From the time it premiered on Discovery Channel, the “Street Outlaws” franchise has done wonders to get viewers worldwide excited about street racing, and awakened every competitive driver’s will to prove themselves on the streets.
It hasn’t been an easy path for the show’s stars, as most of them have experienced enduring moments throughout the run of “Street Outlaws” original show and its spin-offs, with many of them eventually saying goodbye for one reason or another. For many of them, leaving the show didn’t mean the end of their high-speed adventures, but their exit still left viewers with too many questions about these drivers’ whereabouts.
So where are these drivers now? Were they actually kicked out, or actuslly decided to leave of their own volition? What about the show’s future? Keep with us to find out.
Big Chief
The exit of Justin Shearer, a.k.a Big Chief, from “Street Outlaws” has been one of the most shocking moments in the show’s history. However, it’s important to clarify that Big Chief wasn’t kicked out of the show, but instead decided to follow his own path away from the TV cameras.
The rumors about Big Chief’s departure from the show came out in early 2022 when he allegedly left early on a scheduled race for the “America’s List” spin-off. A couple of months later, Big Chief took to his YouTube channel to explain that he was no longer content with how the “Street Outlaws” franchise was dealing with things, leading him to leave the show altogether to focus on racing alone. He also affirmed that his departure wasn’t caused by any money-related issue, contrary to rumors circulating back then.
A couple of months later, the YouTuber Sim ABCXYZuploaded a video sharing his thoughts about Big Chief’s exit, to which the driver commented that there wasn’t ‘one specific situation or scenario or person’ causing his departure, as it was a series of situations which developed throughout the year, and came down to him not being pleased with the final product shown on TV.
All in all, Big Chief is no longer involved with “Street Outlaws” but he’s still out there, street racing. He’s also very active on YouTube and other social media, making it very easy to follow along with his recent car adventures.
Monza
Jerry Johnston, also known as ‘Monza’, was one of the original “Street Outlaws” cast members. He gained his nickname for previously driving a Chevrolet Monza, though in the show he was mostly behind the wheel of a Camaro Rally Sport.
Despite his longevity in the show, Monza was suddenly cut out of “No Prep Kings” in 2023, shocking fans no end, given how he’d previously announced his participation in the show, and had his car ready for it at the time. The reason for this sudden decision was explained by Monza himself on his YouTube channel, revealingd that Discovery Channel and “Street Outlaws”s production company Pilgrim Studios wanted him to take a pay cut for the next season.
This wasn’t taken lightly by Monza, who at the time planned to take the “No Prep Kings” money to expand his crew and go bigger, so leading him to quit the show for good. While this decision was taken by Monza, it’s evident that the pay cut wasn’t a kind move on the production’s side, especially considering how long Monz has been with the franchise.
Following this bitter episode, Monza didn’t appear in “Street Outlaws” again, but continued racing. On top of that, he sold his 1970 Chevelle known as ‘Bad Attitude’ in August 2024, among other cars, hinting that he’s making some changes in his life.
The Reaper
Back in 2018, The Reaper, whose real name is James Goad, quit “Street Outlaws” after he had some issues with the way Big Chief handled the 405 List. True to this nature of speaking his mind whenever needed, The Reaper shared several videos on his channel in which he not only questioned the integrity of the race rules, but also accused Big Chief of behaving in a way which made it difficult for drivers to take part in the races.
That being said, The Reaper hasn’t been freed from accusations, as his car was at the center of controversy as he’d broken the rules by having a car which was closer to a pro-mod than the rest of the racers. Following that, The Reaper took time away from the show, and viewers were quick to assume that the reasons leading to his exit were calculated by the producers, though there’s no proof of that.
Several years have passed since The Reaper had any connection with “Street Outlaws”, yet he’s continued on fans’ for addressing certain incidents from the show in his YouTube videos. The best well-known of those was Big Chief’s exit from the show in early 2022, causing The Reaper to share a video in which he shoots serious accusations at the former Master of The List.
Anthony Smith
It’s time for the “Street Outlaws: Memphis” cast to have a spot on this list, and there’s no one more deserving of this than Anthony Smith. This former racer – also known as ‘Turtle’ – was a member of JJ Da Boss’ crew for some time, until he quit the show when his relationship with other racers went downhill.
According to the words of JJ Da Boss and Anthony himself, the two began working together when Turtle became JJ’s mechanic. This eventually led to him gaining a spot in the “Street Outlaws” franchise, while also becoming a big player behind JJ’s team with his top-notch mechanical skills.
Nevertheless, things didn’t turn out as well as everyone wished, as he left the show in mid-2021 amidst controversy over an altercation he had with former fellow crew member Larry Larson, which involved a gun. Not long afterwards, JJ Da Boss affirmed on Facebook Live that he didn’t have anything against Anthony, but blamed the latter’s wife Bobbie for causing trouble over money.
The Smith family also gave their side of the story in a YouTube video, but in the end, it still resulted in Anthony leaving “Street Outlaws”; though his departure was his decision, it wouldn’t be far-fetched to think that the controversy over the Larson incident put some pressure on the producers and him. With that being said, Anthony is still racing these days according to his social media, but returning to TV doesn’t seem likely for him.
All of these exits from the show are quite unfortunate, but they also shed some light on the inner workings of “Street Outlaws”.
