Crews hauled roughly 60 truckloads of locally sourced Tampa dirt into Benchmark International Arena this week to build the track for Monster Jam Freestyle Mania, a brand-new team format making its debut in Tampa Bay from Friday through Sunday. The event pairs eight Monster Jam truck drivers with eight freestyle motocross riders competing side by side under one roof, a first for the region even though Monster Jam itself is no stranger to Tampa.
The show runs August 14-16 at the downtown arena, according to FOX 13 Tampa Bay, which reported that Monster Jam organizers provided the details behind the build. Ryan Albin, production stage manager for Monster Jam Freestyle Mania, said the eight motocross riders sometimes launch up to 40 feet into the air while pulling off backflips and other tricks during the performances, per the station's report.
A New Format Lands in a Familiar Market
Freestyle Mania introduces a brand-new team format to Tampa Bay, blending drivers and riders who compete on unified squads rather than as solo acts. The dirt bikes featured alongside the trucks are styled to match their Monster Jam counterparts, with designs mirroring rigs like Grave Digger, El Toro Loco, Sparkle Smash and JCB DIGatron, according to details posted by Benchmark International Arena. Spin Master co-presents the show, tying the live vehicle designs to its die-cast toy line.
Under the Freestyle Mania format, drivers and riders compete across five distinct events worth up to 40 total championship points per performance, per Ticketmaster. Truck drivers take part in Racing, 2 Wheel Skills and Freestyle competitions, while the motocross riders compete in Best Whip and Best Trick. Four of those five events are judged live by fans through the JudgesZone.com mobile platform, with only the head-to-head truck racing decided by official times, giving the crowd direct input on how tricks, stunts and saves score in real time.
Tampa Is Already Monster Jam Country
Monster Jam has been in Tampa Bay before, and not in a small way. Raymond James Stadium has hosted annual Monster Jam stadium tours since it opened in 1998, regularly packing the 65,000-seat venue for the traditional outdoor format, according to the Tampa Sports Authority. Freestyle Mania's arrival at Benchmark International Arena marks the franchise's first indoor arena team-format show in the market rather than a wholesale replacement of those stadium spectacles.
The connection runs deeper than the calendar. Monster Jam is produced by Feld Entertainment, a global live-entertainment company whose world production headquarters and motor sports complex sit roughly 45 miles south of Tampa in Ellenton, in Manatee County, according to the Tampa Bay Times. Feld moved its global production and motor sports operations into a 590,000-square-foot facility there in 2013 and 2015, making the Tampa Bay area effectively a home market for the show's creators. Feld stages more than 3,500 live family entertainment shows annually across 80 countries, a portfolio that also includes Ringling Bros. and Barnum & Bailey and Disney On Ice.
A Rebranded Venue Hosts a New Kind of Show
The arena hosting this weekend's shows carries a fairly new name of its own. In August 2025, the downtown venue was officially renamed Benchmark International Arena following a multi-year naming rights deal between Vinik Sports Group and Tampa-headquartered M&A firm Benchmark International, replacing its former title of Amalie Arena, according to Pollstar. The building is owned by Hillsborough County and operated by Vinik Sports Group's management arm, Tampa Bay Entertainment Properties, LLC, and it also serves as the home rink for the NHL's Tampa Bay Lightning.
Tampa marks the latest stop on a Florida run for the new format. Freestyle Mania held its central Florida kickoff at Orlando's Kia Center August 8-9, with ticket prices ranging between $37 and $135, as Hoodline reported ahead of that stop. The tour's continued expansion follows Monster Jam's broader push into major venues nationally, including the 2027 World Finals announcement for Indianapolis, continuing a championship-venue rotation that has already passed through Salt Lake City and Orlando.
