Monster Jam World Finals Coming to SoFi Stadium

READY TO JAM: SoFi Stadium hosted Feld’s Monster Jam in May. (Photos courtesy Feld Motor Sports)

This year’s finals are Saturday at Nissan Stadium

Feld Motor Sports announced today that SoFi Stadium in Inglewood, California, will host the Monster Jam World Finals on May 18, 2024. The series’ marquee event will be held in the city for the first time and features the largest collection of trucks and drivers to ever visit Southern California.

It’s a room with a vroom.

The 2023 Monster Jam World Finals are being held Saturday at Nissan Stadium in Nashville, Tennessee. The finals started in 2000 in Las Vegas and were held there through 2018 before moving to Orlando in 2019 and 2022.

Monster Jam produces more than 400 events per year across five tours, posting annual attendance of  more than three million. Taking the finals to SoFi Stadium was top of mind after the series’ inaugural run at the NFL venue in May, according to Jayme Dalsing, senior director of operations for Feld Motor Sports.

“It was something we had in the back of our minds for some time,” Dalsing said. “When SoFi was built, the world knew what was going on there, everyone knew what type of building it was going to be. There’s no better place for it than LA. It was definitely on our list of potential locations for the next World Finals.”

The venue size and desirable location checked all the boxes and after the test run in May, the decision to host the finals at SoFi Stadium in 2024 was “put in concrete,” Dalsing said.

The event includes the largest Pit Party of the year in an adjacent parking lot. More than 25 drivers compete in the finals, but there are over 50 trucks on display with access to the drivers, which is a cornerstone of the Feld Motor Sports model.

 “We are one of the only major motor sports events that allows complete access to all competing drivers and stars of the event,” Dalsing said. “We owe a lot of our success to that accessibility. We grew our fan base because we made our drivers accessible and really made our second stars, which are the trucks, accessible as well.”

During the event, fans vote via the Feld Motor sports website, JudgesZone.com, for their favorite driver and stunt on a 1-10 scale in several categories, including 2 Wheel Skills, which is the best trick on two wheels, and two-minute Freestyle competitions.

“We put voting in the hands of our fans,” Dalsing said. “They have 20 seconds to lock it in and it averages out and we get it instantaneously. It’s a great tool for us to get fans’ feedback.”

The competition includes High Jump and one-on-one racing at speeds up to 60 miles per hour during the finals. One lap around the dirt track takes 20 to 24 seconds in vehicles that weigh 12,000 pounds.

It takes roughly 500 truckloads of dirt to build a Monster Jam stadium track and Feld Motor Sports is the largest owner of live event dirt in the world. The material is sourced locally – mostly from construction companies – a mix of 60% to 70% clay, mixed with sand. Monster Jam uses approximately 650,000 yards of dirt each year and uses local storage facilities to store the dirt.

“It has to be the right dirt,” Dalsing said. “It has to be the right consistency. Too much clay and it’s too tacky and too hard to mold. Too much sand and it doesn’t hold together when you are building jumps. When we find it, we try to hold onto it and buy it.”

Th dirt is important, but safety is the top concern. Feld Motor Sports has a research and development team to enhance driver and fan safety. Wall height and other considerations are factored into safety holds and Feld Motor Sports does not sell the first row. Trained recovery teams in fireproof gear are stationed at each event. Called “saves,” loaders with a special arm designed by Feld Motor Sports are used to upright flipped vehicles.

“It happens a lot more than you think,” said Dalsing, a 23-year veteran with Feld Motor Sports.  “In some cases, that’s what the fans come out to see, the carnage. We know trucks are going to flip over and we are ready for it.”

Tickets for the Monster Jam World Finals go on sale for preferred customers on Sept. 12 followed by a public on-sale Sept. 19. The event features ancillary events, including a benefit for St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital, which has been part partner since 2019, and an awards ceremony.

Monster Jam’s season starts in January and runs through May with two stadium and three arena series on tour. The brand competes in hundreds of events a year and has competed in the most iconic stadiums and arenas in 32 countries on every continent except Antarctica.

“It’s accessible and exciting,” Dalsing said. “We bring Monster Jam to 120 markets in the United States and we do over 400 events a year which really makes it accessible if you are a fan. That’s a big reason why Monster Jam is so popular. It’s a lot of fun to see the fans come out and enjoy it.”