The fourth season of the SuperMotocross (SMX) World Championship kicked off on December 9-10 with the series’ annual media sessions, and Dave Prater, Vice President of Supercross for Feld Entertainment, gave a ‘state of the sport’ address.
With three years of experience unifying Monster Energy Supercross and Pro Motocross points, and the addition of a three-round playoff series, the sport continues to grow. So far, there have not been many hairpin turns on the road and few potholes, but Prater believes there is still plenty of room to improve.
“I think everything can be improved; I mean everything,” Prater told the assembled media. “I think that’s another benefit of Feld and MX Sports coming together. There’s so much institutional knowledge about the sport in general, but there’s also this vision for the future, and I don’t think anyone puts any limits on this awareness. I think we need to grow awareness of the sport, and we’ve been doing that now that we’ve got a nine-month season. You hit that consistent message all year, really, even during the off-season, we’re still out front and center and driving awareness of the sport. So I think that’s the main thing, just that momentum of awareness in the general public.”
Four years ago, conversations about a unified television package for Supercross and Motocross quickly escalated into discussions about a playoff-style postseason that required the two companies to work closely together. At first glance, the two series appeared markedly different. Feld Entertainment has a more rigid corporate structure that encompasses a variety of divisions. MX Sports is a family-run business with deeper roots in dirt bike racing. But at their core, both companies have highly engaged upper management who are also fans of the sport.
Not much has changed in that dynamic.
“We are just getting better overall because they have a vast knowledge of Motocross, and we are obviously experts on Supercross,” Prater said. “You don’t think about those sports being that different. At least I didn’t, obviously: same riders, same athletes, same teams, but the approach to both was really different, and hopefully you guys can see it — and fans can see it now. I think the approach to both sports is really becoming joint, and it’s lifting both.”
The third leg of the stool is the television coverage from NBC Sports and Peacock.tv. Three years into a five-year deal to stream all 31 rounds of the SMX League and provide live television coverage of select events, it is time for conversations to begin again.
The sanctioning bodies and network are reportedly happy with the association.
"[NBC] keeps saying that our fan is the stickiest they have, meaning they watch more content than any other sports fan,” Prater said. “And if you think about it, Race Day Live, sometimes four hours, then the race is three hours, and then a half-hour post-show. They’re watching seven and a half hours every Saturday for nine months straight. So they love the sport. We’ve turned NBC staff into SMX fans, which is awesome to go up there and actually hear from the guys in the production studio. They’re working on Sunday Night Football, talk about watching Jett [Lawrence], Haiden [Deegan], and all these guys.
“So yeah, we’re excited with what Peacock’s been able to do. And again, that’s another [area where] I don’t see the growth slowing down. It’s been double-digit growth in the viewership for those three years. So in the back of my mind, I’m always like, how are we going to keep this double-digit [trend going]?”
Where will that double-digit growth come from? To all appearances, it is by continuing to do what has worked and looking for new ways to tweak the existing product. The half-hour post-race show was a new addition during the 2025 season.
“Where do I see it going?” Prater asked. “I think the sky’s the limit, and that’s cliched, but it’s really true. We’ve got this incredibly young and exciting sport, and unfortunately, right now it’s kind of the best-kept secret, but we’re getting there, and the momentum’s growing, and we’ve seen double-digit growth in almost every category over the last three years. We just need to keep that going.
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