State Farm Stadium, Glendale, AZ — April 8, 2023
It’s another “Triple Crown” weekend on the AMA Supercross circuit as the series comes back after a one-week layoff. State Farm Stadium, home of the Arizona Cardinals, hosts the riders for the seventh time. Arizona has staged five races in Tempe, and 17 in Phoenix, in addition to the previous six in Glendale.
For the third time in a row, Glendale will be a Triple Crown event. The 2020 Glendale Triple Crown featured Ken Roczen pulling the only sweep so far of any of the 13 previous 450SX Class Triple Crown events. Eli Tomac won in 2022 with a 1-1-3 score. Glendale will join Anaheim and Arlington as cities to host three Triple Crown events.
Seattle Recap
Eli Tomac scored his 50th 450SX Class victory in Seattle, tying James Stewart for second on the all-time 450SX Class wins list. It was Tomac’s 158th start (10th all-time), 92nd podium (fourth all-time), 116th top-five (fifth all-time), and 143rd top-10 (fifth all-time).
He sits third all-time in Super Motocross (SMX) wins with 106. James Stewart (114) and Ricky Carmichael (161) are the only riders that are ahead of him. Eli sits fifth by himself with eight SMX titles (3 SX/5 MX), one more than Stewart. Ryan Dungey sits right ahead of him in fourth with nine titles.
Tomac and Cooper Webb are tied atop the 450SX standings. Tonight’s three-race format will break that deadlock and determine who leaves with the red plate.
Chase Sexton is third in the standings, 22 points back of the leaders. He could have made it a three-man battle for the top spot had he not thrown away yet another win with a wreck while leading in Seattle. He has done this while leading or contending in Tampa, Oakland, and Indianapolis as well. Additionally, he let a lapper take his Arlington Triple Crown overall away from him and was docked down to fourth-place points in his Detroit victory.
The 250SX West riders are at it again. Jett Lawrence completed a back-to-back weekend sweep with his brother Hunter of the Eastern Regional 250SX Class series when he nabbed his 11th career 250SX Class victory in Seattle. Jett has now tied a slew of riders for ninth on the all-time 250SX Class wins list: Carmichael, Villopoto, Webb, Jeff Matiasevich, Kevin Windham, Christophe Pourcel, Barcia, and Adam Cianciarulo.
250SX East Main One
Jett Lawrence(18) took the holeshot and moved away. Uncharacteristically he allowed Levi Kitchen(43) to make a pass for the lead. But not for long. Lawrence came back and moved to the front as Kitchen fell into the grasp of RJ Hampshire(24), who also made a pass for position.
Lawrence has never won a triple crown event. Kitchen and Hampshire each have one 250SX win on their resumes, both in triple crown races. Will tonight be the night Lawrence gets it done?
Hold on. Stilex Robertson(40) was involved in a nasty crash and had to be assisted by the medical crew. The red flag was displayed, and because three full laps were not complete, the race would go to a complete restart.
On the second gate drop, it was Kitchen who earned the holeshot and pulled away from Lawrence in second. Jett did not panic and methodically closed the gap and made the pass. And, just like earlier, Hampshire caught Kitchen and took over second.
That is the way they finished, and Lawrence has the first moto in the book and only needs to hold it together in the next two.
450SX East Main One
Eli Tomac(1) was the second fastest qualifier, behind Chase Sexton(23). Cooper Webb(2) was eighth in the lineup. However, at the start, Tomac powered away with Webb in second and Sexton well back in the pack.
Tomac slowly built the advantage, and Webb separated himself from Justin Barcia(51) in third. Webb made a couple of runs, but Tomac managed the race well and took the win. Ken Roczen(94) gave up fourth when Sexton moved past him on the final turn.
250SX East Main Two
Kitchen again was out quickly, with Hampshire in second and Lawrence third. Max Vohland(34) surprised everyone shooting up to second.
When things settled out after the first couple of laps, it was Hampshire, Kitchen, Lawrence, and Vohland. Lawrence was six seconds back before he began to chew into the lead of the two riders in front of him.
Lawrence could not catch Kitchen, and Kitchen could not catch Hampshire. Going into the final, Hampshire leads the overall standings with three points (2,1), Lawrence is second with four points (1,3), and Kitchen sits in third with five points (3,2).
450SX East Main Two
Sexton and Tomac went one-two at the start, with Webb getting bogged down in sixth in race two. Sexton stalled and allowed Tomac to pass. Chase recovered quickly and, with a great run through the whoops, blew past Tomac to regain the lead.
Webb moved up to fifth but was three seconds behind Tomac in second. Roczen in third and Anderson in fourth separated Webb from the man he is chasing for points.
Webb tangled with Anderson, and Barcia passed, dropping Webb back to sixth. On the last lap, Webb got the position back, but it may be too little too late.
In the overall standings, Tomac leads with three points (1,2), Sexton is second with five points (4,1), and Webb is in third with seven points (2,5). Barring a complete turnaround, Tomac should leave Glendale in sole possession of the red plate as the points leader.
250SX East Main Three
Kitchen is the gate master. He takes the early lead with Lawrence right behind in second. Hampshire was stuck back in fifth when he needed to be out front.
Lawrence passed for the lead and was in complete control of the race. All he needs to do is avoid the big mistake. The gaps between each rider grew, and it looked as though Lawrence would get his first triple crown.
No problems and no bad luck for Lawrence as he gets the long-awaited triple crown win and leaves Glendale 26 points up over Hampshire in the standings.
Overall Results of 250SX West Triple Crown from Glendale
| POS. | # | RIDER | BIKE | M1 | M2 | M3 | POINTS | TEAM/SPONSORS |
| 1 | 18 | Jett Lawrence | Honda CRF250R | 1 | 3 | 1 | 26 | Team Honda HRC |
| 2 | 24 | RJ Hampshire | Husqvarna FC 250 RE | 2 | 1 | 3 | 23 | Rockstar Energy Husqvarna Factory Racing |
| 3 | 43 | Levi Kitchen | Yamaha YZ250F | 3 | 2 | 2 | 21 | Monster Energy Yamaha Star Racing |
| 4 | 33 | Pierce Brown | GASGAS MC 250F | 4 | 4 | 5 | 19 | Troy Lee Designs Red Bull GASGAS Factory Racing |
| 5 | 56 | Enzo Lopes | Yamaha YZ250F | 7 | 5 | 4 | 18 | Muc-Off FXR ClubMX Yamaha |
| 6 | 41 | Derek Kelley | KTM 250 SX-F | 5 | 8 | 7 | 17 | AEO Powersports KTM Racing |
| 7 | 49 | Mitchell Oldenburg | Honda CRF250R | 6 | 7 | 12 | 16 | Smartop MotoConcepts Racing Honda |
| 8 | 34 | Max Vohland | KTM 250 SX-F FE | 18 | 6 | 6 | 15 | Red Bull KTM |
| 9 | 59 | Robbie Wageman | Suzuki RM-Z250 | 9 | 15 | 8 | 14 | BarX Suzuki, R-Jerky, Grindstone |
| 10 | 52 | Carson Mumford | Kawasaki KX250 | 13 | 9 | 10 | 13 | Monster Energy Pro Circuit Kawasaki |
| 11 | 83 | Cole Thompson | Yamaha YZ250F | 8 | 10 | 15 | 12 | Team Solitaire Heartbeat Hot Sauce Yamaha |
| 12 | 53 | Derek Drake | Suzuki RM-Z250 | 12 | 11 | 13 | 11 | BarX Suzuki |
| 13 | 410 | Brandon Scharer | Suzuki RM-Z250 | 11 | 12 | 14 | 10 | BarX Suzuki |
| 14 | 42 | Joshua Varize | KTM 250 SX-F | 10 | 18 | 11 | 9 | AEO Powersports |
| 15 | 84 | Mitchell Harrison | GASGAS MC 250F | 20 | 14 | 9 | 8 | AJE Motorsport Overstock Vehicles.com GAS GAS |
| 16 | 508 | Hunter Yoder | Kawasaki KX250 | 16 | 13 | 17 | 7 | Partzilla Prmx Racing, SOBMX, OGS, RynoPower, Ogio |
| 17 | 173 | Hunter Schlosser | Yamaha YZ250F | 15 | 16 | 18 | 6 | Next Level Racing, Hugh Ridley, Next Level, FXR, Hole n One |
| 18 | 93 | Jerry Robin | GASGAS MC 250F | 14 | 17 | 19 | 5 | AJE Motosports |
| 19 | 89 | Kaeden Amerine | KTM 250 SX-F | 17 | 19 | 16 | 4 | Rocky Mountain ATV MC, Rides Unlimited Racing, Seven MX |
| 20 | 100 | Matt Moss | Suzuki RM-Z250 | 21 | 20 | 20 | 3 | BarX Suzuki |
| 21 | 40 | Stilez Robertson | Yamaha YZ250F | 19 | 21 | 21 | 2 | Monster Energy Yamaha Star Racing |
| 22 | 636 | Luke Kalaitzian | Honda CRF250R | 22 | 22 | 22 | 1 | KBR, Honda, Mitchell Brothers Concrete |
250SX West Points Standings
| POS. | # | RIDER | Hometown | Points |
| 1 | 18 | Jett Lawrence | Zephyrhills, FL | 153 |
| 2 | 24 | RJ Hampshire | Minneola, FL | 127 |
| 3 | 43 | Levi Kitchen | Washougal, WA | 101 |
| 4 | 48 | Cameron Mcadoo | Sioux City, IA | 101 |
| 5 | 56 | Enzo Lopes | Chesterfield, SC | 100 |
| 6 | 49 | Mitchell Oldenburg | Godley, TX | 99 |
| 7 | 33 | Pierce Brown | Sandy, UT | 86 |
| 8 | 34 | Max Vohland | Granite Bay, CA | 85 |
| 9 | 83 | Cole Thompson | Brigden, ON | 71 |
| 10 | 41 | Derek Kelley | Riverside, CA | 70 |
| 11 | 40 | Stilez Robertson | Bakersfield, CA | 55 |
| 12 | 59 | Robbie Wageman | Newhall, CA | 55 |
| 13 | 79 | Dylan Walsh | Wildomar, CA | 49 |
| 14 | 508 | Hunter Yoder | Menifee, CA | 47 |
| 15 | 69 | Phillip Nicoletti | Bethel, NY | 44 |
| 16 | 53 | Derek Drake | Lake Elsinore, CA | 41 |
| 17 | 111 | Anthony Rodriguez | Tallahassee, FL | 40 |
| 18 | 42 | Joshua Varize | Perris, CA | 33 |
| 19 | 84 | Mitchell Harrison | Leesburg, FL | 32 |
| 20 | 52 | Carson Mumford | Simi Valley, CA | 28 |
| 21 | 85 | Dilan Schwartz | Alpine, CA | 22 |
| 22 | 93 | Jerry Robin | Hamel, MN | 17 |
| 23 | 410 | Brandon Scharer | Gentry, AR | 14 |
| 24 | 173 | Hunter Schlosser | El Paso, TX | 13 |
| 25 | 162 | Maxwell Sanford | Pasadena, MD | 12 |
450SX East Main Three
Tomac was the second rider across the holeshot line but took the top spot almost immediately. Sexton and Webb were back in fifth and sixth place.
Barcia held the second position as Sexton moved up to third. Anderson went down in the whoops allowing Webb to advance to fourth.
Only Barcia could keep Tomac in sight. Sexton and Webb continued to lose time. Even if Barcia catches and passes Tomac, Eli will still take the overall title.
Tomac adds to his impressive statistics with another victory. Webb held off Roczen for the fourth spot. However, Cooper drops seven points behind Tomac in the standings.
Overall Results of 450SX Triple Crown from Glendale
| POS. | # | RIDER | BIKE | M1 | M2 | M3 | POINTS | TEAM/SPONSORS |
| 1 | 1 | Eli Tomac | Yamaha YZ450F | 1 | 2 | 1 | 26 | Monster Energy Yamaha Star Racing |
| 2 | 23 | Chase Sexton | Honda CRF450R | 4 | 1 | 3 | 23 | Team Honda HRC |
| 3 | 51 | Justin Barcia | GASGAS MC 450F | 3 | 6 | 2 | 21 | Troy Lee Designs Red Bull GASGAS Factory Racing |
| 4 | 2 | Cooper Webb | KTM 450 SX-F FE | 2 | 5 | 4 | 19 | Red Bull KTM |
| 5 | 94 | Ken Roczen | Suzuki RM-Z450 | 5 | 3 | 5 | 18 | Progressive Insurance Ecstar Suzuki |
| 6 | 9 | Adam Cianciarulo | Kawasaki KX450SR | 7 | 7 | 7 | 17 | Monster Energy Kawasaki |
| 7 | 7 | Aaron Plessinger | KTM 450 SX-F FE | 9 | 9 | 6 | 16 | Red Bull KTM |
| 8 | 45 | Colt Nichols | Honda CRF450R | 8 | 8 | 8 | 15 | Team Honda HRC |
| 9 | 15 | Dean Wilson | Honda CRF450R | 10 | 10 | 9 | 14 | Fire Power Honda |
| 10 | 21 | Jason Anderson | Kawasaki KX450SR | 6 | 4 | 21 | 13 | Monster Energy Kawasaki |
| 11 | 11 | Kyle Chisholm | Suzuki RM-Z450 | 14 | 12 | 10 | 12 | Twisted Tea Suzuki Progressive Insurance |
| 12 | 46 | Justin Hill | KTM 450 SX-F | 13 | 13 | 12 | 11 | Team Tedder Monster Energy Mountain Motorsports |
| 13 | 12 | Shane McElrath | Suzuki RM-Z450 | 15 | 11 | 16 | 10 | Twisted Tea Suzuki Progressive Insurance |
| 14 | 44 | Benny Bloss | Yamaha YZ450F | 11 | 22 | 11 | 9 | Yamaha,Truck Central LLC, FXR, Arai, Alpinestars, Pod |
| 15 | 751 | Josh Hill | KTM 450 SX-F | 18 | 14 | 13 | 8 | Team Tedder Monster Energy Mountain Motorsports |
| 16 | 47 | Fredrik Noren | Kawasaki KX450SR | 17 | 15 | 14 | 7 | MaddParts.com, Big Buildings Direct, Ronnie Prado Company |
| 17 | 78 | Grant Harlan | Yamaha YZ450F | 12 | 20 | 15 | 6 | Rock River Yamaha |
| 18 | 160 | Cole Seely | Honda CRF450R | 16 | 17 | 20 | 5 | Motoconcepts Racing, Troy Lee Designs, 100%, Alpinestars |
| 19 | 80 | Kevin Moranz | KTM 450 SX-F | 19 | 18 | 17 | 4 | Next Level Racing, Tank Masters, Red Line Oil, KTM |
| 20 | 111 | Anthony Rodriguez | Honda CRF450R | 21 | 16 | 18 | 3 | Smartop MotoConcepts Racing Honda |
| 21 | 519 | Joshua Cartwright | Kawasaki KX450 | 20 | 19 | 19 | 2 | Psychic Motorsports/T3 Civil/Ronnie Prado Company, Cardinal |
| 22 | 60 | Justin Starling | GASGAS MC 450F | 22 | 21 | 22 | 1 | FXR, General Grind & Machine, JSR Motorsports |
450SX Points Standings
| POS. | # | RIDER | HOMETOWN | TOTAL POINTS |
| 1 | 1 | Eli Tomac | Cortez, CO | 274 |
| 2 | 2 | Cooper Webb | Newport, NC | 267 |
| 3 | 23 | Chase Sexton | Clermont, FL | 249 |
| 4 | 94 | Ken Roczen | Clermont, FL | 217 |
| 5 | 51 | Justin Barcia | Greenville, FL | 216 |
| 6 | 21 | Jason Anderson | Rio Rancho, NM | 212 |
| 7 | 7 | Aaron Plessinger | Hamilton, OH | 196 |
| 8 | 28 | Christian Craig | Clermont, FL | 150 |
| 9 | 9 | Adam Cianciarulo | New Smyrna Beach, FL | 139 |
| 10 | 46 | Justin Hill | Yoncalla, OR | 127 |
| 11 | 15 | Dean Wilson | Menifee, CA | 121 |
| 12 | 45 | Colt Nichols | Murrieta, CA | 99 |
| 13 | 751 | Josh Hill | Huntersville, NC | 86 |
| 14 | 12 | Shane McElrath | Oakland, FL | 86 |
| 15 | 17 | Joey Savatgy | Clermont, FL | 85 |
| 16 | 32 | Justin Cooper | Tallahassee, FL | 76 |
| 17 | 44 | Benny Bloss | Oak Grove, MO | 66 |
| 18 | 14 | Dylan Ferrandis | Tallahassee, FL | 56 |
| 19 | 11 | Kyle Chisholm | Valrico, FL | 55 |
| 20 | 78 | Grant Harlan | Decatur, TX | 52 |
| 21 | 80 | Kevin Moranz | Topeka, KS | 47 |
| 22 | 519 | Joshua Cartwright | Fort Worth, TX | 44 |
| 23 | 47 | Fredrik Noren | Indian Trail, NC | 43 |
| 24 | 60 | Justin Starling | Riverview, FL | 41 |
| 25 | 68 | Cade Clason | Cameron, NC | 34 |
