After months of construction, testing and anticipation, Six Flags Over Texas has officially opened Tormenta: Rampaging Run, a roller coaster that immediately enters the record books as one of the most extreme attractions ever built by the company.
The new attraction welcomed its first guests on July 9 following a short delay caused by extended commissioning and safety testing. Originally scheduled to open on June 26, the park postponed the debut to complete final preparations for what has become one of the most ambitious roller coaster projects in Six Flags history.
Standing 309 feet (94 metres) tall, Tormenta is being promoted as the world’s tallest, fastest and longest dive coaster, as well as the first roller coaster of its kind to reach “giga coaster” height. The attraction forms the centrepiece of a new Spanish-themed area called Rancho de la Tormenta and arrives during the park’s 65th anniversary season.
A project years in the making
The origins of Tormenta can be traced back to late 2024, when Six Flags announced a major capital investment programme across its parks following the merger between Six Flags and Cedar Fair. One of the headline projects was a record-breaking coaster planned for Six Flags Over Texas in Arlington.
In September 2025, the park officially unveiled the attraction as Tormenta: Rampaging Run. The name, Spanish for “storm”, was tied to a storyline centred around a legendary bull feared throughout a remote Spanish village. The ride would become the focal point of a newly developed themed area inspired by rural Spain and the famous Running of the Bulls tradition.
Construction began on land previously occupied by La Vibora and El Diablo, two attractions that were removed to make way for the project. As the structure rose throughout 2025 and 2026, it quickly became visible from across Arlington and the wider Dallas-Fort Worth area.
The world’s first giga dive coaster
Tormenta was manufactured by Swiss roller coaster company Bolliger & Mabillard (B&M), one of the industry’s most respected ride manufacturers. While B&M is well known for its dive coasters, Tormenta pushes the concept far beyond anything the company has previously built.
The attraction introduces a new category: the giga dive coaster.
Traditional dive coasters are known for their wide trains, vertical drops and dramatic pauses at the edge of a cliff-like drop. Tormenta retains those characteristics but scales them to unprecedented dimensions.
The ride begins with a climb to 309 feet before holding riders over the edge for several seconds. Trains then plunge down a 95-degree drop measuring 285 feet, making it the highest beyond-vertical drop in the world. Riders reach speeds of up to 87 mph (140 km/h) before navigating a series of large-scale inversions and airtime elements.
Among the ride’s headline elements is a 179-foot vertical loop, the tallest ever built on a roller coaster, and a 218-foot Immelmann inversion, which also sets a world record. With 4,199 feet of track, Tormenta additionally becomes the longest dive coaster in operation.
Six world records
According to Six Flags, Tormenta breaks six world records:
- Tallest dive coaster
- Fastest dive coaster
- Longest dive coaster
- First giga dive coaster
- Tallest vertical loop
- Highest Immelmann inversion
- Highest beyond-vertical drop
Several of these records were previously held by dive coasters in Europe and Asia, while others represent entirely new categories created by the attraction’s unprecedented scale.
The project also demonstrates how manufacturers continue to push the limits of roller coaster engineering. Just a decade ago, many industry observers believed traditional dive coaster designs had reached their practical limits. Tormenta challenges that assumption by combining the characteristics of a dive coaster with the dimensions typically associated with giga and hyper coasters.
Transforming the skyline
For Six Flags Over Texas, Tormenta is about more than records.
The attraction fundamentally changes the park’s skyline and becomes one of the tallest structures in the region. During construction, the coaster’s towering lift hill and loop could be seen from miles away, generating attention well beyond the theme park community.
The ride also anchors Rancho de la Tormenta, a newly created Spanish-themed plaza featuring architecture inspired by rural Spanish villages, new landscaping and additional food offerings. Among the new additions is Cocina Abuela, a restaurant serving Spanish-inspired cuisine.
This approach reflects a broader trend across the industry, where major roller coasters increasingly form part of larger themed environments rather than standing alone as isolated attractions.
A new era for Six Flags Over Texas
The opening of Tormenta comes at an important moment for Six Flags Over Texas.
As the original Six Flags park and the company’s flagship property, the Arlington destination has played a key role in shaping the modern regional theme park industry since opening in 1961. The park’s 65th anniversary provided a natural opportunity for a large-scale investment designed to reinforce its position within the increasingly competitive North American amusement market.
While the project experienced a brief delay before opening, guest reaction during the first days of operation suggests the wait was worthwhile. The attraction immediately became one of the most talked-about new roller coasters of 2026 and is expected to attract enthusiasts from across the United States and beyond.
For Six Flags, Tormenta represents another step in the ongoing competition to build larger, faster and more technically ambitious attractions. For riders, it offers something much simpler: the chance to experience a world-record-breaking coaster unlike anything else currently operating anywhere in the world.
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