Grassroots Racing Takes Hold

After a victorious first season, Superstar Racing Experience refuels for another lap.

- By Nicholas Mcclelland

When Doug Coby won the first SRX race at Connecticut’s Stafford Motor Speedway, one of the more intriguing concepts sown into the series came to fruition. The local all-star had triumphed over a field full of motorsport legends—and a David vs. Goliath story line was realized.

“It was actually Ray’s idea,” says racing icon Tony Stewart, co-creator of the series [with NASCAR Hall of Famer Ray Evernham], about the decision to add up-and-coming short-track drivers to the roster. “We didn’t know exactly how it was going to shake out, but after we ran the season I was extremely pleased with it. I thought it brought an element to SRX that made it real to local short-track fans.”

Short track is the grass roots of stock car racing, and its dedicated fans come out on a regular basis. Those are the racing consumers that Stewart, Evernham, Sandy Montag and George Pyne had in mind when they created the Superstar Racing Experience (SRX), betting in part that these devotees would germinate and grow the series into one that elevates motorsport in general.