New Season of SRX Series Racing Brings “Thursday Night Thunder” Back to ESPN Beginning July 13

Twelve Champion-Level Drivers Square Off in Identically-Prepared Race Cars in Six-Week Series

Two-time NASCAR Champion Joey Logano Joins Telecast as Guest Analyst for First Race

Kicking off six consecutive Thursday nights of prime time racing action, the Superstar Racing Experience (SRX) Series makes its debut on ESPN on Thursday, July 13, at 9 p.m. ET, bringing “Thursday Night Thunder” back to ESPN. The Camping World SRX Series pits champion-level drivers from different racing series against each other in identically-prepared race cars, competing on some of America’s iconic short tracks.

ImageThe first event will be at the half-mile Stafford (CT) Motor Speedway and will include 12 drivers from NASCAR and IndyCar racing in competition. Previous NASCAR Cup Series champions Tony Stewart, Kevin Harvick, Bobby Labonte and Brad Keselowski will be in the field racing against former IndyCar stalwarts Marco Andretti, Tony Kanaan and Paul Tracy. Rising star Hailie Deegan also will be in competition as will NASCAR Daytona 500 winners Denny Hamlin and Ryan Newman and former NASCAR stars Clint Bowyer and Ken Schrader.
Two-time NASCAR champion Joey Logano will serve as guest analyst for the first race, joining lap-by-lap announcer Allen Bestwick in the booth to call the action. ESPN SportsCenter anchor Nicole Briscoe will host the telecast while Matt Yocum will report from the pits.

The event launches a new, multi-year media rights agreement between SRX and ESPN that will see the series air exclusively on ESPN, bringing back the Thursday Night Thunder branding.

Thursday Night Thunder, which originally aired on ESPN in the 1980’s, saw legends of racing, including SRX co-founder Stewart, launch their careers.

The 2023 Camping World SRX Series Schedule (all times Eastern)

About SRX:

Superstar Racing Experience (SRX) was created by Sandy Montag and The Montag Group, Investor and former NASCAR COO, George Pyne, NASCAR Hall of Famer and legendary driver Tony Stewart, and NASCAR Hall of Fame Crew Chief and Owner Ray Evernham. Over the first two seasons of SRX, the six-race series has featured drivers from a variety of racing backgrounds with an emphasis on champion-level drivers. SRX has seen some of the sport’s biggest names compete including: Tony Stewart, Bill Elliott, Chase Elliott, Tony Kanaan, Paul Tracy, Bobby Labonte, Willy T. Ribbs, Hailie Deegan, Ryan Blaney, Ryan Newman, Greg Biffle, Marco Andretti, Matt Kenseth, Michael Waltrip, Josef Newgarden, Ryan Hunter-Reay, Helio Castroneves, and many more.

In 2022, the series field featured a total of five NASCAR Cup Series Championships, three IndyCar Series Championships, four Daytona 500 Winners, five Indianapolis 500 Winners and four NASCAR Hall of Fame Drivers. Tony Stewart claimed the inaugural SRX Championship in 2021 and Marco Andretti claimed the 2022 Championship.

About Motorsports on ESPN:

ESPN’s motorsports coverage over the years has included nearly every form of racing – NASCAR, IndyCar, Formula One, drag racing, sports car racing, motorcycles and more. Production values and sheer volume of content set ESPN apart very early in the game.

ESPN aired its first race on Oct. 7, 1979, exactly one month after the network went on the air. The race was a USAC event taped the previous summer in Salem, Ind. In March of 1981, ESPN aired its first NASCAR Cup race, a tape-delayed event from Rockingham, N.C., and on June 7, 1981, the network aired its first live race, a CART event at Milwaukee.

Currently, the full Formula 1 World Championship airs on ESPN platforms. F1 returned to its original U.S. television home in 2018 – the first race ever aired in the country was on ABC in 1962. F1 races also aired on ESPN from 1984-1997.