Motocross
AMA Supercross Round 13 Report: All tied up
Behind his fourth win of the season, Cooper Webb pulled into a tie in the 450SX Championship with Jett Lawrence.
Expect the unexpected. Throughout the 2024 AMA Supercross Championship, just when things seem to settle in—to normalize themselves—another wrench is thrown in the title chase. Entering round 13 in Foxborough, Honda HRC’s Jett Lawrence was clinging to an eight-point lead over Cooper Webb. Following three straight wins and a third-place finish, Lawrence seemed to be in control of the championship. Then he finished eighth in St. Louis and lost a gaggle of points. Despite tough conditions due to rain earlier in the week, Jett was quick in practice and even passed Webb late in their heat race to take the win.
Jett Lawrence at AMA Supercross Series Round 13 at Gillette Stadium
© Garth Milan / Red Bull Content Pool
In the main event, Jett spun off the start and got sandwiched between two riders entering the first corner and was buried in the pack. Meanwhile, Webb grabbed the holeshot over Progressive Insurance ECSTAR Suzuki's Ken Roczen and Red Bull KTM’s Chase Sexton. Over the course of the next 23 laps, a game of cat and mouse played out between the top three. Webb would push his lead slightly over Roczen. Sexton would catch Roczen, who would then catch Webb. Late in the main event, Sexton finally got into second and made a late push on Webb and the two were separated by less than a second heading into the final lap. Sexton made a slight mistake, which allowed Roczen to close back in. Despite his slip, Sexton made a dash for the lead on the final lap, but Webb skimmed the whoops and was able to hold for a 1.098 win.
“It's crazy, you know, the season's never over, you've just gotta put your head down and now it's tied; it’s pretty crazy,” said Webb. “So we'll just stick to our thing, but man, it was great. Great race, had a great pace out front, and then made a big mistake. I missed the rhythm, and the guys got [up to] me. And then Chase was riding really well, I could feel him coming. [I lost time] just being kind of dumb in the whoops. [On the] last lap I decided to skim, and it was the best I hit them.”
Chase Sexton at AMA Supercross Series Round 13 at Gillette Stadium
© Garth Milan / Red Bull Content Pool
Sexton would hang on for a close second over Roczen in third.
“Obviously I wanted that win. I was pretty close,” Sexton said. “I tried to hit that corner pretty hard after the finish line and slid out [at the start of the final lap]. Other than that, though, we're making progress and happy to be getting a little closer in points. Losing points to Cooper, but we're kind of inching up a little bit. So we need to click off some wins and end this season on a high.”
“Man, that was a fun race. I'm just really thankful to be back on the podium, that was really important for us,” said Roczen. “I'm sure the team was wondering sometimes what I was doing out there; especially in practice, I mean it was horrendous, but I’m just happy to be back up on the box.”
Ken Roczen at AMA Supercross Series Round 13 at Gillette Stadium
© Garth Milan / Red Bull Content Pool
Despite having to come through the pack, Jett still had a chance to maintain his points lead. He needed to pass Jason Anderson for fourth on the final lap and made a huge late push to grab the key position. He dove to the inside in the final corner, but Anderson powered around the outside to take the spot. Behind his fourth win of the season, Webb and Jett are now tied in points entering round 14.
Back in action for the first time since Indianapolis, Red Bull KTM’s Tom Vialle and Cameron McAdoo were locked in a tight championship chase in the 250SX East Region, as McAdoo held a slim two-point lead. But another rider was determined to throw their name in the mix. Haiden Deegan grabbed the holeshot on Saturday and never looked back. He led all 18 laps en route to a dominating win over McAdoo and Vialle.
Tom Vialle at AMA Supercross Series Round 13 at Gillette Stadium
© Garth Milan / Red Bull Content Pool
“I knew I could do it. It's inside of me, but man, the highs and lows of this sport, they get to you,” said Deegan.
“The track is really slippery, and I couldn't really find good lines during the whole main event,” said Vialle. “So of course I'm not really happy with my result, but I didn’t lose a lot [of points] for the championship and we are still in the fight. I enjoy riding here, another great track, and I'm really looking forward to next weekend.”
Troy Lee Designs/Red Bull/GasGas’ Pierce Brown continued his consistent season on Saturday with a fourth-place finish.
“I feel like I struggled throughout the day and then I pulled it together in the main event,” said Brown. “I had a decent start and then rode consistently in fourth, which was all I had tonight. We'll go back to work next week and then see you guys in Nashville!"
Round 14 of AMA Supercross travels to Nashville on Saturday April 20, where McAdoo will carry a four-point lead in the 250SX East Region Championship.
01
450SX Results
- Cooper Webb
- Chase Sexton
- Ken Roczen
- Jason Anderson
- Jett Lawrence
- Eli Tomac
- Hunter Lawrence
- Justin Cooper
- Justin Hill
- Malcolm Stewart
02
250SX East Region Results
- Haiden Deegan
- Cameron McAdoo
- Tom Vialle
- Pierce Brown
- Max Anstie
- Coty Schock
- Daxton Bennick
- Jalek Swoll
- Marshal Weltin
- Henry Miller
03
450SX Point Standings
- Jett Lawrence 261
- Cooper Webb 261
- Chase Sexton 246
- Eli Tomac 231
- Ken Roczen 222
- Jason Anderson 206
- Aaron Plessinger 198
- Justin Cooper 161
- Justin Barcia 149
- Hunter Lawrence 148
04
250SX East Region Standings
- Cameron McAdoo 120
- Tom Vialle 116
- Haiden Deegan 107
- Pierce Brown 105
- Coty Schock 95
- Daxton Bennick 86
- Max Anstie 79
- Seth Hammaker 72
- Jalek Swoll 72
- Chance Hymas 70