Chef Cooking

Despite not taking a win in any of the three races at the first Triple Crown event of the 2023 Monster Energy AMA Supercross Championship, Levi Kitchen was the most consistent and claimed the overall win. Kitchen’s win came in his fifth career AMA Supercross start, and just one week after he went down in a chaotic first turn at the San Diego Supercross and officially scored 21st. The Washougal, Washington native became the 120thdifferent rider to win a 125/250SX AMA Supercross event.

Stilez’s Podium Style

Kitchen’s new teammate Stilez Robertson claimed the race win in the second race of the night, which was his first ever Triple Crown race win. Robertson finished 6-1-3 to earn his third career podium after his first two came aboard a Husqvarna FC 250 at Daytona International Speedway.

Different Winners

The Triple Crown format has provided some great racing throughout each event since the introduction to the three-race format starting with the 2018 season. On Saturday, we saw three different riders win the three races (RJ Hampshire, Stilez Robertson, and Jett Lawrence). This was the seventh time of the 12 Triple Crown events completed to date where there was no repeat race winner. But this was only the second of the 12 events where we saw three different riders win the three races and a fourth different rider win the overall.

Sexton Strikes

In the premier class, Chase Sexton claimed two of the three race wins and took the overall win (the second of his 450SX career). At the 2022 Glendale Supercross Triple Crown last February, Sexton became the first rider to win a Triple Crown race in both the 250SX Class and the 450SX Class. When Sexton took the overall Triple Crown win over the weekend, he became the first rider to win a Triple Crown overall in both the 250SX AND 450SX classes.

23 Becomes 43

Sexton earning his second career premier class AMA Supercross win means he is the 43rd different rider to earn at least two premier class AMA Supercross wins.

Kickin’ Kenny’s Podium

Ken Roczen claimed third overall on the night for his first podium of the 2023 season, and his first podium since he won the 2022 Anaheim 1 Supercross opener January 8, 2022. Roczen’s podium was also the first podium for the HEP Motorsports Suzuki team, started by Dustin Pipes only a few years ago. Roczen’s last 450SX podium aboard a Suzuki came on April 30, 2016, when he claimed the East Rutherford Supercross main event win.

1,435 days Since Last Suzuki 450SX Podium

Roczen’s first podium on the RM-Z450 was also the first 450SX podium since Chad Reed finished third at the 2019 Detroit Supercross (which, ironically, was also a Triple Crown race) over three years and 11 months ago.

Other Random Stuff

Dylan Walsh Las Angeles Rams Seven MX gear set

Wiz Khalifa was at the race and got a sweet custom helmet from Troy Lee himself.

AMA’s Post-Race Penalty Report

Vlogs

Christian Craig

Dean Wilson

Fredrik Noren

ClubMX

NICOLETTI leads A2 - ClubMX HEADSET AUDIO - listen now.

Beyond the Race Episode 8

Derek Kelley

Keege Show (Weege and Kellen)

Bubba’s World Podcast

Quotes From Around the Paddock

450SX

Chase Sexton | 1-5-1 for 1st overall

“It was kind of exciting—all of us were within one point coming into the last race, so any of the four of us could’ve won. I got a good start, I had some good lines and I felt really good through the whoops. It’s fun to be back in this position in the points; I knew I had to stop the bleeding coming into this weekend. I’m stoked on the bike changes we made this week, and I’m really looking forward to Houston and going back East.”

Cooper Webb | 7-4-2 for 4th overall

"It was an up and down night. In the first race I had a run-in with another rider and ended up on the ground with a banged-up hand, which is never great. After a fourth in the second race, I got a much better start in the last one, rode up front, and ended up second. There were some weird racing incidents tonight, but we’ll take fourth overall. I’m looking forward to heading back east and moving forward to Houston where I’ll try and get our first win of the season."

Dylan Ferrandis | 4-6-5 for 5th overall

“I had a good first main event and had a very good start, so I was happy about that. I lacked a little bit of pace in the beginning but ended up fourth, which was very good for the first race. In the second moto, I was struggling a bit. It was very rough, and I couldn’t really find my flow and finished sixth. In the last race, I got a good start again and was fourth until the very last lap. There were yellow flags, and the thing on the side of the jump was blinking. I didn’t want to jump on the red cross flag, so I rolled it, and Roczen jumped over me and passed me, so I ended up fifth. Overall, I think it’s my best Triple Crown in the 450 class, and we keep moving forward. We made a big step in the right direction with the bike. We have a good bike to win races, so I can just focus on myself for the next round.”

Eli Tomac | 3-2-13 for 6th overall

“We put ourselves in a good spot going into the third main and then obviously made a huge mistake. I went for a triple onto the tabletop and pulled a little bit to the outside when I went onto the ramp and jumped onto the tuff blocks. Honestly, my bike was just wiped away from me and I kind of folded over it. When I cartwheeled, thankfully my body landed on the tuff blocks again, so I came away unscathed. The bike was pretty beat up, but thankfully I was able to keep going and salvage that sixth overall. So, it was a bad scenario but also a good scenario because it was a Triple Crown, and the points damage wasn’t as bad as it could’ve been. That’s the way I’m looking at it; to take it as a positive and learn from my mistake and come back next week.”

Said Monster Energy Yamaha Star Racing 450 team manager Jeremy Coker:

“Overall, it was a really good day. It was a bummer what happened in the last race, but the guys rode well all day. These Triple Crowns aren’t easy. You have to put in three main events – three starts and put everything together. Eli was riding phenomenally. He just had to change his line in that last race and happened to land on a tuff block and had a really big crash. Luckily he was healthy and got up and salvaged some points. Although it wasn’t ideal, this was the perfect night for something like this to happen because it’s the Triple Crown, and we ended up getting sixth overall instead of 13th, and only lost two points. At the end of the day, he’s healthy, and we still have the points lead.”

Aaron Plessinger | 8-7-7 for 7th overall

"Seventh overall isn’t horrible, but it isn’t what I wanted and I know I’m capable of a lot more. In the first race I fought my way back through the pack as far as I could after a bad start. I got a good start and was riding well in the second main event, but I washed my front wheel out while fighting for second. It’s a shame I hit the ground, as I was really happy with that performance to that point. In the final race I got run high in the first corners and got stuck behind some riders, which slowed me down. I know what we need to work on for next week and it’s going to be nice to get back home and work with the team who we spent all off-season with."

Justin Barcia | 11-8-6 for 8th overall

"Wooo! A2 was a wild, wild day. I had a really good practice, running up in the top five for a while, but I had a little whiskey throttle incident. I had to bail off and damaged my tailbone pretty good, so it was difficult, but I got better and better as the night went on. Unfortunately, I didn't have the best gate picks and struggled a little, but in the last race, I rode really well. I'm looking forward to getting back on the podium in Texas. The boys did a good job with the bike, and I'm healthy...somewhat...so let's go!”

Christian Craig | 9-10-10 for 11th overall

“A2 started off better. I put in better times in qualifying. I'm just struggling a little bit mentally, just trying to get more comfortable. I'll keep working on that and try to improve for Houston. All-around I'll just try to take the positives from the night, know that I'm capable of more, and try to keep working toward my goals.”

Colt Nichols | 12-14-11 for 12th overall

“I was looking forward to the Triple Crown, just because I had been getting out of the gate really well, but today I couldn’t quite pull it together on the starts. I was on the ground a little bit tonight as well, and didn’t quite have it; it was a bit frustrating, from practice on. We need to be a little better. We’re struggling to find comfort in some areas, and I was too timid in some spots and too aggressive in others. We’ll figure it out.”

Said Honda HRC team manager Lars Lindstrom:

“We needed a good day like today. Even though a sweep of 250 and 450 wins keeps avoiding us, we had a great day towards the championships. Even with Jett getting second, being 16 points ahead is huge. And Chase made up a ton of points after having an awesome day qualifying and capitalizing on others’ misfortunes. The whole team is super excited—a lot of weight off our shoulders.”

Freddie Noren | 15-20-14 for 15th overall

"I'm pleased with my A2 performance. I'm working in the right direction and the team is doing great. I had a fall in the second main but the nice thing with Triple Crown events is that you get multiple opportunities so going 15-20-14 for a 15th overall I am happy with that."

Bubba Pauli | 10th in LC1Q, DNQ for Night Show

"I heard several riders say they thought the track was challenging, but I felt the best I have so far this season—I was comfortable. It's still not the performance I expect of myself, but it was a huge step in the right direction from the past two rounds. I'm excited to be back on the east coast for the next few rounds and keep this recent momentum rolling."

John Short | Qualified 42nd | DNQ for Night Show

"The A2 track was unique this weekend and it provided some good opportunity for close racing. I personally had a rough day with an early Q1 practice crash that would ultimately end my day prematurely. I was excited however to see both of my teammates have their best weekends of the season.”

250SX

Levi Kitchen | 4-2-2 for 1st overall

“It was a good night. I just knew that I needed to get some good starts, and that’s what I did. I rode consistent laps and just tried to forget about what was going on behind me; a lot of guys were falling. It feels good to get this overall win, but it also feels a little weird because, in my book, I didn’t win a moto or anything today. I want to win and be the first guy to the checkers, but I’m stoked to bounce back after last weekend. We’re going to keep working during the break. I’m still hungry.”

Jett Lawrence | 3-6-1 for 2nd overall

“The first two mains were pretty much chaos—I had some bad starts, made some mistakes, and that was pretty much it. Luckily, in the third one I was able to get a good start and stay out of the carnage for once. I’m looking forward to having some time off, playing some golf and getting ready for Oakland.”

Stilez Robertson | 6-1-3 for 3rd overall

“The first main event was definitely not what we were looking for. Honestly, I did not ride well at all, but I talked to the team, and they pepped me up. I came out and won the second main event, which was really good for my confidence. In the third main, I didn’t get as good of a start as I should have, but I still ended up on the podium, which is a big turnaround for us. So, I think there are a lot of positives to take away from today, and it will be good to go into this break on a high. We’re going to get ready and come out swinging at Oakland.”

Said Monster Energy Yamaha Star Racing 250 team manager Jensen Hendler:

“Overall, our day went very well. Levi Kitchen rode smart and went 4-2-2 to get the win, which is fantastic. I’ve been watching Levi since he was just a little kid riding at Washougal for fun, and then here we are – the top step of the podium. I’m extremely proud of him. He has worked very hard and deserves it. Stilez also had a good day. Although he didn’t ride the best in the first main and faded back a bit, we had a pep talk, and he went out in the second main and won it. He was third in the last race and ended up third overall. Leaving Anaheim with two guys on the podium was exciting. We’ll do some work during this West Coast break and, hopefully, do it again in Oakland.”

“We were excited to come here for this first 250SX Futures race to see if all our hard work paid off, and it has. Dax surprised us. He told me before the main he was going to win, and he did just that. I’m proud of him and excited to see what else he can accomplish. Unfortunately, Haiden got a terrible start and was trying to fight his way back to the front and ended up tipping over in the dragon’s back. It’s a super short race, so he did what he could and finished fifth. He’s leaving healthy, so we’re happy with that, and we’ll continue that journey and keep working. We’re excited about what the future holds for both programs. We’ll just keep working hard to keep winning.”

Mitchell Oldenburg | 5-4-6 for 4th overall

Oldenburg posted on Instagram:

“4th overall with a 5-4-6. Botched the start the last main, but really happy with my racing last night! Thanks boys❤️”

Max Vohland | 7-8-4 for 5th overall

"Tonight was a good rebound from last weekend for me. In the first race I got a mid-pack start and moved my way up to seventh. I got off to a good start in the second race, but made some mistakes that I felt could have cost me a really good shot at the win. In the final race, I almost got the holeshot and found my way into fourth, where I finished. I’m happy with the way I was riding all day, and now that we’re into a two-week break on the western region, I’m going to work hard to try and get on the box at my home race coming up."

Cameron McAdoo | 8-7-5 for 6th overall

“I felt really confident coming into this weekend, so the crash was tough to swallow and started things off on the wrong foot. It ended up being a survival night, but we made it happen. I am thankful that nothing was broken and now we have a few weeks to get back to 100 percent to come out swinging in Oakland.”

Pierce Brown | 2-13-8 for 8th overall

"The day started off on the right foot. Qualifying was good, and the first main event was great. I just had some bad luck in the second main event. I fell, then collided with another rider and fell again. It was on me. The night kind of went downhill from there. In the final race I had a good start but tangled with the same rider, which cost me a bunch of spots. I'm super-disappointed on the night because I felt like I was riding so well and I was finally riding like I know how to. But I'm just going to roll with the punches and get back to work and be ready when the 250 West resumes in Oakland.”

Dylan Walsh | 14-11-10 for 10th overall

Walsh posted on Instagram:

“A2 Triple Crown, P.10. Night didn’t go as smooth as I would’ve liked for a few reasons but slowly building to where we should be. Big thanks to @revogrindstonekawasaki for all their hard work.”

RJ Hampshire | 1-22-13 for 11th overall

“Man, what a brutal day. The track just had that feeling where it was a bit off. In the first main I started out good and got a holeshot and won. Then the second main was chaos from the beginning. I think it was about the third or fourth lap I just lost my hand in the sand and I had a big one. Thanks to Dr. G we were able to tape my shoulder up and gave it all we had for that third main. It's not ideal, but I think we're still in it. It could have been much worse and we have a little break now, so we'll be ready for Oakland in a couple of weeks.”