SuperMotocross playoffs return to Charlotte area for third consecutive year
The SuperMotocross World Championship Playoffs return to zMAX Dragway in Concord on Friday and Saturday.
This year’s track is going to have a split start — the first in SMX history — as the gates will be fully disconnected. Riders will be racing away from one another, then turn over by the walls and come together to connect. There’s not a good spot for an 82-foot-wide starting gate, and this splits that up and creates one of the sport’s most unique track designs.
Portions of the circuit always spill out into the parking lot, and track designer Alex Gillespie knew that at least the beginning of the race needs to be fully viewable for all the fans. This year’s new track has 11 gates between two of the concrete barriers that stand roughly 60 feet from each other, as opposed to one giant pad over three lanes.
“That’s the biggest difference we have this year,” Gillespie said. “The first year was a huge learning curve. We were backing trucks up all the way down and building the track from the far end. The second year we did the same, but we figured out toward the end where we could drive trucks forward down the return lanes and back them down the middle. How we circulated the trucks back to the dirt pile on-site really sped things up.
“We just started changing some things around on how we circulated trucks, how we built the track — and just got more and more efficient.”
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A growing presence in the Charlotte area
The world’s best off-road motorcycle racers are coming to Concord once again.
The sport itself keeps evolving, three years into this championship format, and the playoffs have returned to Concord each fall. This marks the third consecutive year the venue near Charlotte Motor Speedway has hosted the playoff opener — the only venue to do so in SMX history.
”There’s a lot of synergy between SMX and NASCAR,” said Mike Muye, director of operations for Feld Motorsports. “We’re continuously growing our fan base in the area, and it’s been really good. We’ll continue to look to this market as one of our key components to the playoff series.
“Working with the team here at Charlotte Motor Speedway has been phenomenal, and that makes a huge difference in how the event operates. We like it here, and we hope to continue to come back for quite some time.”
North Carolina native Cooper Webb looks to win his fourth World Championship this weekend. Jett Lawrence and Haiden Deegan — brother of NASCAR driver Hailie — are among SMX stars attempting to win their third World Championships.
Ticket info
Tickets are available on Ticketmaster (prices subject to change, ticketing fees may apply). For more information — including everything on fan events, VIP packages and the full race weekend — check out supermotocross.com.
Weekend schedule
Friday: • Fan Zone open 11 a.m.–6 p.m. Meet the riders, grab autographs, and get a sneak peek at race prep. (Separate ticket required, starting at $40.)
Saturday: • FanFest from 8 a.m.–2 p.m. Included with your Saturday ticket — hit up sponsor booths, check out the bikes and meet racing’s biggest names. • Opening ceremonies at 2:30 p.m. • First race gate drops at 3 p.m.
This story was originally published September 5, 2025 at 6:00 AM with the headline "SuperMotocross playoffs return to Charlotte area for third consecutive year."
