It was a move that very few people saw coming. The Superstar Racing Experience [SRX] Series has been around for 3 years and was gearing up for its fourth season. Unfortunately, there was a major snag, and now the SRX series has been officially put on hold. Interestingly, just a few days earlier, Ray Evernham teamed up with ex-NASCAR team co-owner Rob Kauffman. Together, they announced the revival of the International Race of Champions Series (IROC). Could the two things be somehow linked?

It is worth mentioning that the SRX Series is not just Tony Stewart‘s brainchild. Evernham had a hand in this pie as well, but he stepped back in 2022. Although he declared that he was still an investor in the series, this was perhaps a warning sign. Now, Evernham has officially jumped ship to revive the IROC Series.

What is the IROC Series? And is it a threat to the SRX Series?

Looking at it from a broad lens, both the IROC Series and the SRX Series are quite similar. However, IROC has a richer history, having been founded in 1973, compared to SRX’s 2021 debut. The International Race of Champions is an invitational-only series that pits the best drivers across different racing disciplines against each other. These drivers hail from NASCAR, IndyCar, Sports car racing, and even sprint car racing. Admittedly, the SRX Series is nearly the same thing, since they also boast of the best drivers. Furthermore, all of these drivers compete against each other in identical cars, and this is true for both series.

If one had to point out a major difference between the two, it has to do with the race tracks. The IROC Series primarily restricted itself to the tarmac, particularly road courses, until 1991. From 1992 onwards, the series raced solely on ovals, but road courses did come back in 2006, its final season. Meanwhile, the Superstar Racing Experience normally races on dirt tracks or asphalt, and often only on half-mile tracks.

WATCH THIS STORY: NASCAR Legend Tony Stewart’s New Challenge: Swapping Race Tracks for Diaper Duty!

Do the two racing series have any more shared connections?

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Now, it is not to say that the SRX Series is defunct, but it is merely on hiatus. It was truly a shame, because there was a lot of promise with this series, bringing in legendary racing drivers together. Soon, it graduated to roping in current racing stars, including those in the NASCAR arena. In what would have been its fourth season, fans were excited to see the Cedar Lake Speedway added to the calendar.

Sadly, ‘market factors’ have been blamed for the series’ postponement. Although they promised that the long-term potential is being explored, for now, the 2024 season is a no-go. This news comes barely a few days after the IROC announcement, so the timing seems awfully suspicious. However, there is not a lot of evidence that pits the two series against one another. Still, one cannot help but wonder if there is a little more than what meets the eye.

Could the two have existed side-by-side as rival racing series? Who knows what could have been? If the IROC Series stuck to its DNA by catering to road courses and ovals, SRX could have been a dirt-only series. That way, no one would suggest that the two series were clones of each other. Maybe there could have been a compromise, maybe there couldn’t be one. Well, for now, the IROC Series is on, while the SRX Series’ future is up in the air.

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