Jason Anderson did his best to keep the pressure on Eli Tomac with his Supercross Round 14 heat and feature win, but Tomac’s lead in the points barely shrunk at Atlanta Motor Speedway.
This was Anderson’s fourth win of the season and it stopped a slide of six races in which he failed to stand on the podium four times after being embroiled in battles with Malcolm Stewart and Just Barcia that all but ended his title hopes.
Tomac’s minimized the damage of Anderson’s win after starting mid-pack - a position that has become all-too commonplace. His second-place finish in Atlanta allowed Anderson to shave only three points from his lead and with three rounds remaining, Tomac has a 53-point advantage. If Tomac finishes ahead of Anderson next week, he will clinch.
RESULTS: Click here for 450 Results; Click here for 250 results
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Chase Sexton led early in Supercross Round 14 before securing the last spot on the podium but is too deep points to be relevant for the championship. After missing Seattle and finishing outside the top 10 in two other races, he is a distant fifth.
Cooper Webb was forced to sit out the St. Louis Triple Crown last week with injury. He returned with a vengeance to finish second in his heat and fourth overall.
Click here Heat 1 results | Heat 2 | LCQ
Rounding out the top five is Malcolm Stewart, who also struggled with on-track rivalries at critical junctures in 2022. This is his second top-five in the last four races, but he had failed to stand on the podium in that span.
The rider sitting second in the points, Justin Barcia narrowly missed the top five with his sixth-place finish.
Last week’s winner, Marvin Musquin hit the dirt midway through the Atlanta race and was forced to settle for a 10th-place finish.
Click here for Round 14 450 Overall results | Rider Points | Manufacturer Points | Lap Chart
The 250 class had their first East/West Showdown in Supercross Round 14, which shook the points up only a little as the top three contender stood on the podium.
The West riders were the clear winners in the head-tohead matchup with Hunter Lawrence getting his third win of the season and second consecutively. That he beat points leader Christian Craig and brother Jett Lawrence was an added bonus. He is now 23 points out of first with two rounds remaining.
Craig had an unaccustomed bad start, but there is no give-up in this rider as he charged to second. As with Tomac in the 450 class, he could wrap up the title in his next race if he beats Hunter.
Click here 250 East Heat results | West Heat | LCQ
Jett Lawrence dug a deep hole on the first lap. He crashed and started deep in the field, rode to 15th by the end of Lap 1 and meticulously worked his way to third after passing Jo Shimoda on the final lap to join his brother on the podium. His points lead over RJ Hampshire stands at 47.
Shimoda scored his second straight fourth-place finish and his third consecutive top-five.
Nate Thrasher rounded out the top five in fifth.
Hampshire claimed second in the points with Cameron McAdoo sitting out the last two rounds with injury. Hampshire finished eighth.
The comeback performance of the night belonged to Austin Forkner, who returned from a gnarly injury in the Texas Triple Crown to win his heat and finish seventh in the feature.
Click here for 250 West Overall results | 250 West Rider Points | 250 East Rider Points | 250 Rider East/West Points Combined | Lap Chart
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POINTS, RESULTS AFTER ROUND 1 AT ANAHEIM: Ken Roczen, Cooper Webb renew rivalry with 1-2 finish
POINTS, RESULTS AFTER ROUND 2 AT OAKLAND: Jason Anderson wins, Roczen struggles to tighten points’ standings
POINTS, RESULTS AFTER ROUND 3 AT SAN DIEGO: First time wins for Chase Sexton (450s) and Michael Mosiman (250s)
POINTS, RESULTS AFTER ROUND 4 AT ANAHEIM: Eli Tomac solidifies points’ lead with first win of season
POINTS, RESULTS AFTER ROUND 5 AT GLENDALE: Tomac is first rider to repeat in 2022
POINTS, RESULTS AFTER ROUND 6 AT ANAHEIM: Anderson ties Tomac with two wins in 2022
POINTS, RESULTS AFTER ROUND 7 AT MINNEAPOLIS: Anderson makers it three, closes in on Tomac
POINTS, RESULTS AFTER ROUND 8 AT ARLINGTON: Tomac wins the overall and takes maximum points, Anderson wins two features
POINTS, RESULTS AFTER ROUND 9 AT DAYTONA: History made: Tomac is winningest Daytona rider
POINTS, RESULTS AFTER ROUND 10 AT DETROIT: Tomac makes it three in a row and takes sole possession of fifth on winners list
POINTS, RESULTS AFTER ROUND 11 AT INDIANAPOLIS: Justin Barcia moves to second after controversial race
POINTS, RESULTS AFTER ROUND 12 AT SEATTLE: Tomac’s streak continues with fifth straight win
POINTS, RESULTS AFTER ROUND 13 AT ST LOUIS: Marvin Musquin gets first win of 2022 in Triple Crown format