race. While the AMA is expensive,, I am sure the FIM is significantly more. Like most sports, it is all about the money. 

Curious if anybody knows what the AMA Cost is versus the MXGP. 

It would be so cool to see the track full of top level talent. Every rider on that 40 man gate would be a really fast guy. They could take all my money to watch that once. Twice in a year would be insane. 

Imagine a MXON at Glen Helen.. that would be cool