Anderson pips Roczen for the win in Oakland
Images by Hoppenworld
Monster Energy Supercross hosted Round Five of the 2018 season in front of a crowd of 48,146 fans inside Oakland Alameda County Coliseum.
Rockstar Energy Husqvarna Factory Racing’s Jason Anderson rallied from a sixth-place start to meet Team Honda HRC’s Ken Roczen in a battle for the lead on the last lap, which ended with Anderson taking the win by less than a second.
Jason Anderson
“Today was a roller coaster day,” said Anderson. “I went over the bars in the first practice, then was able to regroup and come out third in qualifying. I didn’t have the best heat race, but then came back in the main and had the battle of my life. It was great. The track was insane, but I’m happy to come out of it with a win.”
Anderson now leads the championship by 15-points over Ken Roczen.
Blake Baggett started fourth and found his way to third for his first podium of the season ahead of Marvin Musquin. Baggett is also one place ahead of Musquin in the championship standings with the pair currently 7th and 8th in the championship points.
Marvin Musquin
“It was a good day overall. I was feeling really good in practice, the track was technical and rutted and I got a lot of good laps in. I had great starts in both the heat race and the Main Event, which was really nice. I was running 3rd in the Main Event, pretty happy with my riding, and Jason ran me really high in the berm and then I crashed. That was a bummer but I got up pretty quick I was able to pass Seely after he made a mistake. We battled for a couple laps and from that I was running 4th place and basically on my own, there was nothing really I could do at that point. I was looking forward to getting back on the podium tonight and I was feeling good until that crash really slowed me down. But I’m happy with the training I’ve done this week and the shoulder is feeling a lot better so I’m feeling like myself again and looking ahead into San Diego.”
Justin Barcia finished fifth which relegated him to third place in the championship standings behind Roczen.
Kawasaki’s Eli Tomac, last week’s winner, started seventh and struggled to a 13th place finish. Tomac’s up and down start to 2018 sees the 25-year-old currently 12th in the championship standings.
Chad Reed finished 14th in the Main and is also 14th in the Championship Standings with 37-points.
450SX Class Results
- Jason Anderson, Husqvarna
- Ken Roczen, Honda
- Blake Baggett, KTM
- Marvin Musquin, KTM
- Justin Barcia, Yamaha
- Cole Seely, Honda
- Cooper Webb, Yamaha
- Broc Tickle, KTM
- Justin Brayton, Honda
- Joshua Grant, Kawasaki
14. Chad Reed, Husqvarna
Jason Anderson, Husqvarna
Ken Roczen, Honda
Blake Baggett, KTM
450SX Class Championship Standings
- Jason Anderson, Husqvarna (115)
- Ken Roczen, Honda (100)
- Justin Barcia, Yamaha (98)
- Cole Seely, Honda (87)
- Justin Brayton, Honda (82)
- Weston Peick, Suzuki (82)
- Blake Baggett, KTM (78)
- Marvin Musquin, KTM (73)
- Joshua Grant, Kawasaki (71)
- Cooper Webb, Yamaha (68)
14. Chad Reed, Husqvarna (37)
Plessinger wins Oakland 250SX
In the 250SX Class Main Event Yamaha’s Aaron Plessinger worked his way to the front after starting sixth to capture his second straight win, leading eight of the 19 laps. Plessinger is the only rider to maintain the points lead for two consecutive weeks.
“I got off to a great start,” Plessinger said on the podium. “‘I’ve been sick since Thursday; I thought I had the flu. I had to work through it; it was probably the hardest race I’ve ever done in my life, but the guys tell me never quit.”
Kawasaki’s Joey Savatgy earned his third podium of the season after a tight battle with Suzuki Factory Racing’s JustinHill who earned his first podium of 2018 with a third-place finish. The second placed finish promoted Savatgy up into second in the championship standings as the Western Regional 250SX championship hit its halfway mark.
Joey Savatgy
“At the beginning of the race I felt like I was riding a bit tight,” said Savatgy. “By about halfway, I settled in and tried to hang with the rider in front of me and see what he was doing different. It helped me relax and then I was able to turn it on at the end. I had a great time. I just hope next time we are battling for the lead and the win.”
Aaron Plessinger maintains the Western Regional 250SX Class points lead with his second consecutive win ahead of Joey Savatgy and Justin Hill.
Hayden Mellross finished in tenth place and is now 11th in the Championship Standings with 56-points.
Shane McElrath had won his heat race and came into the Main Event with great momentum but didn’t get the best jump off the line, and sat outside the top ten on the opening lap before then getting cross-rutted and went down hard, which sent him back to last place on the race track. After a brief stop in the mechanic’s area, McElrath resumed racing where he was able to salvage 15th place for the night.
Western Regional 250SX Class Results
- Aaron Plessinger, Yamaha
- Joey Savatgy, Kawasaki
- Justin Hill, Suzuki
- Christian Craig, Honda
- Alex Martin, KTM
- Chase Sexton, Honda
- Adam Cianciarulo, Kawasaki
- Kyle Chisholm, Yamaha
- Mitchell Harrison, Husqvarna
- Hayden Mellross, Yamaha
Western Regional 250SX Class Championship Standings
- Aaron Plessinger, Yamaha (118)
- Joey Savatgy, Kawasaki (110)
- Shane McElrath, KTM (99)
- Adam Cianciarulo, Kawasaki (93)
- Christian Craig, Honda (89)
- Chase Sexton, Honda (86)
- Justin Hill, Suzuki (79)
- Kyle Chisholm, Yamaha (68)
- Mitchell Oldenburg, Yamaha (58)
- Mitchell Harrison, Husqvarna (58)
- Hayden Mellross, Yamaha (56)
