With wins in both motos, Chase Sexton won Motocross Round 1 of the Lucas Oil Motocross season at Fox Raceway in Pala, Calif. as 250 rider Jett Lawrence put in an equally impressive show in his division.
Strong starts in both motos contributed to Sexton’s overall win.
He launched third behind Eli Tomac and Ken Roczen but quickly made his way to the front and rode uncontested for the remainder of the race. In Moto 2, Sexton got the holeshot and rode away from the field.
“Man, it was a dream day for me,” said Sexton. “All during supercross, I wanted to be fastest qualifier, win the heat, and win the main, but I never did it.
“I think outdoors is even harder to go 1-1. Two starts, two full motos, it’s tough. I felt perfect out there today. Kenny and I were on another level, and it was awesome. The Honda team has put a lot of hard work in this offseason and this whole year to get us comfortable and I feel like we’re in a good point right now.”
Chase Sexton is now the hunted 🎯 #ProMotocross #LetsTakeItOutside pic.twitter.com/eI8ZaYoYJ7
— Pro Motocross (@ProMotocross) May 29, 2022
Roczen proved to be his main competition throughout the motos, finishing 2-2 and easily securing second overall. It was an emotional comeback for a rider who left Supercross nine rounds into their season so that he could concentrate on his health after a variety of issues suffered over the past few seasons. Last year, Roczen also finished second in the season opener before taking the win in Round 2 at Thunder Valley.
Making his move up to the 450 bike after securing the 250 West championship in SX, Christian Craig rode with confidence to third-place overall after finishing 3-3. His ride was even more gratifying as it was his first podium in 13 years.
“I’ve been robbed so many times for the overall (podium), so to finally get that one is incredible,” Craig said. “It was even better to battle my teammate for it as well. To get my first podium at my home race is something special.”
Craig’s teammate Eli Tomac finished fourth overall with results of 7-4 in his motos. Tomac wrapped up the SX championship one week early and skipped the finale so he could rehabilitate his knee, so the seventh-place finish in Moto 1 was a slight concern since he fell back from a strong start. Moto 2 saw him get a worse start, as is often the case with Tomac, and he was forced to ride forward to get his fourth-place finish.
In his return to racing, Ryan Dungey showed there was no rust on him by finishing 5-5 and rounding out the top five in the overall results.
“It was definitely a surprise to myself,” said Dungey. “I almost thought I was crazy for coming back, but you know, I wanted the challenge. I’m excited to be here. The team did an awesome job today. This track was nasty. I was a little bit off the pace, of course, but that’s okay. We’ve got to start somewhere, and we’ll build from here.”
Making his American Motocross debut, Antonio Cairoli finished 10-6 for seventh overall.
Defending 2021 champion Dylan Ferrandis was unable to ride in the opening round after announcing he had a torn ligament in his thumb immediately before the round began.
450 results (moto finish)
- Chase Sexton, La Moille, Ill., Honda (1-1)
- Ken Roczen, Germany, Honda (2-2)
- Christian Craig, Temecula, Calif., Yamaha (3-3)
- Eli Tomac, Cortez, Colo., Yamaha (7-4)
- Ryan Dungey, Belle Plain, Minn., KTM (5-5)
- Jason Anderson, Edgewood, N.M., Kawasaki (4-8)
- Antonio Cairolli, Italy, KTM (10-6)
- Aaron Plessinger, Hamilton, Ohio, KTM (6-10)
- Justin Barcia, Monroe, N.Y., GasGas, (8-9)
- Shane McElrath, Canton, N.C., Husqvarna, (11-7)
450 points standings
- Chase Sexton, La Moille, Ill., Honda - 50
- Ken Roczen, Germany, Honda - 44
- Christian Craig, Temecula, Calif., Yamaha - 40
- Eli Tomac, Cortez, Colo., Yamaha - 32
- Ryan Dungey, Belle Plain, Minn., KTM - 32
- Jason Anderson, Edgewood, N.M., Kawasaki - 31
- Antonio Cairolli, Italy, KTM - 26
- Aaron Plessinger, Hamilton, Ohio, KTM - 26
- Justin Barcia, Monroe, N.Y., GasGas - 25
- Shane McElrath, Canton, N.C., Husqvarna - 24
It’s a brother thing 🍾 🤝 The defending champ, Jett Lawrence, WINS the season opener. #ProMotocross pic.twitter.com/cgzcazJ6YM
— Pro Motocross (@ProMotocross) May 28, 2022
In the 250 class, Jett Lawrence picked up where he left off, defending his 2021 Motocross championship with an opening round win. Like Sexton, he won the overall in style with a pair of moto wins.
Lawrence also won the 250 East championship in Supercross this year and is looking to take three consecutive titles.
He failed to lead the opening lap of either moto, but it didn’t take long to get the top spot. Lawrence had the lead of Moto 1 by Lap 4 and Moto 2 by Lap 2 as he rode away from the field. Lawrence also won the opening round last year in his title quest.
It was a great day for the family as Jett was followed across the line in both motos by his brother, Hunter Lawrence. For Hunter, it was a much better start than he experienced last year when he was sixth in this race in route to a third in the overall standings at the season’s end.
Jo Shimoda took the final podium spot with a 4-3 finish in the motos.
Shimoda’s bid to sweep the podiums in both races was denied by RJ Hampshire, who overcame a ninth-place start in Moto 1 to finish third. The second moto would prove to be his undoing as he finished ninth there, but that was enough for fourth overall.
Rounding out the top five was Michael Mosiman with a 9-4.
After returning from injury and immediately winning in Supercross, Austin Forkner narrowly missed the top five with 6-6 finishes,
250 results (moto finish)
- Jett Lawrence, Australia, Honda (1-1)
- Hunter Lawrence, Australia, Honda (2-2)
- Jo Shimoda, Japan, Kawsaki (4-3)
- RJ Hampshire, Hudson, Fla., Husqvarna (3-9)
- Michael Mosiman, Sebastapol, Calif. GasGas (9-4)
- Austin Forkner, Richards, Mo., Kawasaki (6-6)
- Seth Hammaker, Bainbridge, Penn., Kawasaki (8-5)
- Levi Kitchen, Washougal, Wash., Yamaha (5-8)
- Pierce Brown, Sandy, Utah, GasGas (7-7)
- Stilez Rovberston, Bakersfield, Calif., Husqvarna (10-11)
250 points standings
- Jett Lawrence, Australia, Honda - 50
- Hunter Lawrence, Australia, Honda - 44
- Jo Shimoda, Japan, Kawsaki - 38
- RJ Hampshire, Hudson, Fla., Husqvarna - 32
- Michael Mosiman, Sebastapol, Calif., GasGas - 30
- Austin Forkner, Richards, Mo., Kawasaki - 30
- Seth Hammaker, Bainbridge, Penn., Kawasaki - 29
- Levi Kitchen, Washougal, Wash., Yamaha - 29
- Pierce Brown, Sandy, Utah, GasGas - 28
- Stilez Roberston, Bakersfield, Calif., Husqvarna - 21