The Short-course Off-road Drivers Association‘s 2023 season is over before it began. On Thursday, the series announced no races will take place in 2023, though specific reasons were not publicly given.
“Thank you for everyone’s patience this season but unfortunately SODA will not be holding any races during the 2023 season,” reads a statement. “Emails will be sent out to members with additional information.”
2023 was supposed to begin at Wisconsin International Raceway on 29 April, marking the second straight year that the off-road series kicked off a season at a pavement oval track primarily used for stock car racing. However, snags while building the infield course and poor weather forced the event to be postponed to 2024.
With WIR off, the new opener would have been this weekend at Tigerton MX run by Fantasy Moto. The track would have hosted the third round as well on 22 July. After another month off, the final two races would take place in September at the Outagamie County Fair on 16 September and the Sunnyview Exposition Center on 29/0 September. The OCF hosted SODA in 2022, while Sunnyview in Oshkosh welcomed the original SODA in the 1990s and last hosted racing in 2011.
SODA had also planned to partner with the Monster Truck Nitro Tour to bring the latter’s trucks to SODA race weekends.
While Championship Off-Road remains the premier series for short course racing in the Midwestern United States, the sportsman racing scene underwent a split before 2023 as disgruntled SODA executives broke off to start the International Off-Road Drivers Association. Despite legal threats from SODA, IODA started its season in April and is already three rounds into its five-race schedule.