Toyota Celebrates 20 Years of Partnership with Thunder Valley National
Thursday, May 2, 2024 | 11:55 AM
MX Sports Pro Racing, Inc., in conjunction with Thunder Valley Motocross Park, has announced the return of longtime event partner, Toyota, which will become title sponsor of the landmark 20th running of the Toyota Thunder Valley National on June 8 from the mile-high altitude of Colorado’s Thunder Valley Motocross Park. The scenic mountainside venue will host the first race outside California, for Round 3 of the 2024 Pro Motocross Championship, sanctioned by AMA Pro Racing, and Round 20 of the SuperMotocross World Championship Series.
“Toyota has an extensive history in the sport of Pro Motocross. Toyota was the founding partner of the first Toyota Thunder Valley AMA Pro Motocross National back in 2005 and we remain excited and proud to continue our title sponsorship 20 years later,” said Deck Hughes, President, Denver Toyota Dealer Association. “This event provides us with an incredible opportunity to engage with consumers that are hardcore truck users. Each year we bring out our latest offering of Tundra, Tacoma, 4Runner, and more, and allow fans to get up close and personal with them. Additionally, fans have the opportunity to drive our trucks on an off-road course in between motos. Huge shoutout to David Clabaugh and the Thunder Valley crew, MX Sports Pro Racing, and the AMA for continuing to produce the best motorsport event in the state of Colorado year in and year out!”
When it joined the championship schedule in 2005, Thunder Valley’s picturesque setting and its elevation of more than 6,000 feet made it an instant standout. The thin air adds another layer of intrigue to the battles on the track, as both athletes and motorcycles alike face added exertion over the course of two 30-minute, plus two-lap motos. In 2008, Thunder Valley cemented its place in American motocross history when it became the site of the first ever Pro Motocross National run at night, under the lights. Just two years later, the track was showcased on a global stage as the host venue of the 2010 FIM Motocross of Nations, which saw the Americans win on home soil. Now, after two decades, Thunder Valley is one of the cornerstone rounds of the Pro Motocross Championship and sits among the most revered venues on the planet.
“I opened Thunder Valley Motocross Park with the aspiration to bring global attention to Colorado for the sport of motocross. You couldn’t ask for a better landscape to host a premier event of this magnitude than the Rocky Mountains and I am so grateful that this track has left such a memorable mark on the sport,” said David Clabaugh, Owner, Thunder Valley Motocross Park. “I’ve invested everything into making this event the best it could possibly be and now, after 20 years, for Thunder Valley to be embraced like the other legendary venues in the championship with twice as much history as we have here, it’s truly a dream come true. I feel fortunate to reach this milestone and attribute our success to the unwavering support of the Toyota, who have been with me since the beginning. We’ve gotten to this point together and I’m so proud to have their name on my event.”
The Denver Toyota Dealer Association (TDA) is a collective of six Toyota dealerships located within the Denver/Boulder area that work together on various business endeavors and community sponsorship initiatives. The dealerships that comprise TDA are AutoNation Toyota Arapahoe (Centennial), Groove Toyota (Englewood), Larry H. Miller Toyota Boulder, Mountain States Toyota (Denver), Stevinson Toyota East (Aurora), and Stevinson Toyota West (Lakewood). The Association is rooted within the community throughout the greater Denver area, with several longstanding partnerships that serve to support the best experiences, events, initiatives, and programs the region has to offer.
The 2024 Pro Motocross Championship is the centerpiece of the SuperMotocross World Championship, with an 11-round summer schedule that will visit 10 different states from late May through the end of August. The season will kick off on Memorial Day Weekend in Southern California with the Fox Raceway National on Saturday, May 25, from Fox Raceway at Pala.