Words: Simon Makker

As the 2023 Monster Energy AMA Supercross Championship heads into its final stages, we’re seeing the title favorites emerging, and plenty of drama taking place on-track. We break down the unfolding trends in this edition of Q&A.

Q: Who’s the favorite for the 450SX title?

A: Although there are technically still three contenders with a shot at the championship – Monster Energy Yamaha Star Racing’s Eli Tomac, Red Bull KTM’s Cooper Webb and Team Honda HRC’s Chase Sexton – it’s realistically now a two-rider race between Tomac and Webb. Entering last weekend’s round at Glendale the two rivals were still tied on points, but Webb didn’t have the pace around the hard-packed Arizona circuit and could only claim a P4 result, dropping a valuable seven points to round winner Tomac in the process. While he’s been happy to settle for lesser points on a few weekends, Tomac has still won seven of the 12 rounds, and the last two in succession. Saturday’s Atlanta round is now a must-win for Webb, who hasn’t stood atop the podium since round seven at Arlington.

Q: Will the Lawrence brothers win both 250SX titles?

A: Barring injuries or something completely left-field occurring, the two 250SX titles are Hunter’s and Jett’s to lose. The Team Honda HRC brothers have been the class of the lower-capacity fields this year, with both winning five of the six region rounds so far. Monster Energy Yamaha Star Racing duo Levi Kitchen (250SX West) and Nate Thrasher (250SX East) have been the only racers able to stop the Lawrences from clean-sweeping the series with just a few rounds left to go. Jett holds a 26-point lead over Rockstar Energy Husqvarna’s RJ Hampshire in the western region, while Hunter now enjoys a 35-point buffer over Thrasher with four rounds remaining in the east.

Q: What have been some of the standout performances?

A: At the Indianapolis round, Progressive Insurance Ecstar Suzuki’s Ken Roczen put in a gritty wire-to-wire performance to win an emotion-charged main event. To make it more special, it was the first time a Suzuki rider had stood on top of a 450SX podium since 2016, which was also Roczen. After a roller-coaster career and off-season, Roczen’s victory was a special moment that stands out this year. Equally emotional – but in a heart-breaking way – was Red Bull KTM’s Aaron Plessinger, who came desperately close to claiming his first-ever 450SX win at Detroit. After leading the race from the first turn, Plessinger was just a handful of corners from claiming the checkered flag when he crashed hard. A devastated AP7 eventually was credited 13th, knowing he’d come oh-so-close to fulfilling a life-long dream.

Q: Biggest surprise or disappointment this year?

A: After finishing the 2022 championship in a runner-up position with his seven round wins to his name, Monster Energy Kawasaki’s Jason Anderson entered the 2023 season as one of the potential title-factors in the 450SX class. So far that hasn’t happened, with the 2018 champion currently placed sixth in the points, and with just one podium appearance to his name at Anaheim 2. Anderson still has the speed to run at the front, but he’s struggled with starts and crashes at too many rounds this year. Just five points separate fourth (Roczen), fifth (TLD Red Bull GasGas rider Justin Barcia) and sixth (Anderson) in the championship standings with five rounds remaining, so there’s still plenty to play for, even if another series podium is probably out of reach.

Q: Is Sexton now out of the running for the 450SX title?

A: Nothing’s guaranteed in supercross, but the Team Honda HRC rider is 25 points behind championship leader Tomac with five rounds left to run. Even if Sexton wins every round from here on out, and Tomac consistently finishes second, the two-time champion will claim a third title with a 10-point buffer. The frustrating thing for Sexton is the amount of points he’s left on the table with costly errors while in race-leading positions. Those valuable points would’ve placed him right in contention for his first 450SX championship. There are plenty of positives he can take from the 2023 season, though – he won Anaheim 2, has eight podium finishes and has consistently been the fastest qualifier at the vast majority of rounds.

Q: Is the Monster Energy Pro Circuit Kawasaki curse a real thing?

A: Not likely, but you really have to feel for PC team boss Mitch Payton after the terrible run of injuries his team has been dealt this year. The entire starting line-up of Austin Forkner, Jo Shimoda, Cameron McAdoo and Seth Hammaker have all been injured at times, with Carson Mumford (250SX West) and Chris Blose (250SX East) now representing the team. The veteran Blose has been steadily improving, finishing P5 at Detroit, while Mumford has only made two appearances for the team after getting injured shortly after signing his stand-in deal. Shimoda will return at Atlanta this Saturday having recovered from his broken collarbone. The last time the Pro Circuit outfit won a title was in 2017, when Justin Hill clinched the 250SX West championship.