Eli Tomac has earned his second Monster Energy AMA Supercross Championship in front of a home-state crowd inside Empower Field at Mile High Stadium in Denver, Colo.
While Jason Anderson took the round win Tomac’s fifth-place finish at round 16 of the 17-round series gave the 29-year-old the distinction of becoming the oldest rider to capture the Supercross Championship in the sport’s 49-year history.
In the actual main event Jason Anderson nabbed his sixth victory of the season, and third straight. Malcolm Stewart grabbed second place in Denver’s Main Event with Marvin Musquin earning his sixth podium finish of the season in third.
When the gate dropped Chase Sexton grabbed the holeshot with Tomac applying pressure to take over from the first lap. Justin Barcia sat third at the holeshot stripe but it was Anderson on the move, gaining quickly from sixth to third before the first lap was in the books. Two minutes into the 20-minute plus one lap race Sexton’s front tire went over a ledge that ran across the start straight. He spun sideways, grabbed traction, then ran into the mechanic’s area barriers and went down.
Tomac suddenly had the lead. The stadium erupted. The Colorado fans cheered, section by section, as Colorado-native Tomac circled the track at the front of the pack. Anderson continued his momentum forward and was quickly on Tomac and pressuring hard for the top spot. Anderson sat as the only rider with a mathematical shot at the title if Tomac finished fifteenth or worse. Anderson rode around Tomac cleanly before the whoops and Tomac did not counterattack. Just before the race’s midpoint, Anderson was unchallenged out front as Stewart reached Tomac’s rear fender and also got past.
With just under seven minutes left on the race clock, Musquin also got around Tomac, and inside of two minutes left on the clock, Tomac allowed Sexton back around. Tomac held steady in fifth place to the end, wrapping up the 2022 Championship, the second of his career.
Tomac joined the Monster Energy Yamaha Star Racing team just prior to the 2022 season in a move that proved successful for both rider and brand. Tomac’s seven race wins thus far in the 2022 series that spans 13 states elevated the Yamaha rider to a tie for fourth place on the all-time wins list. Prior to this season, Yamaha had only amassed two wins between the years 2013 through 2021. Tomac’s #1 plate marks the first premier class championship for Yamaha since 2009.
“It was an unbelievable day and an unbelievable year,” Tomac said. “It was a season that I dreamed of happening, so for it to become a reality at my home race was super special. I’m just so proud of the whole team. All of the pre-season work that we did paid off and we had some great results in the middle of the season that made the difference – at one point, we had five wins in a row. It’s such a special year. This season was a revival year for me, so thank you, Yamaha, for making that happen.”
While slightly overshadowed by Tomac’s championship win, Jason Anderson’s round win secured his third consecutive 450SX Main Event victory; his sixth so far in the season.
“I started the day confident about my experience on these conditions and ready to fight for the win,” Anderson said. “Although the championship is coming to a close, I’m still eager for more race wins. The track was tricky today and demanded a lot of patience so, once I got out front in the Main, I really focused on hitting my marks each lap. While the hard packed sections worsened throughout the race, I stayed locked in and had a lot of fun setting the pace from the lead. This was my sixth win of the season and I’m ready to go end it with another one in Salt Lake City.”
Malcolm Stewart came close to securing his first win of the 2022 AMA Supercross Championship on after delivering an impressive runner-up result at the penultimate round but ultimately was happy with his race.
“I’m excited, that was a really big finish for me,” Stewart said. “For some reason, I always ride tracks really good in altitude and I felt really good about it. Even though we didn’t win, we got second and I’m third overall in the points now, which the end goal is to be third in points, so I’m excited about that.”
Marvin Musquin raced to a third-place podium finish in the 450SX class. Overcoming challenging track conditions, Musquin minimized his mistakes and managed the race to successfully land his fifth podium appearance in the last six rounds.
“To be honest, today was not my best ride but I knew the conditions were really tough today and I made the best out of it,” Musquin said. “I didn’t get a good start, I was in a very bad position, but I knew it was going to be tough and things would happen. I’m definitely feeling really good on the bike at these last few rounds, so thank you to the team!”
250SX Western Regional
In the Western Regional 250SX Class, Christian Craig sat in position to wrap up his first Supercross title with a win or by gaining three points over Hunter Lawrence. When the gate dropped for the Main Event, Lawrence grabbed the holeshot ahead of Jalek Swoll and Craig. Craig was quickly into second place and up to Lawrence’s rear fender. From the first laps, Craig applied intense pressure, showing a wheel to Lawrence in more than one section of the track. Craig looked to have the speed and a line in the whoops that would deliver the championship. Lawrence had said before the race he enjoys the pressure, and he proved his ability to keep his composure as he maintained his sliver-thin lead.
It was Craig who fumbled. Just before the race clock hit the ten minute mark in the 15-minute plus one lap race, Craig slid out on the take-off into the sand section. He dramatically looped as he fell off the bike when he landed. The crash dropped Craig to sixth place as Hunter held a comfortable lead over Michael Mosiman. Craig was on the move on the slick, hard-packed track. With just over two minutes left on the clock, he passed Jo Shimoda to keep his podium streak alive for 2022.
Craig goes into the final round in Salt Lake City with an 18 point lead. To complicate the championship-deciding race it will be the second Dave Coombs Sr. East/West Showdown of the year, and Hunter Lawrence’s younger brother Jett will be on the track as the championship is settled between Craig and Hunter Lawrence.
“[Christian] was pulling in on me in some spots, and then I’d get out a little bit,” Lawrence explained after the race, “It was shaping up to be good, but he ended up going down. I got a bit of a breather, and there was nothing more I could do for my championship hopes at that point; I just had to focus on winning the thing. The crowd was unreal; you could hear them every time something would happen. For Salt Lake, I’ve just got to try and make it five wins for the season, and that’s the best I can do, really.”
450SX Class Results
1 Jason Anderson, Rio Rancho, N.Mex., Kawasaki
2 Malcolm Stewart, Murrieta, Calif., Husqvarna
3 Marvin Musquin, Corona, Calif., KTM
4 Chase Sexton, Clermont, Fla., Honda
5 Eli Tomac, Cortez, Colo., Yamaha
6 Cooper Webb, Newport, N.C., KTM
7 Justin Barcia, Greenville, Fla., GASGAS
8 Justin Brayton, Charlotte, N.C., Honda
9 Mitchell Oldenburg, Aledo, Tex., Honda
10 Kyle Chisholm, Valrico, Fla., Yamaha
450SX Class Championship Standings after 16 of 17 Rounds
1 Eli Tomac, Cortez, Colo., Yamaha (359)
2 Jason Anderson, Rio Rancho, N.Mex., Kawasaki (324)
3 Malcolm Stewart, Murrieta, Calif., Husqvarna (295)
4 Justin Barcia, Greenville, Fla., GASGAS (291)
5 Marvin Musquin, Corona, Calif., KTM (287)
6 Chase Sexton, Clermont, Fla., Honda (269)
7 Cooper Webb, Newport, N.C., KTM (261)
8 Brandon Hartranft, Brick, N.J., Suzuki (163)
9 Justin Brayton, Charlotte, N.C., Honda (160)
10 Dean Wilson, Murrieta, Calif., Husqvarna (152)
Western Regional 250SX Class Results
1 Hunter Lawrence, Wesley Chapel, Fla., Honda
2 Michael Mosiman, Minneaola, Fla., GASGAS
3 Christian Craig, Temecula, Calif., Yamaha
4 Jo Shimoda, Menifee, Calif., Kawasaki
5 Garrett Marchbanks, Coalville, Utah, Yamaha
6 Vince Friese, Menifee, Calif., Honda
7 Chris Blose, Phoenix, Ariz., GASGAS
8 Robbie Wageman, Newhall, Calif., Yamaha
9 Nate Thrasher, Livingston, Tenn., Yamaha
10 Jalek Swoll, Clermont, Fla., Husqvarna
Western Regional 250SX Class Championship Standings
1 Christian Craig, Temecula, Calif., Yamaha (215)
2 Hunter Lawrence, Wesley Chapel, Fla., Honda (197)
3 Michael Mosiman, Minneaola, Fla., GASGAS (181)
4 Vince Friese, Menifee, Calif., Honda (144)
5 Jo Shimoda, Menifee, Calif., Kawasaki (144)
6 Nate Thrasher, Livingston, Tenn., Yamaha (126)
7 Garrett Marchbanks, Coalville, Utah, Yamaha (117)
8 Robbie Wageman, Newhall, Calif., Yamaha (109)
9 Chris Blose, Phoenix, Ariz., GASGAS (106)
10 Jalek Swoll, Clermont, Fla., Husqvarna (93)
