2016 Stadium Super Trucks Series
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The 2016 Stadium Super Trucks Series was the fourth season of the Stadium Super Trucks series. After two seasons as Speed Energy Formula Off-Road, the name was quietly phased out in series branding by 2016 as it became the Speed Energy Stadium Super Trucks presented by Traxxas.[1]
2015 champion Sheldon Creed defended his title when he recorded twelve wins. Matthew Brabham finished second in the championship with 570 points, a 75-point differential between him and Creed, while Robby Gordon took third.[1]
Drivers
[edit]Schedule
[edit]Round | Track | Location | Date | Supporting |
---|---|---|---|---|
1 | Adelaide Street Circuit | ![]() |
March 4–6 | Clipsal 500 Adelaide |
2 | Streets of St. Petersburg | ![]() |
March 12–13 | Firestone Grand Prix of St. Petersburg |
3 | Streets of Long Beach | ![]() |
April 16–17 | Toyota Grand Prix of Long Beach |
4 | The Raceway on Belle Isle | ![]() |
June 3–5 | Chevrolet Detroit Belle Isle Grand Prix |
5 | Townsville Street Circuit | ![]() |
July 8–10 | Castrol Edge Townsville 400 |
6 | Exhibition Place | ![]() |
July 16–17 | Honda Indy Toronto |
7 | Charlotte Motor Speedway Dirt Track | ![]() |
August 19–20 | TORC: The Off Road Championship |
8 | OC Fair & Event Center | ![]() |
September 16–17 | Sand Sports Super Show |
9 | Surfers Paradise Street Circuit | ![]() |
October 21–23 | Castrol Gold Coast 600 |
Season summary
[edit]The 2016 season began at Adelaide Street Circuit. Indianapolis 500 driver Matthew Brabham, who ran the SST round at Toronto in 2015, returned to the series for Adelaide,[23] while local driver Travis Milburn made his SST debut in the race weekend;[24] other Australians in the field included Paul Morris, Rob Cowie, Matt Mingay, Greg Gartner, and 2016 Dakar Rally winner Toby Price.[25] Defending champion Sheldon Creed started eleventh in the twelve-driver grid but drove his way through the field. In front, Price led the race until lap six, when he collided into the wall. Morris inherited the lead and dueled with Creed for the position. As the two entered the final ramps, Morris went sideways and missed the second jump, enabling Creed to take the win.[26] On the first lap of the second race, Mingay rolled his truck as he entered turn fourteen. Mingay nearly landed on Burt Jenner, but he was able to avoid Mingay's truck. Jenner battled with Price for much of the race before passing him on lap six, holding off Gordon to win.[27] Mingay's struggles continued in the third race when he was spun by Price on lap three as he entered the ramp. Creed won the round.[28]
The series returned to the United States with the Firestone Grand Prix of St. Petersburg, the third consecutive season that the trucks raced at the street course.[29] Traxxas drivers swept the weekend's two races with Creed winning the first and Keegan Kincaid the second; Tyler McQuarrie joined the two on the podium in both races. Dustin Scott ran his first SST race at St. Petersburg, finishing sixth in his debut round.[30]
Creed swept the Toyota Grand Prix of Long Beach's two races.[31] On the final lap of the second race, Pat O'Keefe landed off a jump erratically, causing his truck to slide over the second ramp before hitting the catchfence dividing the track from pit road. The wreck ended the race as Creed was declared the winner.[32] Dubai 24 Hour driver Khaled Al Mudhaf made his SST debut over the weekend,[33] finishing tenth and eighth.[7][8]
At the Chevrolet Detroit Belle Isle Grand Prix, series veteran Arie Luyendyk Jr. made his season debut.[34] Brabham recorded a weekend sweep as he won the two official races.[35][36] The slate originally featured three races, but the second round saw Mingay's truck flip on lap three, prompting a red flag and suspending the race. Mingay was taken to Detroit Receiving Hospital for facial injuries,[37] and was eventually placed under a coma for five days as he underwent jaw and brain surgeries.[38] Mingay returned to Australia after he recovered, but lost three weeks' worth of memories.[39] Officially, Race 2 is not included in the series' records.
In support of the injured Mingay, Gordon drove his No. 2 Hot Wheels truck when the series raced in the Castrol Edge Townsville 400 for the first time.[40][41] Creed, Gordon, and Viso won the three races, with Viso taking his first win of 2016; Creed, who finished second and fourth in the other two rounds, scored the weekend victory.[42] Despite his Race 2 win, Gordon finished at the back in Races 1 and 3 due to mechanical issues.[40][42]
At Honda Indy Toronto, 17-time motocross champion Sara Price made her series debut, becoming the first female driver in SST history.[43] Also debuting in the series at Toronto was Champ Car and NASCAR driver Max Papis, while 2003 CART champion Paul Tracy, who last ran an SST race in 2014, returned to the series.[44] Traxxas teammates Brabham and Creed battled one another for the weekend's two wins, with the former winning Race 1 and the latter Race 2.[45]
In August, SST partnered with TORC: The Off Road Championship to race the Dirt Track at Charlotte Motor Speedway; it was the series' first dirt track racing event since Valvoline Raceway in 2015.[46] To accommodate the stadium trucks, track officials added a 36-inch tall aluminum ramp to the start/finish line.[47] NASCAR drivers Kenny Wallace and Brian Ickler made their series debuts, though Wallace was replaced by TORC driver Jessie Johnson for Race 2 as Wallace had television obligations with the NASCAR Cup Series; Johnson, who finished third, ran his first SST race since 2013. Creed won both rounds.[48][46][49]
Entering the series' Sand Sports Super Show weekend, tragedy took place when Gordon's parents were found dead in their nearby Orange, California home;[50] in a statement released the next day, Gordon announced the race weekend would go on as planned, but added that "to switch from what happened to a business mode really stinks."[51] Heat races were held before the two finals, with SST newcomer Troy Diede starting on the pole as a result.[52] In the first race, Brabham took the lead at the start, while Gordon moved his way up from the back of the field. Late in the race, Gordon took the Joker Lap to get past Brabham and claim the win. P. J. Jones, who was substituting for O'Keefe in the Safecraft Safety Equipment truck, was able to pass Brabham to take second. With six laps left in the race, Morris flipped his truck but was able to finish sixth.[53] Creed, who finished eighth in Race 1 after breaking an axle, dominated the second with Brabham tailing.[52]
On October 13–16, the series went to Baja California to run the inaugural Mike's Peak Hill Climb Challenge, held at Mike's Sky Rancho. The hillclimbing event featured 144 competitors across various vehicle classes including SST.[54] Held on a 19.5-mile (31.4 km) course with 203 turns, water crossings and cattle grids, it marked the first time a stadium truck raced on such a track. Gordon dedicated the hillclimb to his late father Bob Gordon; he remarked "if I would have stopped this event, he would have been mad at me."[55] Including Gordon and Creed, the field of competitors featured a variety of drivers like an eleven-year old racer with his father serving as co-driver,[55] and 2015 Baja 500 winner Apdaly Lopez, who won the SST gold medal at X Games Austin 2014 and entered the hillclimb in an unlimited truck.[56] Red Bull off-road racer Bryce Menzies was also an entrant but did not compete due to injury; in his place, he challenged the SST drivers to beat his time of 14:20. On Friday, Gordon recorded the fastest time of the 16-driver field with a time of 17:08, followed by Creed with 17:29. Gordon once again led the grid on Saturday with a time of 16:51, a 22-second advantage over second-placed Creed.[57]
The season came to a close with the Castrol Gold Coast 600 at Surfers Paradise Street Circuit. In practice for Friday's race, teammates Morris and Price collided as they entered a turn, causing the two to roll over as they went into the barrier.[58] Race 1 saw multiple wrecks, including Craig Dontas taking out the chicane barriers that forced the competition caution to be expedited to facilitate repairs, with Brabham also landing on Jones' truck as they raced to the finish for second; Creed won by 12.182 seconds, one of the widest margins in SST history.[59] Gordon, returning to the No. 2 truck, won Race 2 while Creed held off Brabham for Race 3.[60][61] Gold Coast would not return to the schedule until 2019 when it also served as that year's finale.[62]
Creed concluded 2016 with a series-high twelve wins, quadruple that of the second-most (three apiece by Gordon and Brabham). With 645 total points, he scored his second SST championship ahead of Brabham's 570.[1]
Results and standings
[edit]Race results
[edit]Drivers' championship
[edit]
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Notes
[edit]- ^ Sorted by round:
References
[edit]- ^ a b c "2016 Overall Point Standings". Stadium Super Trucks. Retrieved January 15, 2017.
- ^ a b "Round 1 – Clipsal 500 – 3/4/16". Stadium Super Trucks. Retrieved April 15, 2016.
- ^ a b "Round 2 – Clipsal 500 – 3/5/16". Stadium Super Trucks. Retrieved April 15, 2016.
- ^ a b "Round 3 – Clipsal 500 – 3/6/16". Stadium Super Trucks. Retrieved April 15, 2016.
- ^ a b "Round 4 – St. Petersburg – 3/12/16". Stadium Super Trucks. Retrieved April 15, 2016.
- ^ a b "Round 5 – St. Petersburg – 3/13/16". Stadium Super Trucks. Retrieved April 15, 2016.
- ^ a b c "Round 6 – Long Beach – 4/16/16". Stadium Super Trucks. Retrieved January 15, 2017.
- ^ a b c "Round 7 – Long Beach – 4/17/16". Stadium Super Trucks. Retrieved January 15, 2017.
- ^ a b "Round 8 – Detroit – 6/3/16". Stadium Super Trucks. Retrieved January 15, 2017.
- ^ a b "Round 9 – Detroit – 6/5/16". Stadium Super Trucks. Retrieved January 15, 2017.
- ^ a b "Round 10 – Townsville – 7/8/16". Stadium Super Trucks. Retrieved January 15, 2017.
- ^ a b "Round 11 – Townsville – 7/9/16". Stadium Super Trucks. Retrieved January 15, 2017.
- ^ a b "Round 12 – Townsville – 7/10/16". Stadium Super Trucks. Retrieved January 15, 2017.
- ^ a b "Round 13 – Toronto – 7/16/16". Stadium Super Trucks. Retrieved January 15, 2017.
- ^ a b "Round 14 – Toronto – 7/17/16". Stadium Super Trucks. Retrieved January 15, 2017.
- ^ a b "Round 15 – Charlotte – 8/19/16". Stadium Super Trucks. Retrieved January 15, 2017.
- ^ a b "Round 16 – Charlotte – 8/20/16". Stadium Super Trucks. Retrieved January 15, 2017.
- ^ a b "Round 17 – Costa Mesa – 9/16/16". Stadium Super Trucks. Retrieved January 15, 2017.
- ^ a b "Round 18 – Costa Mesa – 9/17/16". Stadium Super Trucks. Retrieved January 15, 2017.
- ^ a b "Round 19 – Gold Coast – 10/21/16". Stadium Super Trucks. Retrieved January 15, 2017.
- ^ a b "Round 20 – Gold Coast – 10/22/16". Stadium Super Trucks. Retrieved January 15, 2017.
- ^ a b "Round 21 – Gold Coast – 10/23/16". Stadium Super Trucks. Retrieved January 15, 2017.
- ^ "Brabham booked for Adelaide Super Trucks tilt". Speedcafe. February 26, 2016. Retrieved February 26, 2016.
- ^ Burns, Josh (March 4, 2016). "Stadium Super Trucks to Kickoff 2016 Season in Australia". Off-Road. Retrieved February 11, 2017.
- ^ "Driver Lineup Confirmed For The 2016 Clipsal 500 Adelaide". Stadium Super Trucks. February 25, 2016. Retrieved March 1, 2016.
- ^ "Sheldon Creed Wins Stadium Super Trucks 2016 Opener in Adelaide, Australia". Stadium Super Trucks. March 4, 2016. Retrieved February 11, 2017.
- ^ Herrero, Mark (March 5, 2016). "SUPPORTS WRAP: TCM, ARC, V8 Utes, Trucks". Speedcafe. Retrieved February 10, 2017.
- ^ "Sheldon Creed Wins the Round No. 3 of Stadium Super Trucks at Clipsal 500 in Adelaide, Australia". Stadium Super Trucks. March 6, 2016. Retrieved February 11, 2017.
- ^ Burns, Josh (February 1, 2016). "Stadium Super Trucks Added to 2016 Firestone Grand Prix of St. Petersburg". Off-Road. Retrieved February 26, 2016.
- ^ "Team TRAXXAS Sweeps Stadium SUPER Trucks Weekend at Grand Prix of St. Petersburg". Speed Energy. March 13, 2016. Retrieved December 18, 2019.
- ^ "Sheldon Creed Sweeps Stadium SUPER Trucks Weekend at the Grand Prix of Long Beach". Speed Energy. April 17, 2016. Retrieved December 18, 2019.
- ^ "Watch catchfence stop Stadium Super Truck from flying into pit area". Foxsports.com. April 23, 2016. Retrieved January 18, 2017.
- ^ Blackmore, Andy (April 22, 2016). "Khaled Al Mudaf makes debut in Stadium Super Trucks". Andy Blackmore Design. Retrieved December 18, 2019.
- ^ Brudenell, Mike (June 1, 2016). "Arie Luyendyk Jr. preps for full weekend of trucks at Belle Isle". Detroit Free Press. Retrieved February 21, 2017.
- ^ Brudenell, Mike (July 3, 2016). "Brabham goes from Indy 500 to trucks win on Belle Isle". Detroit Free Press. Retrieved December 19, 2019.
- ^ Goricki, David (June 5, 2016). "Matt Brabham grabs second Trucks victory". The Detroit News. Retrieved December 19, 2019.
- ^ a b Trister, Noah (June 4, 2016). "Driver Mingay in Serious but Stable Condition After Crash". ABC News. Retrieved June 5, 2016.
- ^ Withiam, Hannah (February 27, 2017). "Horrific crash killed him 'on the spot' — now the stuntman's back". New York Post. Retrieved April 17, 2019.
- ^ "Racer who lost his jaw in horrendous Belle Isle crash is eager to race again". Autoweek. November 29, 2016. Retrieved January 17, 2017.
- ^ a b "Robby Gordon Snaps Winless Streak, Capturing Townsville Australia Race 2". Stadium Super Trucks. July 10, 2016. Retrieved December 12, 2016.
- ^ van Leeuwen, Andrew (April 20, 2016). "Super Trucks to make Townsville V8s debut". Motorsport.com. Retrieved December 19, 2019.
- ^ a b Cifre, Pep (July 10, 2016). "E.J. Viso Claims his first Stadium SUPER Trucks Win of 2016 at Sunday's SST Townsville 400 Finale". RallyRaid.net. Retrieved December 19, 2019.
- ^ Hall, Emme (July 15, 2016). "Sara Price becomes first woman to race Stadium Super Trucks". CNET. Retrieved January 17, 2017.
- ^ "Stadium Super Trucks To Air on CBS Sports Network Thursday". Off-Road. August 3, 2016. Retrieved January 17, 2017.
- ^ Bonkowski, Jerry (July 19, 2016). "Matt Brabham earns win and runner-up in Stadium Super Trucks at Toronto". NBC Sports. Retrieved December 19, 2019.
- ^ a b Nguyen, Justin (August 20, 2016). "SST: Charlotte Dirt Track Race #1 Recap". Overtake Motorsport. Retrieved December 19, 2019.
- ^ "TORC Series adds Stadium Super Trucks for Charlotte Motor Speedway stop". TORC: The Off Road Championship. August 9, 2016. Retrieved January 17, 2017.
- ^ "Sheldon Creed Launches to Victory in Stadium SUPER Trucks First Dirt Event of 2016". Stadium Super Trucks. August 22, 2016. Retrieved February 9, 2017.
- ^ Nguyen, Justin (August 21, 2016). "SST: Charlotte Dirt Track Race #2 Recap". Overtake Motorsport. Retrieved December 19, 2019.
- ^ "Father of driver, SST founder Robby Gordon found dead". Racer. September 15, 2016. Retrieved January 17, 2017.
- ^ Sudock, Joshua; Dottore, Damian; Pimentel, Joseph; Haire, Chris (September 15, 2016). "Police say Robby Gordon's stepmother was strangled, and his father apparently shot himself". Orange County Register. Retrieved February 9, 2017.
- ^ a b Nguyen, Justin (September 18, 2016). "SST: Sand Sports Super Show Recap". Overtake Motorsport. Retrieved December 19, 2019.
- ^ "Robby Gordon Wins Stadium Super Trucks Race in Costa Mesa". Off-Road. September 19, 2016. Retrieved January 17, 2017.
- ^ Headlee, Jake (October 11, 2016). "Event Alert: Mike's Peak Hill Climb Oct 13-16, 2016". Offroad Xtreme. Retrieved January 17, 2017.
- ^ a b Horncastle, Rowan. "King of the Hill". Top Gear. Retrieved January 17, 2017.
- ^ "RPM Off-Road Enters 5 Trucks in Mike's Peak Hill Climb Challenge". Off-Road. July 20, 2016. Retrieved January 17, 2017.
- ^ Nguyen, Justin (October 19, 2016). "SST: Mike's Peak Recap". Overtake Motorsport. Retrieved December 19, 2019.
- ^ Reiman, Samuel (November 21, 2016). "Two trucks roll over in Stadium Super Trucks crash". Foxsports.com. Retrieved January 17, 2017.
- ^ Nguyen, Justin (October 21, 2016). "SST: Gold Coast Race #1 Recap". Overtake Motorsport. Retrieved December 19, 2019.
- ^ Nguyen, Justin (October 22, 2016). "SST: Gold Coast Race #2 Recap". Overtake Motorsport. Retrieved December 19, 2019.
- ^ Nguyen, Justin (October 23, 2016). "SST: Gold Coast Race #3 Recap". Overtake Motorsport. Retrieved December 19, 2019.
- ^ O'Brien, Connor (October 23, 2019). "Spectacular Gold Coast return for SST". Supercars Championship. Retrieved December 19, 2019.
- ^ "2016 Overall Point Standings". Stadium Super Trucks. Retrieved December 21, 2019.