Image: Octopi Media.

The season-opening round of Monster Energy Supercross proved challenging for new Monster Energy Kawasaki recruit Garrett Marchbanks, who failed to qualify for the 450SX main event but will take the lessons from Anaheim 1 into round two.

In his first outing onboard the factory KX450, the 24-year-old posted the 17th-fastest qualifying time before finishing 10th in his heat race, just one position shy of a direct transfer.

Lining up for the last chance qualifier (LCQ), Marchbanks was within the top four transfer positions, although a crash through the whoop section with three minutes remaining ended his night prematurely inside Angel Stadium.

“Today was a tough one for me and not how I expected or would have liked for it to go,” Marchbanks reflected post-race. “I felt good during qualifying, and I had good speed throughout sections of the track.

“Poor starts and mistakes on my part led to me being out of the mix. I know what the team and I are capable of, and we will show it next weekend – this will be a learning experience for me, and we’ll move forward.”

Marchbanks – who is on a single-year contract with Kawasaki for the 2026 season – will be aiming to turn his season around in these early stages this weekend in San Diego’s second round.