SEATTLE, Wash. – Monster Energy Star Racing Yamaha’s Eli Tomac racked up the win inside Lumen Field for his fifth straight Monster Energy AMA Supercross victory this season. The win in Seattle pulls Tomac into a tie for fourth place on the historic 450SX class wins list.
Monster Energy Kawasaki’s Jason Anderson pulled in another podium finish with a strong second place run, and Red Bull KTM’s Marvin Musquin repeated his previous week’s finish with a spot on the podium in third place. In the return to western regional 250SX Class racing after a five week hiatus, Team Honda HRC’s Hunter Lawrence came out with a big win, his second of the season. It earned Lawrence enough points to pull him into second overall in the division’s standings.
Eli Tomac wasn’t the fastest qualifier and didn’t win his heat race, but he had the class covered when the gate dropped for the 12th 450SX class main event of 2022. Tomac shot into the lead ahead of Troy Lee Designs Red Bull GASGAS Factory Racing’s Justin Barcia, Musquin, and Anderson. Anderson moved into third spot before one lap was completed in the 20-minute plus one lap main event. From there, Tomac showed the others the fast way around a track that was slick and rutting up deeper as the race progressed.
Four minutes into the racing, defending champion Red Bull KTM’s Cooper Webb moved into 10th place while recovering from a poor start. Ahead of him the top group was slowly spreading apart. Then, just before the race’s midpoint, Barcia jumped off-line, landed on a Tuffblox, and went down hard in a rhythm lane. Barcia remounted in fifth behind Tomac, Anderson, Musquin, and the day’s fastest qualifier Rockstar Energy Husqvarna Factory Racing’s Malcolm Stewart. In the closing laps Webb reached and clung to Barcia’s rear wheel but could never make the move past.
Tomac took the win in front of a loud and enthusiastic Washington crowd, who hadn’t had a Supercross event in the Pacific Northwest since 2019. It was Tomac’s fifth-straight win, tying his personal record, and placing him into an all-time-wins tie for fourth with retired champion Chad Reed. It also pushed Tomac 54 points ahead of his nearest competitor for the 2022 championship. Anderson grabbed his first podium since Round 8, and Musquin kept up his podium streak in Seattle that covers both 450SX and 250SX racing; the Frenchman has podiumed at every Seattle Supercross in which he’s competed.
After a five week break, Monster Energy Star Racing Yamaha’s Christian Craig grabbed the holeshot in the thundering return of the western regional 250SX class. Craig was just ahead of Troy Lee Designs Red Bull GASGAS Factory Racing’s Michael Mosiman and Monster Energy Pro Circuit Kawasaki’s Jo Shimoda. Hunter Lawrence crossed the holeshot stripe in seventh. Craig tried to quickly gap the field, but Mosiman stayed right with him. Two minutes into the 15-minute plus one lap race Hunter Lawrence made his way into third place. Soon after that, up front Mosiman aggressively passed Craig for the lead. Mosiman’s contact pass sent Craig over the berm and onto the ground; he remounted in sixth and started his charge forward. Five minutes into the race Lawrence caught Mosiman and a lap later took the lead. Mosiman was dropping slightly off the pace with a bent rear brake rotor from his contact pass on Craig. A little after the midpoint Craig got by Mosiman without incident and into second place. Late in the race Shimoda put in a valiant charge on Moisman. He briefly took over third place on the last lap, lost it again, then nearly crashed himself out with a last turn, last ditch effort. Mosiman held on for third and Shimoda recovered from his off-track excursion to earn fourth place.
The series now takes a one-weekend break. The racers will next line up in two weeks at The Dome at America’s Center in St. Louis, Mo. on Saturday, April 9th. The event will be the final of three 2022 Triple Crown events where the top racers face each other over three races in one night. It will also be a return to the eastern regional 250SX class series after two weekends without a race. Tickets are on sale now for the St. Louis and other 2022 rounds in the 17-round championship.
The Finish:
450SX: 1. Eli Tomac, 2. Jason Anderson, 3. Marvin Musquin, 4. Malcolm Stewart, 5. Justin Barcia, 6. Cooper Webb, 7. Dean Wilson, 8. Justin Bogle, 9. Mitchell Oldenburg, 10. Brandon Hartranft
250SX: 1. Hunter Lawrence, 2. Christian Craig, 3. Michael Mosiman, 4. Jo Shimoda, 5. Vince Friese, 6. Garrett Marchbanks, 7. Chris Blose, 8. Jalek Swoll, 9. Robbie Wageman, 10. Derek Kelley