Photo: Dodge
We don't know if news travels slower across the big pond (aka the Atlantic Ocean), but it seems that Dodge Europe didn't get the Stellantis memo about the production end of the Dodge Charger and Challenger late last year - they're all in with Hellcats for a new championship with the WorldSBK Championship.
In 2023, Ducati became the first bike manufacturer to win both MotoGP and WorldSBK for a second season in a row – more precisely, the Italian brand under German ownership ended 2023 as its most successful racing season ever, setting records in MotoGP, WorldSBK, and WorldSSP. Now, Dodge seems to want to catch a quirky spotlight by promoting its 'dead' Challenger SRT Hellcat in partnership with WorldSBK.
As far as we know, the L-bodied Dodge Charger sedan and Challenger coupe ended production for good back in December 2023, and only the former is set to return with ICE and EV power under the hood based on the new STLA Large platform and with a traditional two-door fastback coupe body style. Stellantis, the last time we checked, was also eager to retire the Hemi V8 engines from across its brands, hence the arrival of the big 2025 Ram 1500 truck with 3.0-liter Hurricane inline-six turbo mills.
However, over on the Old Continent, Dodge is doing things differently, and they're still actively promoting the Challenger SRT Hellcat equipped with the mighty 6.2-liter supercharged Hemi V8 and also the massive Durango SRT SUV. More precisely, Dodge Europe recently announced a partnership with "the WorldSBK Championship, a collaboration set to redefine the standards of speed, power, and performance on and off the track."
Dodge's involvement comprises a fleet of five vehicles: two Dodge Challenger SRT Hellcat that are used as Official Safety Cars, one Challenger SRT Hellcat is an Expo Car sitting next to the podium whenever there's an awards ceremony, and two Dodge Durango SRTs act as the Race Direction and FIM Safety Officer official cars. The collaboration is throughout the 2024 season and involves the Challenger SRT Hellcats with 717 ponies and dressed in Go Mango tones, a Durango SRT with the 475-hp 6.4-liter Hemi V8, and also a Durango Hellcat packing the 6.2-liter supercharged Hemi V8 and 710 horsepower.
"As Dodge Europe, we have worked hard on this Project, and we are proud to start this new exciting cooperation, the first for Dodge Brand in the EU: the partnership with WorldSBK is built on a common 'performance and race' spirit and fits perfectly with a fan world and an audience of enthusiasts for our Brand. At Dodge, we always aim to reach new heights, putting daily a winning attitude, grit, and determination into our work," stated Domenico Gostoli, Head of RAM & Dodge Brands Enlarged Europe.
The WorldSBK Championship is one of the most popular motorbike disciplines – a competition dedicated to bikes derived from the series-production counterparts, and, every year, it gathers more than half a million spectators at trackside events throughout the season. This year, the 2024 WorldSBK Championship starts at the end of February at the Phillip Island racetrack in Australia and will include an additional eleven races throughout the year.
As far as we know, the L-bodied Dodge Charger sedan and Challenger coupe ended production for good back in December 2023, and only the former is set to return with ICE and EV power under the hood based on the new STLA Large platform and with a traditional two-door fastback coupe body style. Stellantis, the last time we checked, was also eager to retire the Hemi V8 engines from across its brands, hence the arrival of the big 2025 Ram 1500 truck with 3.0-liter Hurricane inline-six turbo mills.
However, over on the Old Continent, Dodge is doing things differently, and they're still actively promoting the Challenger SRT Hellcat equipped with the mighty 6.2-liter supercharged Hemi V8 and also the massive Durango SRT SUV. More precisely, Dodge Europe recently announced a partnership with "the WorldSBK Championship, a collaboration set to redefine the standards of speed, power, and performance on and off the track."
Dodge's involvement comprises a fleet of five vehicles: two Dodge Challenger SRT Hellcat that are used as Official Safety Cars, one Challenger SRT Hellcat is an Expo Car sitting next to the podium whenever there's an awards ceremony, and two Dodge Durango SRTs act as the Race Direction and FIM Safety Officer official cars. The collaboration is throughout the 2024 season and involves the Challenger SRT Hellcats with 717 ponies and dressed in Go Mango tones, a Durango SRT with the 475-hp 6.4-liter Hemi V8, and also a Durango Hellcat packing the 6.2-liter supercharged Hemi V8 and 710 horsepower.
"As Dodge Europe, we have worked hard on this Project, and we are proud to start this new exciting cooperation, the first for Dodge Brand in the EU: the partnership with WorldSBK is built on a common 'performance and race' spirit and fits perfectly with a fan world and an audience of enthusiasts for our Brand. At Dodge, we always aim to reach new heights, putting daily a winning attitude, grit, and determination into our work," stated Domenico Gostoli, Head of RAM & Dodge Brands Enlarged Europe.
The WorldSBK Championship is one of the most popular motorbike disciplines – a competition dedicated to bikes derived from the series-production counterparts, and, every year, it gathers more than half a million spectators at trackside events throughout the season. This year, the 2024 WorldSBK Championship starts at the end of February at the Phillip Island racetrack in Australia and will include an additional eleven races throughout the year.
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