This week in Supercross: Houston

After the drama of A2 the 2023 Monster Energy Supercross Championship moves East this weekend to Houston for round 4 of the series for the 450’s and the debut appearance for the East Coast 250’s.

Stats and Feature Image courtesy of Feld Motor Sports, Inc.

Dean Wilson edged closer to the top ten with 13th in Anaheim on Saturday but with injuries creeping in and Deano getting into the groove on the Firepower Honda a top ten could be looming in Houston.

The East Coast 250 class sees the first 250 appearances for Max Anstie and based on his WSX championship you have to fancy his chances of pushing for a podium.  It will also be interesting to see how double World MX2 Motocross Champion Tom Vialle fares on his AMA Supercross debut.

A2 saw the last of Dylan Woodcock who failed to make the cut into the Triple crown races with rumours that he is UK bound and set to take his place at this weekends Birmingham Arenacross.

Dylan Walsh and the Revo Grindstone Kawasaki team made it into the top ten for the first time this year with three solid results which also nudges them to tenth in the overall standings leading into the break for the West Coast Championship.

450 Class Recap: Anaheim 2

Twenty-Three Turns Triple Triumph: Chase Sexton took the first and third Main Event en-route to his second career 450SX Class win. Sexton only trails red-plated Eli Tomac by four points heading into Houston. He now has 13 podiums and 21 top-five finishes in his 30 career 450SX Class starts. Sexton now has eight AMA victories, which is good for 53rd all-time (450SX, 450MX, 250MX).

JA21’s 45th/75th: Jason Anderson scored a runner-up finish for the 11th time in his 450SX Class career. It was his first podium of the season and 45th podium of his career. He sits 16th all-time in podiums. The finish was also good for his 75th career top-five finish, becoming just the 13th rider in 450SX Class history to eclipse this mark.

KR vs. RV: Ken Roczen also scored the first podium of his season with a third-place finish. His 58th career podium moves him only five away from Ryan Villopoto for tenth all-time. The finish was also good for his 79th career top-five, which moves him beyond Villopoto for 10th all-time on that list. Kenny’s 119th start moves him into 25th by himself on the all-time 450SX Class starts list.

Notes: Cooper Webb (4th) has a top-five finish in each of the first three rounds for the first time in his 450SX Class career; Eli Tomac (6th) made his 150th career 450SX Class start, only one behind Davi Millsaps for 10th all-time; Joey Savatgy (10th) has become the first rider in Supercross history to start the season off with three straight 10th-place finishes.

450 Class: Houston Historical Facts

History Lesson: On March 15th-16th in 1974 the Houston Astrodome hosted the second round of the first official Supercross Championship, the “Yamaha Super-Series of Motocross”. There were two motos held on each night, all counting towards the overall results. Jim Pomeroy (Bultaco) won the weekend’s overall with a 3-1-1-2 finish but Pierre Karsmakers (Yamaha) clinched the Championship with a 2-2-2-5 overall.

Historic Supercross Venue: The Astrodome hosted 36 Supercross races from 1974-2002, including multiple rounds from 1977-1983. The Astrodome is fourth all-time in races held only behind Angel Stadium, Daytona Beach, and Pontiac Silverdome. NRG Stadium took over hosting duties for the Houston Supercross in 2003.

NRG Takes Over: NRG Stadium hosted Supercross races from 2003-2015 before a 42-year streak of Houston hosting Supercross came to an end in 2016. The series returned to NRG Stadium in 2018-2019 and in 2021 became the first venue in Supercross history to host the first three rounds of a season. 2023 will be the 19th 450SX Class race held in NRG Stadium and 55th held in Houston.

2021 Houston Recap: Opening the season with three races in 2021 gave room for plenty of action in Houston. Justin Barcia (GASGAS) nabbed his third straight opener victory in Houston 1 before Eli Tomac (Kawasaki) cruised to the Houston 2 victory. Eventual champion Cooper Webb (KTM) scored his first of eight wins on the season in Houston 3. Ken Roczen (Honda) scored runner-up finishes in Houston 1 and 2. All four of these riders look to replicate their success in Houston 2023.

250 Class Recap: Anaheim 2

Cooking: Levi Kitchen became the 120th rider to win a 250SX Class race and the first ever to do so without actually crossing the finish line first in their first win. Kitchen went 4-2-2 to clinch the overall becoming the second rider to nab their first win in a triple-crown format (RJ Hampshire, St. Louis 2022). Kitchen was making only his fifth 250SX Class start and previously hadn’t finished better than seventh.

“Bad” Night for Jett-Law: Jett Lawrence struggled to stay on two wheels in the first two Main Events of the evening. Some hard charges and a Main Event three victory paved the way for Jett to finish runner-up overall and keep a comfortable lead in the point standings. He was making his 25th career start and nabbed his 18th podium finish.

Doing it in Stilez: Stilez Robertson scored his first podium of the season and third of his 250SX Class career with a third-place overall finish in Anaheim. He won the second Main Event en-route to his podium and now boasts nine top-ten finishes in 12 career starts.

Notes: Mitchell Oldenburg (4th) made his 75th career 250SX Class start and nabbed his 20th top-five finish; Derek Kelley (7th) scored a career high finish with 10-5-7 results; Phil Nicoletti (9th) made his 40th career start and led the second Main Event for a long time before ultimately finishing third; Dylan Walsh (10th) claimed a career high finish and first top-ten result.

250 Class: Houston Historical Facts

History Lesson/Astrodome: The first 250SX Class race held in Houston was an East/West Showdown on April 20, 1985 in the Houston Astrodome, won by Eddie Warren (Eastern Regional competitor). Houston would remain an East/West Showdown through 1996 before converting into a Western Regional race from 1997-2002, concluding the Astrodome’s Supercross history.

NRG Takes Over: NRG Stadium hosted its first 250SX Class race in 2003, also the first year Houston was an Eastern Regional-only round. From 2003-2021 NRG Stadium hosted 11 Eastern Regionals and seven Western Regionals. 2023 Houston is the Eastern Regional Opener, 19th time 250SX Class racing has visited NRG Stadium, and 37th time in Houston.

East Opener: This will be the ninth time Houston has hosted the opening round of Eastern Regional racing and fourth time in NRG Stadium. In 1988 the Houston Astrodome was the season opener and a Showdown, meaning it was the opening round for all three Championships (450SX, 250SX Eastern and Western Regionals).

Winner’s Circle: The winner of Houston has gone onto win a 250SX Class Regional Championship that same season in 21/34 (62%) races, including the last five (Jason Anderson 2014, Cooper Webb 2015, Aaron Plessinger 2018, Dylan Ferrandis 2019, & Colt Nichols 2021).

Houston Track Map