Ryan Nitzen | February 4, 2023
Howdy from Houston! Round four kicks off today and makes it the first round on the east coast. There’s a ton to talk about today with rookies, tight points battles, and more. After two exciting main events, Eli Tomac and Hunter Lawrence stood atop the podium in their respective main events.
Main Event
450SX
Eli Tomac was practically perfect in Houston. The first start to the 450SX main event saw Tomac up front and leading the way for the first few laps before the race was red-flagged. After the restart, he took off again and never relinquished the lead. Tomac dealt with pressure from Sexton but held off for a dominant win and controls the red place for another week.
Chase Sexton was the man on a mission tonight. He worked his way to the front in both starts and set the fastest time of the race en route to catching Tomac. The Honda rider got close and was fast in the whoops but the sand section seemed to be his kryptonite during the main.. He never managed to make a pass and made a few mistakes towards the end of the race which allowed Tomac to get away. Another second for Sexton keeps him seven back from the points lead.
Jason Anderson backed up last week’s ride with another podium tonight. He started up front in the restart and made his way around Aaron Plessinger for the final spot on the box. From there Anderson kept it smooth and consistent, about 10 seconds back from Tomac and Sexton. Anderson uses another podium to keep fourth in the series points.
450SX Results (Top 10)
1. |
Eli Tomac |
(Yam) |
23 Laps |
2. |
Chase Sexton |
(Hon) |
+03.253 |
3. |
Jason Anderson |
(Kaw) |
+12.408 |
4. |
Aaron Plessinger |
(KTM) |
+17.357 |
5. |
Cooper Webb |
(KTM) |
+24.593 |
6. |
Justin Barcia |
(GG) |
+31.236 |
7. |
Justin Cooper |
(Yam) |
+33.199 |
8. |
Ken Roczen |
(Suz) |
+34.652 |
9. |
Joey Savatgy |
(Kaw) |
+36.976 |
10. |
Adam Cianciarulo |
(Kaw) |
+40.331 |
250SX
The 250SX Main Event kicked off with a storm of rookies at the front. Hunter Lawrence was technically credited with the holeshot but his Honda team mate Chance Hymas and KTM’s Tom Vialle stayed closely in tow.
Vialle quickly found his way to the lead and crossed through the finish first on the opening lap. A big scrub from the French rider saw the two leaders get too close for comfort, putting Lawrence off the track. He jumped back into the race without losing a position and quickly pushed to pass Vialle for the lead. From there it was smooth sailing for Lawrence as he led the remaining laps to claim the first win of the east coast.
Max Anstie, the day’s fastest qualifier, worked his way through the pack to secure second at the finish. He started out of podium position but made up time with his consistency in the whoops through for duration of the main event. Great start to the season for veteran Anstie as he’s back on a 250 for the Supercross season.
Jordon Smith put himself on the box with a third place finish. He ran fourth for most of the race and even fell in the sand section. Later on he charged and capitalized on Vialle’s late-race mistake to grab the final podium. Another good start for veteran Smith as this is his first race on the Star Racing Yamaha team.
250SX East Results (Top 10)
1. |
Hunter Lawrence |
(Hon) |
18 Laps |
2. |
Max Anstie |
(Hon) |
+07.403 |
3. |
Jordon Smith |
(Yam) |
+10.171 |
4. |
Haiden Deegan |
(Yam) |
+19.010 |
5. |
Jeremy Martin |
(Yam) |
+20.332 |
6. |
Michael Mosiman |
(GG) |
+21.694 |
7. |
Tom Vialle |
(KTM) |
+26.868 |
8. |
Chance Hymas |
(Hon) |
+42.277 |
9. |
Cullin Park |
(Hon) |
+45.351 |
10. |
Chris Blose |
(Kaw) |
+49.847 |
QUALIFYING
450SX
The 450 class is stacked again this week and everyone in the top 10 is neck and neck. Almost all the guys are hitting the same lines more or less and aside from one quad rhythm there isn’t a ton of time to be made up. Somehow, Chase Sexton got into the 50-second range and clocked the fastest time of the day. Dylan Ferrandis and Eli Tomac followed second and third, about one second off Sexton’s best time.
450SX Combined Qualifying (Top 10)
1. |
Chase Sexton |
(Hon) |
50.320 |
2. |
Dylan Ferrandis |
(Yam) |
51.415 |
3. |
Eli Tomac |
(Yam) |
51.431 |
4. |
Jason Anderson |
(Kaw) |
51.476 |
5. |
Adam Cianciarulo |
(Kaw) |
51.569 |
6. |
Joey Savatgy |
(Kaw) |
52.016 |
7. |
Christian Craig |
(Hus) |
52.036 |
8. |
Cooper Webb |
(KTM) |
52.122 |
9. |
Justin Barcia |
(GG) |
52.225 |
10. |
Ken Roczen |
(Suz) |
52.319 |
250SX
The story today is between the rookies and the vets. With so many young guns making their pro debuts today, we almost expected one of them to shine bright and make a statement early on. However it was veteran Max Anstie who topped both sessions on his Firepower Honda. Yamaha’s Nate Thrasher and Jordon Smith clocked the second and third fastest times.The top five riders are all within the 52-second mark. Haiden Deegan was the fastest rookie this morning in seventh overall.
250SX East Combined Qualifying (Top 10)
1. |
Max Anstie |
(Hon) |
52.128 |
2. |
Nate Thrasher |
(Yam) |
52.438 |
3. |
Jordon Smith |
(Yam) |
52.443 |
4. |
Hunter Lawrence |
(Hon) |
52.519 |
5. |
Jeremy Martin |
(Yam) |
52.624 |
6. |
Michael Mosiman |
(GG) |
53.399 |
7. |
Haiden Deegan |
(Yam) |
53.492 |
8. |
Chance Hymas |
(Hon) |
53.621 |
9. |
Tom Vialle |
(KTM) |
53.647 |
10. |
Chris Blose |
(Kaw) |
53.786 |
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