History of Monster Jam in Timeline

Monster Jam is a live motorsport event tour that started in 1992, operated by Feld Entertainment and sanctioned by the United States Hot Rod Association. Predominantly held in North America, the events feature monster trucks competing in racing, two-wheel skills, and freestyle competitions. While the format can vary with intermission entertainment, the core attraction remains the high-octane monster truck performances.

1992: Monster Jam Series Start

In 1992, the Monster Jam series, sanctioned by the United States Hot Rod Association, began as a live motorsport event tour operated by Feld Entertainment.

2000: Start of World Finals at Sam Boyd Stadium

From 2000, the Monster Jam World Finals were held annually at Sam Boyd Stadium in Whitney, Nevada, for the first 19 events.

2000: Start of Competitive Season Timing

From 2000, the Monster Jam competitive season began in January and ended in March, culminating in the World Finals in Las Vegas.

November 13, 2007: Release of Monster Jam Video Game

On November 13, 2007, Activision released the third 'Monster Jam' video game.

2007: CBS Sports Airing Season Previews and World Finals Recaps

From 2007, CBS Sports aired season preview and World Finals recap packages as part of the CBS Sports Spectacular.

October 28, 2008: Release of Monster Jam: Urban Assault

On October 28, 2008, Activision released 'Monster Jam: Urban Assault', a sequel to the 2007 'Monster Jam' video game.

November 9, 2010: Release of Monster Jam: Path of Destruction

On November 9, 2010, 'Monster Jam: Path of Destruction' was released as the fifth game in the series.

2012: End of CBS Sports Coverage

From 2007 to 2012, CBS Sports aired season preview and World Finals recap packages as part of the CBS Sports Spectacular.

2014: FS1 and FS2 Airing Events

From 2014, FS1 and FS2 aired events from the Monster Jam series.

June 17, 2015: Release of Monster Jam Battlegrounds

On June 17, 2015, 'Monster Jam Battlegrounds' was released as a downloadable game on Xbox Live and Steam.

2015: Debut of Arena and Stadium Tours

In 2015, Monster Jam introduced both an arena tour with 8 drivers and a stadium tour with 16 drivers, each offering points series and invitations to the World Finals.

October 25, 2016: Release of Monster Jam: Crush It!

On October 25, 2016, 'Monster Jam: Crush It!' was released on Xbox One and PlayStation 4.

2016: Split of Arena Series into East and West

In 2016, the arena series was split into East and West tours, with the winner of each receiving an invitation to Monster Jam World Finals 17.

October 31, 2017: Release of Monster Jam: Crush It! on Nintendo Switch

On October 31, 2017, 'Monster Jam: Crush It!' was released on Nintendo Switch.

2017: Introduction of Two-Wheel Skills Competition

In late 2017, the two-wheel skills competition was introduced to Monster Jam, where trucks perform moves on two wheels, with attendees voting for the winner.

February 15, 2018: Announcement of World Finals Venue Rotation

On February 15, 2018, a new format was announced stating that the World Finals would rotate venues annually, beginning with World Finals XX.

2018: End of Competitive Season Timing

From 2000 to 2018, the Monster Jam competitive season began in January and ended in March, culminating in the World Finals in Las Vegas.

2018: End of FS1 and FS2 Coverage

From 2014 to 2018, FS1 and FS2 aired events from the Monster Jam series.

2018: End of Mattel's Hot Wheels Contract

In 2018, Mattel's Hot Wheels brand's contract to produce officially licensed toy versions of monster trucks under the Monster Jam name ended.

January 2019: Spin Master Takes Over Toy Production

Since January 2019, Spin Master has been producing Monster Jam toys, taking over from Mattel's Hot Wheels.

June 25, 2019: Release of Monster Jam Steel Titans

On June 25, 2019, 'Monster Jam Steel Titans' was released on PlayStation 4, PC, Xbox One, and Nintendo Switch.

2019: NBC Sports Airing the Show

Beginning in 2019, NBC Sports started airing the Monster Jam show on NBCSN.

2019: Removal of Free-Standing Crush Cars

In 2019, free-standing crush cars were officially removed from Monster Jam events.

2019: Monster Jam Posts Event Recaps on YouTube

In 2019, recaps from each Monster Jam event were posted on the official YouTube channel the following week.

2019: Change in Season End and World Finals Location

Since 2019, the Monster Jam season ends in May with the World Finals held in Orlando, marking a change from the previous Las Vegas location.

January 8, 2020: Announcement of Monster Jam Hall of Fame

On January 8, 2020, Monster Jam announced the establishment of a Hall of Fame, dedicated to honoring those who have made significant contributions to the sport.

January 11, 2020: Inaugural Hall of Fame Class Announced

On January 11, 2020, Dennis Anderson and Scott Douglass were announced as the inaugural class of the new Monster Jam Hall of Fame at Raymond James Stadium.

2020: 30-Second Rule Introduced to Freestyle Competition

In 2020, Monster Jam introduced a rule requiring trucks to complete 30 seconds in the freestyle competition to qualify for a score; failure results in a score of 0.

2020: Posting of Hour-Long Recaps and Introduction of YouTube Membership

In 2020, during the COVID-19 pandemic, Monster Jam began posting hour-long recaps of previous events recorded in 2019 and 2020. They also introduced a subscription membership program for YouTube featuring videos of past events.

2020: Postponement of World Finals XXI

World Finals XXI, scheduled for May 2-3, 2020, at Camping World Stadium, was postponed to May 20-21, 2022, due to public health concerns about the COVID-19 pandemic.

February 27, 2021: Inaugural Hall of Fame Induction Ceremony

On February 27, 2021, the inaugural Monster Jam Hall of Fame induction ceremony was held during halftime of a show at Camping World Stadium, inducting Dennis Anderson and Scott Douglass.

February 28, 2021: Announcement of 2021 Hall of Fame Inductees

On February 28, 2021, Gary Porter and Mike Wales were announced as the 2021 inductees into the Monster Jam Hall of Fame.

March 2, 2021: Release of Monster Jam Steel Titans 2

On March 2, 2021, 'Monster Jam Steel Titans 2' was released on PlayStation 4, PC, Xbox One, and Nintendo Switch.

October 23, 2021: Induction Ceremony for Porter and Wales

On October 23, 2021, Gary Porter and Mike Wales were inducted into the Monster Jam Hall of Fame during a show at NRG Stadium.

2021: Single Stadium Tour Offered

In 2021, Monster Jam offered only one tour, the Stadium Tour, consisting of seven rounds over five venues, with twelve trucks participating throughout the tour.

2022: Monster Jam Calendar Featuring Multiple Tours

In 2022, the Monster Jam calendar included three arena tours with 8 drivers each and two stadium tours with 14 drivers each, all vying for spots at Monster Jam World Finals XXI in Orlando.

2022: Rescheduled World Finals XXI

World Finals XXI was rescheduled to May 20-21, 2022, after being postponed in 2020 due to public health concerns. It was held at Camping World Stadium.

February 15, 2023: Monster Jam Moving to MAVTV

On February 15, 2023, it was announced that Monster Jam would be moving to MAVTV with a multi-year deal.

July 1, 2023: World Finals XXII at Nissan Stadium

World Finals XXII occurred on July 1, 2023, at Nissan Stadium.

2023: Monster Jam World Finals XXII and Champions

In 2023, the Monster Jam tour featured 110 events, with each champion receiving an automatic bid to the Monster Jam World Finals XXII event held in Nashville, Tennessee. Colt Stephens and ThunderROARus were the Target Freestyle champions, Tristan England and Earth Shaker were the BKT Racing champions, and Tyler Menninga was the Great Clips Two-Wheel Skills champion.

April 2024: Live Streaming on YouTube Begins

Since April 2024, Monster Jam events have been live-streamed on the Monster Jam YouTube channel.

May 2024: First Live-Streamed World Finals Event

In May 2024, the first live-streamed World Finals event was broadcast on the Monster Jam YouTube channel.

May 18, 2024: World Finals XXIII at SoFi Stadium

World Finals XXIII was held on May 18, 2024, at SoFi Stadium.

August 2024: Announcement of Fictionalized Film

In August 2024, at the D23 expo event, a fictionalized film version of Monster Jam was announced to go into production by Walt Disney Pictures, starring Dwayne Johnson and produced by Seven Bucks Productions.

2024: Launch of Monster Jam FAST Channel

In 2024, a Monster Jam FAST channel was launched and is available on Pluto TV, Vizio's WatchFree+, and Plex.

2024: Monster Jam Tour Structure and World Finals XXIII

In 2024, the Monster Jam tour featured 98 events divided into several series, including Stadium Championship Series West and East, as well as Arena Champion Series East, Central, and West. The Monster Jam World Finals XXIII were held in Greater Los Angeles, California.