AMA Supercross Series Leaders Extend Their Advantage at Indy

Lucas Oil Stadium, Indianapolis, IN — March 19, 2022

Will we see more of the same? Eli Tomac and Jett Lawrence stretch their points leads in 450SX and 250SX. Or will someone step up and make a move on the pair that have dominated Supercross the last few weeks?

Last week at Detroit it was pure madness as all the contenders in the 450SX class got a taste of the dirt in the Motor City except Tomac. Eli left town with a 42 point lead on Jason Anderson and Malcolm Stewart.

Indianapolis

The Yamaha Animated Track Map takes you on a lap of the circuit at Lucas Oil Stadium.

Does it look easy? Put 22 riders out there, every man for himself, and that adds a different perspective to the process. NASCAR driver Kurt Busch joined the broadcast booth to add a different racing perspective to the coverage from Indy.

250SX

In Heat #1 of the 250SX class, Cameron McAdoo(48) grabbed the holeshot and rode away from the pack. Trailing Jett Lawrence(18) by eight points in the 250SX East Standings McAdoo cannot let that interval grow if he wants to keep his title hopes alive.

RJ Hampshire(24) finished second just over two seconds back, none of the rest of the riders were able to keep McAdoo insight.

Lawrence was in good shape at the start of Heat #2 until Hardy Munoz(243) rode too hard into the first turn and collided with the 18-year old from Australia dislodging Lawrence from his bike. Somehow all the riders avoided Jett, but he was in 18th position when he climbed back on his bike.

With his skills on full display, Lawrence quickly rode through the field to put himself into the top-nine and lock up a spot in the main event. Remarkably, he had ridden his way into second place behind Kyle Chisholm(11) when they took the white flag. On the final lap, Lawrence rode past to capture the win and the second gate selection in the feature event.

250SX Main Event

Just as you might expect, Lawrence got a huge jump at the start and easily avoided trouble this time around the first turn. McAdoo trailed and the pair quickly distanced themselves from the remainder of the pack. McAdoo looked like he might make a pass for the lead until a beautiful inside/outside move by Lawrence allowed Jett to retain the lead.

Just under the five-minute mark of the moto, McAdoo was able to grab the top spot. Lawrence settled into second, seemingly content to wait for his competitor to make a mistake. With seven and a half minutes left in the timed portion of the moto, the leaders caught lapped traffic. Lawrence used the slower traffic to regain the top spot.

It looked like Lawrence would pull away until he missed a triple and allowed McAdoo to reel him back in. With under five minutes to go Lawrence had built a two-plus second gap over McAdoo. Hampshire was third but trailed the leaders by over 20 seconds.

Lawrence cleaned up his line and moved away for the win. McAdoo and Hampshire held onto their podium positions. However, Lawrence again added three more points to his 250SX East series lead.

The 250SX West riders return as the series visits Seattle next week.

250SX East Main Event Results

250SX East Points Standings

450SX

Marvin Musquin(25), Vince Friese(62), and Jason Anderson(21) were the first three riders across the start/finish line jump at the start of the 450SX Heat #1. By the time they made it back to the line, Anderson was leading and pulling away.

Prior to the Detroit Supercross, Anderson was the only rider able to hang with Eli Tomac(3). He has actually led more laps year-to-date than the points leader. But, 42 points behind is more than a rider can earn in a single event(26). If there is going to be a battle for the championship this year, Tomac is going to suffer some misfortune to open the door to his pursuers. Anderson was followed across the finish line by Chase Sexton(23) and Dean Wilson(15).

In Heat #2, Malcolm Stewart(27) and Cooper Webb(1) swapped the lead early before Stewart finally pulled away. Eli Tomac sat in fourth. Justin Barcia(51) caught and passed Stewart, still riding with the seven stitches in his right hand. Two backmarkers collided only to be run over by a third rider. A shoving match ensued that course workers had to break up.

Tomac had moved to third when the top three bunched up on the final lap. Stewart passed for the lead, but Barcia fought back to the win. Tomac passed Stewart just before the final turns, but Stewart would not concede the position and crossed under the checkered flag in second.

450SX Main Event

Barcia, Anderson, Stewart, Tomac, and Marvin Musquin(25) were the leaders of the 450SX main event as the riders sorted themselves out through the first few turns. It did not take Eli Tomac long to displace Stewart and move into third.

The top-three moved steadily away from the rest of their competitors. Six minutes in and lapped traffic tightened the leaders and briefly brought Stewart back in touch with the trio out front. Anderson rode past Barcia for the lead. However, he did not hold it long as aggressive riding from Barcia took Anderson down as the two collided in a corner and Anderson dropped back into seventh before he could gain his momentum back.

Tomac hung close to Barcia, but rode smart and was patient as the laps and the clock wound down. With just under five minutes to go, Tomac made his move and rode past the leader. Once out front, Tomac pulled away.

For the second week in a row, Malcolm Stewart suffered a wicked crash going over the handlebars of his bike. He was running fourth at the time. Stewart finished in eighth, a lap off the pace of the leaders. Only six riders remained on the lead lap at the end of the race. Tomac first, Barcia second, and Musquin third.

Jason Anderson finished sixth as Tomac again increased his lead in the standings. He sits 51 points above Anderson and Barcia.

450SX Main Event Results

450SX Points Standings