2022 Arlington Supercross | Race Report & Results

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Round eight of the Monster Energy Supercross Championship rolled into Arlington, Texas, for the second Triple Crown of the season, and the action in the Lone Star State did not disappoint. While the premier 450 division is approaching the mid-way point of the championship, the Eastern Regional 250 Championship is only a couple of races old, but it is as exciting and tight as one might hope.

250 Class Race One

Fast qualifier Jett Lawrence snared the holeshot at the start of the first 250 race, but he fell in turn two and handed the lead to Stilez Robertson. The Husqvarna rider led Cameron McAdoo, Austin Forkner, RJ Hampshire, and Mitchell Oldenburg through the first lap. Lawrence remounted quickly and completed the first lap in 17th place, and set to work on the rest of the field. McAdoo applied heavy pressure to Robertson for the lead, but Forkner snuck past his Monster Energy/Pro Circuit/Kawasaki teammate on lap three and surpassed Robertson for the lead one corner later. McAdoo followed suit, and the Kawasaki duo set sail at the front of the pack. Lawrence, meanwhile, broke into the top 10 by lap four and looked fabulous as he raced forward. At the checkers, Forkner earned the win over his teammate McAdoo, while Hampshire held off a tremendous last-lap charge by Lawrence to hold on to third. 

“If you can win the first two races at a Triple Crown, you don’t have to win the last one, per se,” said Forkner, who has. three Triple Crown wins to his credit. “That’s not the case just yet, but you have to have a different strategy in a Triple Crown than a regular 15-minute race.”

250 Class Race Two

Lawrence gated nearly perfectly in race two but this time he was led through turn one by Robertson, who led for the second time in Texas. Lawrence was patient and followed the young Husqvarna rider for over a lap before working past with a blistering run through the whoops. Once out front, Larence set sail on his Honda, leaving the rest to fight over second. Chasing Roberton was Star Racing Yamaha’s Jeremy Martin, who was off the pace in race one, but looked more like his usual speedy self in race two. The Kawasaki duo of Forkner and McAdoo battled fiercely as they raced through the field together, and McAdoo found his way past his teammate just before the halfway point. 

Up front, Lawrence rode a masterful race, controlling the lead with a steady pace that granted him a near five-second lead over Martin, who in turn enjoyed a slight lead over McAdoo. Forker dropped off the pace slightly due to an off-track excursion, but he was able to regroup and maintain control of fourth. At the checkers, it was Lawrence, Martin, McAdoo, and Forkner. This left Lawrence, McAdoo, and Forkner, all tied with five points apiece entering the third and final race of the night! 

“I didn’t wanna be stupid in this race like the first one,” said Lawrence.”The track is really slippery and you have to be careful, but I am feeling good out there!”‘

250 Class Race Three

Lawrence and Forkner battled for the holeshot at the start of the third main, but Lawrence slid out in turn one and started the race in dead last. The confusion allowed Jace Owen to lead the race briefly, but his time at the front was short-lived as McAdoo stole the lead and went on a mission to check out from the rest of the field. Pierce Brown moved into second aboard his Gas Gas, leading Owen, Phil Nicoletti, and Robertson. Nicoletti went down on lap three and collected Robertson too, and this allowed Forkner and Martin to move into fourth and fifth, respectively. Lawrence, meanwhile, broke into the top 10 with six minutes left on the clock, and the Australian rode like a man possessed as he sliced his way towards the front. 

While McAdoo pulled away, Brown sat comfortably in second, leaving Owen to fight off the charges of Forkner and Martin. Forkner was able to found his way past the Club MX Yamaha rider, but Martin came into contact with the rear of Owen’s bike and went down, Lawrence missed the downed  Martin and set after Forkner. Lawrence found his way past Forkner with a wild run through the whoops, but in the next corner, the Aussie clipped a Tuffblock as he left a jump face and was thrown across Forkner’s line in the air. The two riders collided in the air and crashed to the ground in a heap, but only Lawrence was able to remount as Forkner required medical attention. 

At the finish, McAdoo enjoyed a large margin over Brown, who rode the race of his life to cross the finish line in second. Martin passed Owen on the last lap. 

“It was a crazy night of racing, and these tripe crowns are gnarly,” said McAdoo. “Me, Austin, and Jett were tied going into the last race so it was winner take all. I chose the same starting gate in all three races, and it paid off. This feels amazing!”

“My whole goal after that ninth in the first race was just to get upfront as best I could in the last two races,” said Martin. “To get on the podium feels amazing. I saw the mid-air collision between Lawrence and Forkner and thought ‘Oh, my God!’ I just hope. they are okay.”

“I’m really disappointed in myself,” said Lawrence. “I clipped the Tuffblock on the jump face and I am so bummed to take someone out from cross-jumping. I don’t like taking a rider out like that at all and I pray he is okay.”

450 Class Race One

When the gate dropped on the first 450 class race of the night, it was Vince Friese who assumed his usual spot at the front. Marvin Musquin moved quickly in turn two. though, and took control of the lead. Malcolm Stewart was next to make a move and assumed second from Friese on the first lap, and a few corners later the Motoconcepts rider went down and fell from the lead group. Jason Anderson assumed third with Friese’s demise and looked solid as he set his sights on the lead duo. On lap two, Stewart found his way past Musquin and took over the lead, and Anderson followed suit a few sections later. Justin Barcia and Cooper Webb moved into third and fourth, respectively, while series points leader Eli Tomac was mired in the pack and did his best to work his way forward. At the halfway point of the race, Tomac was up to seventh. 

As the race wound down, Anderson closed to the rear of Stewart’s Rockstar Energy Husqvarna and he began to apply pressure to the leader. Anderson dove under Stewart with three minutes left in the race and the two made contact that saw both of them hit the ground. This allowed Barcia, Webb, Chase Sexton, and Tomac by before they were able to remount. With two laps left, Webb caught fire and took over the lead on the last lap as they raced through the over-under tunnel. Webb took the first win of the night with a couple of bike lengths between him and Barcia. Tomac crossed the finish line third, followed by Sexton and the former lead duo, Stewart and Anderson.

“It feels great,” said Webb. “The conditions out there are crazy. I washed the front end on. the sighting lap and was all flustered, but as the race went on I really started to gel with the track.”. 

450 Class Race Two

Sexton grabbed the holeshot at the start of the second race and led Anderson, Tomac, Friese, and Webb Tomac began. to pressure Anderson from the get-go, but the Kawasaki rider held strong in the runner-up position. Tomac attacked time and time again, and finally found his way past just before the halfway point. Anderson checked up in. the corner, however, and snatched the position back in the over-under tunnel. This cat and mouse game, though, allowed Webb to close in on the championship rivals, setting the stage for an exciting end to the race. 

As the laps wound down, Anderson caught fire and closed in on Sexton, then took over the lead with a smooth run through the whoops with five minutes left on the clock. Tomac followed suit with a pass on Sexton two laps later, but the damage was done and Anderson was already six seconds out of reach. Webb was next to pressure Sexton, but the defending Supercross Champion was unable to overtake the Honda rider. 

At the checkered flag, Anderson notched the win ahead of Tomac, Sexton, Webb, Dylan Ferrandis, and Stewart. Entering the final race, Tomac and Webb were tied to the lead with five points each.

“I am here to fight, and there’s one more race to go,” said Anderson. “I’m looking forward to race three.”

450 Class Race Three

Shane McElrath led the way when the gate dropped for the last time in Arlington, but Tomac found his way past in the whoops on lap one. Webb, Roczen, and Musquin tangled in the first section and all three started the race mired in the back. Anderson passed McElrath at the start of lap two and set his sights on Tomac. At the halfway point, Anderson was breathing down Tomac’s back, and nine seconds further back, Stewart took control of third. Anderson made his way past Tomac just after the finish line, but the Yamaha rider stayed glued to the leader’s rear wheel. Though Tomac didn’t need to win the moto for the overall, he rode as if a championship was on the line as he looked for an opening until the checkered flag flew. Alas, time ran out for the series points leader and Anderson crossed the finish line for the third moto win. Stewart came home third, comfortably ahead of Webb. Tomac’s second was good enough for the overall Triple Crown win and he gained another three points on Anderson in the series points race.

“That was a really fun cat and mouse race out there,” said Tomac. “Once I got passed by Jason I rode on his rear wheel and was waiting for the end. I missed my chance at the end but the overall win was the most important. Feels great.”

“I am just ready to battle and give it my all every time,” said Anderson. “I have been working on my race craft and I want to be there until the end.”