Roczen withstood the pressure from Dungey for his second win of 2016. Photo Credit: Simon Cudby
Roczen scored his first SupercrossLive.com Holeshot Award of the season to start the 450SX Class Main Event, rounding the first turn just ahead of Red Bull KTM’s Ryan Dungey and Smartop MotoConcepts Racing’s Mike Alessi. On the opening lap Dungey made a pass for the lead, however, it would not last long as Roczen retaliated to steal the lead back on Lap 1.
Team Honda HRC’s Cole Seely moved into the third position on Lap 4, while Rockstar Energy Husqvarna Factory Racing’s Jason Anderson followed him into fourth place. At the halfway point, Anderson began closing the gap on Seely, eventually making the pass stick to take over the third position on Lap 15.
In the final stages of the race Dungey gained momentum and inched up onto the back wheel of the German rider. The two riders set a blistering pace, but Roczen would ride flawlessly, using lapped riders to his advantage to fend off multiple attacks by Dungey and claim his sixth career win.
“It felt great to grab the holeshot tonight, I think we have more wins than we do holeshots,” said Roczen. “Ryan [Dungey] was right on us the entire race, but we stayed tough and brought home the win.”
Roczen scored his first SupercrossLive.com Holeshot Award of the season to start the 450SX Class Main Event, rounding the first turn just ahead of Red Bull KTM’s Ryan Dungey and Smartop MotoConcepts Racing’s Mike Alessi. On the opening lap Dungey made a pass for the lead, however, it would not last long as Roczen retaliated to steal the lead back on Lap 1.
Team Honda HRC’s Cole Seely moved into the third position on Lap 4, while Rockstar Energy Husqvarna Factory Racing’s Jason Anderson followed him into fourth place. At the halfway point, Anderson began closing the gap on Seely, eventually making the pass stick to take over the third position on Lap 15.
In the final stages of the race Dungey gained momentum and inched up onto the back wheel of the German rider. The two riders set a blistering pace, but Roczen would ride flawlessly, using lapped riders to his advantage to fend off multiple attacks by Dungey and claim his sixth career win.
“It felt great to grab the holeshot tonight, I think we have more wins than we do holeshots,” said Roczen. “Ryan [Dungey] was right on us the entire race, but we stayed tough and brought home the win.”
In the Western Regional 250SX Class Main Event, GEICO Honda’s Christian Craig earned his second SupercrossLive.com Holeshot Award of the year, leading Monster Energy/Pro Circuit/Kawasaki’s Joey Savatgy and Rockstar Energy Husqvarna Factory Racing’s Zach Osborne. Savatgy made a pass for the lead on the opening lap, but Craig struck back on Lap 1 to reclaim the lead. On the same lap misfortune struck Savatgy, who entered as the points leader, when he crashed in the whoops while running second, which allowed Webb to take over the position and Osborne to move into third.
Craig continued to put together impressive laps out front, but Webb, the defending chamion, stayed within striking distance throughout the race. As the Main Event wore on, Webb began closing in on the lead. On Lap 11 he dove inside of Craig to make an aggressive pass and quickly pulled away.
Webb claimed the win less than two seconds ahead of Craig. Osborne finished third, marking his third podium finish of the season.
“I came out of the gate strong and tucked to the inside through the first turn,” said Webb. “Throughout the race I was slowly able to gain time on Christian [Craig], eventually making a pass stick to claim the win.”
“It’s a bit disappointing to finish second tonight,” said Craig, who now has five consecutive podium finishes. “Webb rode great, but after leading the first 11 laps I was really gunning for the win.”
Savatgy remounted after his crash in last, but fought his way back to a 10th-place finish. He dropped to second in the championship standings, trailing Webb by 11 points. Craig is 16 points out of the lead in third.
450SX Class Results
- Ken Roczen, Clermont, Fla., Suzuki
- Ryan Dungey, Belle Plaine, Minn., KTM
- Jason Anderson, Rio Rancho, N.M., Husqvarna
- Cole Seely, Sherman Oaks, Calif., Honda
- Eli Tomac, Cortez, Colo., Kawasaki
- Marvin Musquin, Corona, Calif., KTM
- Davi Millsaps, Murrieta, Calif., KTM
- Christophe Pourcel, San Antonio, Fla., Husqvarna
- Trey Canard, Edmond, Okla., Honda
- Jake Weimer, Wildomar, Calif., Suzuki
450SX Class Championship Standings
- Ryan Dungey, Belle Plaine, Minn., KTM – 166
- Ken Roczen, Clermont, Fla., Suzuki – 143
- Jason Anderson, Rio Rancho, N.M., Husqvarna – 131
- Cole Seely, Sherman Oaks, Calif., Honda – 121
- Eli Tomac, Cortez, Colo., Kawasaki – 119
- Chad Reed, Dade City, Fla., Yamaha – 112
- Marvin Musquin, Corona, Calif., KTM – 92
- Davi Millsaps, Murrieta, Calif., KTM – 85
- Justin Brayton, Mint Hill, N.C., KTM – 82
- Jake Weimer, Wildomar, Calif., Suzuki – 73
Western Regional 250SX Class Results
- Cooper Webb, Newport, N.C., Yamaha
- Christian Craig, Corona, Calif., Honda
- Zach Osborne, Lake Elsinore, Calif., Husqvarna
- Colt Nichols, Muskogee, Okla., Yamaha
- Mitchell Oldenburg, Alvord, Texas, KTM
- Alex Martin, Millville, Minn., Yamaha
- Jimmy DeCotis, Peabody, Mass., Honda
- Chris Alldredge, Powell Butte, Ore., Kawasaki
- Kyle Peters, Greensboro, N.C., Honda
- Joey Savatgy, Thomasville, Ga., Kawasaki
Western Regional 250SX Class Championship Standings
- Cooper Webb, Newport, N.C., Yamaha – 145
- Joey Savatgy, Thomasville, Ga., Kawasaki – 134
- Christian Craig, Corona, Calif., Honda – 129
- Colt Nichols, Muskogee, Okla., Yamaha – 117
- Zach Osborne, Lake Elsinore, Calif., Husqvarna – 110
- Jimmy DeCotis, Peabody, Mass., Honda – 99
- Mitchell Oldenburg, Alvord, Texas, KTM – 97
- Kyle Peters, Greensboro, N.C., Honda – 87
- Kyle Cunningham, Willow Park, Texas, Suzuki – 69
- Jordon Smith, Belmont, N.C., Honda – 63
The 2016 Monster Energy Supercross season continues next weekend with the championship’s annual visit to Atlanta’s Georgia Dome on Saturday, February 27.
The entire 2016 Monster Energy Supercross Championship will air live on FOX Sports, including two races on the FOX broadcast channel. In addition, the authenticated FOX Sports Go app will live stream each race.
As a precursor to the live television, don’t forget to catch all of the pre-race coverage with Supercross Race Day Live presented by AMSOIL, which will stream on SupercrossLive.com from 12:50 p.m.- 4:30 p.m. local race time each Saturday during the season. Practice, qualifying, behind the scenes features, and key rider interviews will all be highlighted on the Supercross Race Day Live presented by AMSOIL webcast.
For more information on the Monster Energy AMA Supercross, an FIM World Championship, please log on to www.SupercrossLive.com, the official website of Monster Energy Supercross.
