Looking Back on a Dynamic 2024

The 2025 Monster Jam season is less than two weeks away, can you believe that? Which means we are just days away from the “Road To World Finals” kicking off once again. This time all roads lead to Salt Lake City in what is sure to be the biggest and best season yet. Before we look ahead, sometimes it’s nice to look back and, with this being my last editorial of the year, I thought we could reminisce about some of the biggest highlights of the 2024 Monster Jam season.

 

1. Wild Side’s Championship Run – When the Main Field was announced for World Finals at SoFi Stadium there was lot of excitement surrounding Zack Garner earning an “at-large” bid however I am not sure many people, including this play-by-play announcer, had Wild Side circled at the end of their bracket. To put it mildly, Zack was unstoppable on the track at So-Fi Stadium, pulling off upset after upset, on his way to becoming the World Finals Champion. Zack has thrived as underdog throughout most of his career, but next year we will get to see how he does with a bullseye on his back.

 

2. Marvel is Back in Monster Jam – When the announcement was made that Marvel would be returning to the sport with four Marvel Monster Jam trucks in 2024, the Monster Jam social media community nearly broke the internet with all the buzz. We got to see Thor, Black Panther, Iron Man, and The Amazing Spider-Man tear up international tracks for most of the year. Then in October, the broadcast team went live for three weekends with Marvel debuting domestically in Glendale, Houston, and Arlington. I, for one, am very excited to see what the future holds for MARVEL and Monster Jam.

 

 

3. The Year of Sparkle Smash – Everyone’s favorite Spin Master diecast truck made its larger-than-life debut at the biggest event of the year, smashing through “Smash Mountain” and taking the world by storm. Sparkle Smash went from being arguably the most popular truck in diecast form to being the most popular truck in the fleet. With Kayla Blood behind the wheel, this six-ton fearless unicorn marched all the way to Overall Event Championship becoming a force to be reckoned with. The popularity of Sparkle Smash may very well also be larger-than-life and is sure to only increase in 2025 when Jamie Sullivan joins the team. Will she and Kayla become Monster Jam’s Dynamic Duo?

 

 

4. Tyler Menninga is a Dominant Force – OK, this is perhaps the most obvious thing I have written this year, but it may also be the most accurate. Is there a better driver in Monster Jam right now than the Iowa native? Tyler won his record sixth series championship in 2024, going on unreal winning streaks on the racetrack and at times seemed unbeatable. At the biggest event of the year, in the biggest city in the country, and on the grandest stage of them all, Menninga laid down a freestyle run for the ages, winning his second career World Finals Championship. Tyler is in his prime and his best years may still be ahead of him which could pose a problem for the rest of the league.

 

5. Live Streams Changed the Game – For decades the only ways you could watch a Monster Jam event was by either purchasing a ticket to your local stadium or arena or tuning into our national television broadcast. With technology evolving into the digital age, those times are behind us and the Monster Jam digital team has enabled fans all over the world to watch nearly any event in real time. The Monster Jam live streams have become enormously popular and becoming a weekend staple for many fans. Monster Jam fans can gear up for another exciting season, watching live event action on YouTube and MonsterJam.com in 2025.

 

That is wrap for me this year. It has been an honor to write these articles for you weekly and I want to thank each one of you for taking time out of your day to read them. From my family to yours, Happy Holidays and I will see you right back here in a few weeks.

 

Scott Jordan