Jason Anderson grabbed his second win of the 2022 Monster Energy AMA Supercross series at Round 6, the third visit to Angel Stadium while Christian Craig once again dominated the 250SX class.
Points leader Eli Tomac stayed on Anderson’s rear fender early but settled for second in the slick conditions of Anaheim 3. Justin Barcia posted his third podium of the year with a steady push forward through the race. The Western Regional 250SX Class saw a clean sweep of the Angel Stadium events by Christian Craig who dramatically stretched out his points lead with the win.
Jason Anderson launched out of the gate and grabbed the holeshot in the 450SX Class Main Event with Eli Tomac right behind and holding tight. Marvin Musquin pushed into third and kept the top two riders in sight as Tomac hounded Anderson. The two up front were rarely more than a second apart. Just two and a half minutes into the 20-minute plus one lap race Tomac jumped into the lead, but Anderson retaliated immediately in the next corner and took it right back. A couple of laps later Tomac bobbled in the whoops, which had claimed many riders earlier in the night. Tomac stayed on two wheels, but the mistake allowed Anderson some breathing room. From there the Kawasaki rider rode his own race to the checkers.
Just past the race’s midpoint Musquin collided with a lapped rider and went down, dropping to seventh. Barcia inherited third place after clawing his way forward from a slow start. Last weekend’s second-place finisher, Malcolm Stewart, carded fourth place. Musquin was able to pass his way forward after his crash to earn a top-five finish.
Anderson’s win at Anaheim 3 marks his second win of the season and moves him to second in the overall point standings.
“From the fastest qualifying time to leading every lap of the heat race and the Main Event, we had a great day,” Anderson said. “In the Main, I grabbed my second holeshot of the night and immediately had pressure from Eli [Tomac]. The track was demanding and our speed was fast so I knew it would be a tough race but, my KX450SR took everything I threw at it and battles like that are what supercross is all about. While it was tough for us on the track, I had a blast fighting for the win and it sounded like the fans were absolutely loving the race. All things considered; I think that was one of my best main events ever.”
Form Tomac his fourth-consecutive podium helped extend his lead in the highly competitive 450SX Championship
“It was another good podium for us,” Tomac said. “It wasn’t a win, but I fought as hard as I could. I tried to take the lead early in the race and made a quick move on Jason (Anderson) for one jump, but he was able to get back right underneath me right away. I was really strong in the whoops the first half of the race, and then I made one mistake and lost a little bit of my edge. That’s where I felt like I lost the ground tonight – the whoops because it was my advantage. At the same time, once I made that mistake, I was like, ‘alright, maybe I need to back it down, too, and just stay consistent.’ It was a solid night on points, and I’m looking forward to going east.”
For Justin Barcia, it was a positive night all-around with a 450SX heat-race win followed up by a strong third-place podium finish in the Main Event.
“It’s definitely good to be back here on the podium,” Barcia said. “The heat race was so good tonight but I’m a little disappointed with the way I rode in the Main Event – Jason and Eli had a great race. I got a decent start and fought through the pack pretty good, so a lot of positives for sure. I had a lot of fun and the track was awesome!”
Round 1 winner Ken Roczen was pushed wide in the first corner. He tangled with a Tuffblox and emerged from the turn in last place. He moved through the pack on slick track but was only able to reach eleventh place by the end.
Western Regional 250SX Class
The Western Regional 250SX Class Main Event started wild. Three riders exited the second corner shoulder-to-shoulder and charged into the slippery whoops. Craig won that sprint and emerged in the lead with Australian Hunter Lawrence right behind. Vince Friese was behind him, and Michael Mosiman sat in fourth. One corner later, Mosiman went off the track in the sand section and dropped back well outside the top ten.
It was soon down to a two rider battle as Craig and Lawrence distanced themselves from the pack while the whoops claimed several top riders behind them. Then six minutes into the 15-minute plus one lap race the whoops reached up and grabbed Lawrence. The crash took him out of the race and Craig rode unchallenged to the end. Behind him, Mosiman recovered up to second only to have his own crash in the whoops, ultimately handing the second place position to Friese. Mosiman remounted to earn the final spot on the podium.
Craig now holds a 28-point lead with a five week break ahead and only four rounds remaining in the regional championship, including two Dave Coombs Sr. East/West Showdown rounds that will complicate matters with riders from each region vying for the same night’s points payout.
“It was a good day here in Anaheim. Practice went well, and I was gelling with the track, feeling comfortable,” Craig said. “I got off to a good start in my heat race and put in my laps. Then in the main event – I really focused on my start. I knew if I could check that one off, then the rest would kind of play out by itself, and I’d be in a good spot. I was able to get into the lead in the second turn, and from there, I just focused on my laps. The track was pretty crazy, and some of the rhythm sections and the whoops were sketchy, but I was able to just do my laps and let the rest play out behind me. We get a little break now, and we’ll try and keep the momentum going for Seattle.”
Michael Mosiman had a wild ride after crashing early in the 250SX West Main Event but he relentlessly charged back to claim his third podium finish in six rounds.
“It was a tough race for me,” Mosiman said. “I made a couple of silly mistakes, and I’ve got to clean that stuff up but it’s fuel to the fire. After some post-race reflecting, it really lit a fuse under me and it’s going to be good going into this off-season break to have a lot of motivation. Tough nights like these but it’s hard to be too mad when you’re in front of fans like this.”
The 17-round Monster Energy Supercross series lines the racers up next on February 19th inside U.S. Bank Stadium in Minneapolis, Minnesota. The race kicks off the first round of the Eastern Regional 250SX Class Championship.
450SX Class Results
1 Jason Anderson, Rio Rancho, N.Mex., Kawasaki
2 Eli Tomac, Cortez, Colo., Yamaha
3 Justin Barcia, Greenville, Fla., GASGAS
4 Malcolm Stewart, Murrieta, Calif., Husqvarna
5 Marvin Musquin, Corona, Calif., KTM
6 Dylan Ferrandis, Tallahassee, Fla., Yamaha
7 Chase Sexton, Clermont, Fla., Honda
8 Cooper Webb, Newport, N.C., KTM
9 Aaron Plessinger, Leesburg, Fla., KTM
10 Justin Brayton, Charlotte, N.C., Honda
450SX Class Championship Standings
1 Eli Tomac, Cortez, Colo., Yamaha (134)
2 Jason Anderson, Rio Rancho, N.Mex., Kawasaki (122)
3 Chase Sexton, Clermont, Fla., Honda (116)
4 Malcolm Stewart, Murrieta, Calif., Husqvarna (112)
5 Justin Barcia, Greenville, Fla., GASGAS (110)
6 Cooper Webb, Newport, N.C., KTM (103)
7 Marvin Musquin, Corona, Calif., KTM (98)
8 Ken Roczen, Clermont, Fla., Honda (92)
9 Dylan Ferrandis, Tallahassee, Fla., Yamaha (92)
10 Aaron Plessinger, Leesburg, Fla., KTM (81)
Western Regional 250SX Class Results
1 Christian Craig, Temecula, Calif., Yamaha
2 Vince Friese, Menifee, Calif., Honda
3 Michael Mosiman, Minneaola, Fla., GASGAS
4 Garrett Marchbanks, Coalville, Utah, Yamaha
5 Carson Brown, Ravensdale, Wash., KTM
6 Chris Blose, Phoenix, Ariz., GASGAS
7 Robbie Wageman, Newhall, Calif., Yamaha
8 Derek Kelley, Riverside, Calif., KTM
9 Logan Karnow, Amherst, Ohio, Kawasaki
10 Ryan Surratt, Corona, Calif., Yamaha
Western Regional 250SX Class Championship Standings
1 Christian Craig, Temecula, Calif., Yamaha (148)
2 Michael Mosiman, Minneaola, Fla., GASGAS (120)
3 Hunter Lawrence, Wesley Chapel, Fla., Honda (119)
4 Vince Friese, Menifee, Calif., Honda (99)
5 Jo Shimoda, Menifee, Calif., Kawasaki (87)
6 Nate Thrasher, Livingston, Tenn., Yamaha (82)
7 Robbie Wageman, Newhall, Calif., Yamaha (80)
8 Garrett Marchbanks, Coalville, Utah, Yamaha (73)
9 Carson Brown, Ravensdale, Wash., KTM (73)
10 Chris Blose, Phoenix, Ariz., GASGAS (63)
