Ryan Nitzen | May 7, 2022
And that’s all she wrote. The checkered flag at the Salt Lake City Supercross marks the end of the 2022 Monster Energy AMA Supercross Series. Your winners tonight are Jason Anderson an Nate Thrasher.
450SX
The gate dropped for the 450SX main event with most of the big guns heading up the field. Jason Anderson quickly grabbed the spot from Justin Bogle and took off with the lead. The Kawasaki rider rode off with the first position, taking his seventh win of the season and the fourth win in a row. Anderson led all 26 laps of the main event.
Jason Anderson closed out the season with another big win. Photos: Brown Dog Wilson
Chase Sexton took home second place tonight. Another solid podium finish for the Honda man. Sexton rode a solid race and followed Anderson to the lead early on. He held tight but never got close enough to pass Anderson. A second place solidified his place in sixth in points.
A solid second place for Chase Sexton.
Justin Barcia came away with the final podium spot. He and Malcolm Stewart battled it out for third during the whole race. Barcia actually took out Stewart early on, while Stewart charged back for a shot at a podium. Barcia ended up taking the spot with Malcolm finishing fourth.
Justin Barcia put up a tough fight with Malcolm Stewart and ultimately came away with the final spot on the podium.
450SX Podium
450SX Results (Top 10)
| 1. |
Jason Anderson |
(Kaw) |
26 Laps |
| 2. |
Chase Sexton |
(Hon) |
+02.364 |
| 3. |
Justin Barcia |
(GG) |
+10.187 |
| 4. |
Malcolm Stewart |
(Hus) |
+12.725 |
| 5. |
Marvin Musquin |
(KTM) |
+15.803 |
| 6. |
Cooper Webb |
(KTM) |
+17.406 |
| 7. |
Justin Brayton |
(Hon) |
25 Laps |
| 8. |
Brandon Hartranft |
(Suz) |
+05.638 |
| 9. |
Justin Starling |
(GG) |
+08.462 |
| 10. |
Ryan Breece |
(Yam) |
+11.409 |
250SX Showdown
The 250SX Showdown was all set to be the race of the night. Hunter Lawrence grabbed the start just ahead of title rival Christian Craig. Lawrence led for the first few laps before being overtaken by Craig’s teammate Nate Thrasher.
From this point, Thrasher held the lead through the end of the race. The Star Racing Yamaha rider claimed his third career victory despite numerous pass attempts from Hunter Lawrence. This is Thrasher’s first win of the season but a great way for him to close out the season.
It was this close for the 250SX Showdown win.
Hunter Lawrence led early on and held on for second tonight. With it he claims second in the series. Lawrence tried a number of times to pass Thrasher but never managed to get it done. They were neck and neck at the line, less than a second of margin, with thrasher just ahead of the number-96.
Hunter Lawrence technically had a shot at the title, but finished second.
Pierce Brown brought home another podium tonight in his home state of Utah. The GasGas rider closed the season out on a high note against the best 250 riders. With this podium, he claimed third in the overall east coast series.
Hometown hero, Pierce Brown rounded out the box.
The big news tonight was Christian Craig claiming his first 250SX championship. The Yamaha rider started in second but crashed after the whoops section and dropped back to fifth. He remounted quickly and cruised to eighth at the line. A safe ride for Craig earned him the 2022 250SX West Coast championship. This is Craig’s first title and another for the Star Racing Yamaha Team.
Craig looked stoked to finally claim a 250SX title.
250SX Podium
250SX Showdown Results (Top 10)
| 1. |
Nate Thrasher |
(Yam) |
19 Laps |
| 2. |
Hunter Lawrence |
(Hon) |
+00.432 |
| 3. |
Pierce Brown |
(GG) |
+04.011 |
| 4. |
Rj Hampshire |
(Hus) |
+13.212 |
| 5. |
Jo Shimoda |
(Kaw) |
+16.426 |
| 6. |
Austin Forkner |
(Kaw) |
+17.256 |
| 7. |
Michael Mosiman |
(GG) |
+32.435 |
| 8. |
Christian Craig |
(Yam) |
+36.471 |
| 9. |
Chris Blose |
(GG) |
+38.078 |
| 10. |
Jalek Swoll |
(Hus) |
+46.068 |
QUALIFYING
Well folks, welcome to the finale of the 2022 Monster Energy AMA Supercross Championship. The official name for the final round is called the Monster Energy AMA Supercross World Championship 2022. Either way, the stage is set for an awesome day of racing to conclude one of the best seasons yet.
The only title left to decide is in the 250 West, which will see Hunter Lawrence and Christian Craig duke it out. The 250 race is an East/West Showdown and whoever comes out on top will be a first-timer winner. Eli Tomac is sitting out tonight after clinching the 450SX Championship a week ago in Denver. He cited a knee injury in Atlanta and is taking the night off in hopes of healing up for the summer’s Pro Motocross Championship.
QUALIFYING
450SX
Another battle today in 450 qualifying, but Kawasaki’s Jason Anderson came out on top. In fact, he posted a time a half-second faster than the next fastest rider, Marvin Musquin. Chase Sexton was third.
Jason Anderson was fastest today, a half-second ahead of the next rider. Photos: Brown Dog Wilson
450SX Combined Qualifying (Top 10)
| 1. |
Jason Anderson |
(Kaw) |
46.187 |
| 2. |
Marvin Musquin |
(KTM) |
46.629 |
| 3. |
Chase Sexton |
(Hon) |
46.636 |
| 4. |
Malcolm Stewart |
(Hus) |
46.808 |
| 5. |
Justin Barcia |
(GG) |
46.972 |
| 6. |
Cooper Webb |
(KTM) |
47.810 |
| 7. |
Brandon Hartranft |
(Suz) |
48.505 |
| 8. |
Justin Brayton |
(Hon) |
48.530 |
| 9. |
Alex Martin |
(Yam) |
48.742 |
| 10. |
Justin Starling |
(Gas) |
48.916 |
250 East
Mitchell Oldenburg came out swinging at the final race of the season. He posted the fastest time and looks good heading into the night show. Another surprise was Enzo Lopes with the second-best time. Jett Lawrence had a big crash and actually DNF’d the second session. His time was still good enough for third, but he will sit out tonight’s race after tweaking his ankle in the crash.
Jett Lawrence crashed out of practice and will skip tonight’s racing.
250SX East Combined Qualifying (Top 10)
| 1. |
Mitchell Oldenburg |
(Hon) |
47.667 |
| 2. |
Enzo Lopes |
(Yam) |
48.042 |
| 3. |
Jett Lawrence |
(Hon) |
48.125 |
| 4. |
Austin Forkner |
(Kaw) |
48.157 |
| 5. |
Pierce Brown |
(GG) |
48.193 |
| 6. |
RJ Hampshire |
(Hus) |
48.241 |
| 7. |
Jordon Smith |
(Hon) |
48.750 |
| 8. |
Jace Owen |
(Yam) |
49.116 |
| 9. |
Derek Drake |
(Suz) |
49.180 |
| 10. |
Hardy Munoz |
(Kaw) |
49.670 |
250 West
This is where the real race is tonight. Christian Craig topped the 250 West qualifiers, just 0.2 seconds quicker than rival Hunter Lawrence. Michael Mosiman rounded out the box in the afternoon session.
Christian Craig topped the 250 West division.
250SX West Combined Qualifying (Top 10)
| 1. |
Christian Craig |
(Yam) |
47.789 |
| 2. |
Hunter Lawrence |
(Hon) |
47.998 |
| 3. |
Michael Mosiman |
(GG) |
48.060 |
| 4. |
Nate Thrasher |
(Yam) |
48.221 |
| 5. |
Chris Blose |
(GG) |
48.263 |
| 6. |
Jo Shimoda |
(Kaw) |
48.281 |
| 7. |
Jalek Swoll |
(Hus) |
48.960 |
| 8. |
Vince Friese |
(Hon) |
49.202 |
| 9. |
Derek Kelley |
(KTM) |
49.652 |
| 10. |
Dominique Thury |
(Yam) |
49.761 |
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