Colorado’s Eli Tomac and Australian Jett Lawrence have won the 450SX and 250SX classes respectively at round 11 of the 2023 Monster Energy United States Supercross Championships.
Tomac’s win saw him reaching the record book milestone of tying for second most 450SX Class wins with 50, earned racing two different bike brands – firstly Kawasaki and now Yamaha.
Cooper Webb scored a runner-up finish in the 450cc class to the cheers of more than 58,000 Seattle fans at Lumen Field. And Justin Barcia rounded out the podium.
The Western Regional 250SX Class returned to racing with round five after a five-week break and Lawrence grabbed his fourth win of the season.
Kevin Moranz grabbed the 450SX class main event holeshot and held the lead ahead of Chase Sexton, Eli Tomac, Adam Cianciarulo and Ken Roczen. Roczen was on the move early and got by Tomac for third place just as Sexton took Moranz wide in a bowl turn. Moranz went over the berm, got hung up on trackside safety padding, and was well behind the pack before he got back onto the track.
With Sexton out in the lead, Tomac pressured Roczen to take back second place. But two minutes into the 20-minute plus one lap race it was Cianciarulo who made a move happen. Tomac gave up the spot to Cianciarulo, then lost another position when Cooper Webb got by him.
Tomac found himself in fifth place and going in the wrong direction down the leaderboard. He wasted no time re-grouping and striking back; within thirty seconds Tomac had the spot back from Webb and 30 more seconds later broke free of Webb’s re-pass attempts.
Sexton bobbled up front and Roczen closed the gap to under one second. The top five racers were still tightly bunched together. Four minutes into the race Tomac took back third and within two more laps was into second.
Roczen momentarily took back the spot, but Tomac got around him again and set his sights on Sexton nearly three seconds up the track. Barcia was then the rider making headway, passing into fifth place and looking very fast on what was his 31st birthday.
Just before the race’s midpoint, Sexton washed his front end entering a corner. When the front wheel caught on a rut Sexton’s off-balance momentum threw him over the bars.
Tomac took over the lead with Roczen and Webb still close behind. With 9:45 showing on the race clock Webb got around Roczen for second and sat 2.3 seconds back from Tomac. In a race that did not start out well for Tomac and Webb, they’d each put themselves into position to win the night.
With eight minutes left on the race clock, Barcia took over third. Sexton claimed fourth shortly after, and Jason Anderson snatched fifth with 5:30 on the clock. In the final few laps the top three, Tomac, Webb, and Barcia, pulled clear of the rest of the racers but never got close enough to one another to challenge for the position. Anderson earned fourth before the checkers flew.
It was an up-and-down round for Webb but battling for the lead was a highlight.
Justin Barcia had to settle for third but is still hunting for a win.
Tomac and Webb’s finishes brought the season’s points standings to a tie for the lead.
So, after a rare weekend off from racing, Tomac and Webb will face off again with both the #1 Yamaha and #2 KTM running the red number plate that signifies the season’s points leader. Interestingly, Tomac’s milestone 50th Supercross win comes in the year Supercross celebrates its 50th year of racing since the inception of the sport.
250SX CLASS
In Western Regional 250SX Class racing, Stilez Robertson grabbed the Holeshot and led the aggressive pack of 250cc racers. Hunter Yoder held second with RJ Hampshire, Jett Lawrence, Cameron McAdoo and Mitchell Oldenburg right behind.
Just one minute into the 15-minute plus one lap race Lawrence was into second and started to reel in Robertson. One lap later Lawrence was in a position to replicate his pass move and take the lead, but Robertson held strong.
As Robertson commanded the race through speed and defensive lines, McAdoo reached third ahead of Hampshire. Soon McAdoo was up to the leaders and it looked like it would be a three-rider race for the win.
With 10:30 on the race clock, Lawrence got around Robertson and into the lead. A half lap later Robertson crashed hard exiting the whoops and was out of the race.
Hampshire attacked McAdoo and took over second with Levi Kitchen close in fourth place. From there Hampshire and McAdoo battled and traded the second place spot. As the top three weaved through lappers the gap to Lawrence close at times but the lead was never in jeopardy.
Hampshire got the final pass for the second place spot with the white flag in sight. At the chequered flag, Lawrence took the win with Hampshire in second, McAdoo third and Enzo Lopes reaching fourth place.
“The night didn’t start too well with that crash in the heat race,” Lawrence reflected. “Thankfully, I was able to walk away from that okay and just have the bike be banged up. In the main, it was a bit of a struggle getting into the lead. In all fairness, it wasn’t my best riding.
“I couldn’t find my flow the whole race, and I wasn’t hitting my lines; I was making silly mistakes I shouldn’t have been making. Overall, I’m glad to come away with the win, and I’m looking forward to getting back at it in Arizona.”
RJ Hampshire has been both impressive and consistent this season and after another second place is looking to keep the streak alive in Seattle.
“The day was pretty solid…well, the main event was solid,” said Hampshire. “I qualified second but was quite a way back. The heat race did not go to plan at all. I got a terrible start and just kind of picked off riders to get the best kind of gate pick I could.
“In the main event, I got a really good start, and I had an awesome battle going. We went back and forth and closed the gap to the lead a little bit. Then I had two laps that cost me a shot to battle for the lead which was disappointing. But again, I don’t take these second-place finishes for granted.”
McAdoo was happy to kame his fourth trip to the podium in five races.
The Monster Energy AMA Supercross series takes a rare break next weekend when the racers face off again inside State Farm Stadium in Glendale, Arizona on April 8th.
450SX Class Results:
1 Eli Tomac, Cortez, Colo., Yamaha
2 Cooper Webb, Newport, N.C., KTM
3 Justin Barcia, Greenville, Fla., GASGAS
4 Jason Anderson, Rio Rancho, N.Mex., Kawasaki
5 Chase Sexton, Clermont, Fla., Honda
6 Ken Roczen, Mattstedt, Ger., Suzuki
7 Aaron Plessinger, Hamilton, Ohio, KTM
8 Adam Cianciarulo, New Smyrna Beach, Fla., Kawasaki
9 Christian Craig, Clermont, Fla., Husqvarna
10 Justin Hill, Yoncalla, Ore., KTM
450SX Class Championship Standings:
1 Eli Tomac, Cortez, Colo., Yamaha (248 Points)
2 Cooper Webb, Newport, N.C., KTM (248 Points)
3 Chase Sexton, Clermont, Fla., Honda (226 Points)
4 Ken Roczen, Mattstedt, Ger., Suzuki (199 Points)
5 Jason Anderson, Rio Rancho, N.Mex., Kawasaki (199 Points)
6 Justin Barcia, Greenville, Fla., GASGAS (195 Points)
7 Aaron Plessinger, Hamilton, Ohio, KTM (180 Points)
8 Christian Craig, Clermont, Fla., Husqvarna (150 Points)
9 Adam Cianciarulo, New Smyrna Beach, Fla., Kawasaki (122 Points)
10 Justin Hill, Yoncalla, Ore., KTM (116 Points)
Western Regional 250SX Class Results:
1 Jett Lawrence, Landsborough, Aus., Honda
2 RJ Hampshire, Minneola, Fla., Husqvarna
3 Cameron McAdoo, Sioux City, Iowa, Kawasaki
4 Enzo Lopes, Rio Grande do Sul, Brazil, Yamaha
5 Max Vohland, Granite Bay, Calif., KTM
6 Levi Kitchen, Washougal, Wash., Yamaha
7 Pierce Brown, Sandy, Utah, GASGAS
8 Carson Mumford, Simi Valley, Calif., Kawasaki
9 Mitchell Oldenburg, Godley, Tex., Honda
10 Cole Thompson, Brigden, Ont., Yamaha
Western Regional 250SX Class Championship Standings:
1 Jett Lawrence, Landsborough, Aus., Honda (127 Points)
2 RJ Hampshire, Minneola, Fla., Husqvarna (104 Points)
3 Cameron McAdoo, Sioux City, Iowa, Kawasaki (101 Points)
4 Mitchell Oldenburg, Godley, Tex., Honda (83 Points)
5 Enzo Lopes, Rio Grande do Sul, Brazil, Yamaha (82 Points)
6 Levi Kitchen, Washougal, Wash., Yamaha (80 Points)
7 Max Vohland, Granite Bay, Calif., KTM (70 Points)
8 Pierce Brown, Sandy, Utah, GASGAS (67 Points)
9 Cole Thompson, Brigden, Ont., Yamaha (59 Points)
10 Stilez Robertson, Bakersfield, Calif., Yamaha (53 Points)
Photo courtesy Honda
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