Well That Escalated Quickly
Okay, we probably shouldn’t be shocked that Jett Lawrence made history by winning the very first 450SX race of his career, After all, he did indeed go undefeated last summer in 450 AMA Motocross. But still, supercross is a different animal, and the class is much deeper, right? Right? Didn’t matter. Jett Lawrence took the holeshot, built a small lead, and managed from that point forward, just like he did all summer. If he keeps getting holeshots, he’s going to keep employing this same strategy, and the rest of the field has got to get out of the gate ahead of him if they want to stay in the fight. Will they show him a wheel this weekend? -Aaron Hansel
Anomaly or Rude Awakening
In the press conference before A1 Eli Tomac told the media he was back up to the same pace he had last year before rupturing his Achilles tendon, but he sure didn’t look like it in Anaheim, where he finished in ninth, and behind both of his teammates, Cooper Webb and Justin Cooper. Then again, we’ve seen plenty of races in the past in which Tomac has had unexplainable bad races, only to come back strong the next weekend. What are we looking at in this case? We’ll find out, hopefully, in San Francisco. -Hansel
Hunting Mains
It’s not often a factory rider doesn’t make it into a main event, but that’s exactly what happened with HRC Honda’s Hunter Lawrence at A1. Tough debut in the 450 class for him. Seems weird, but if you saw the pictures of him getting eaten alive by motorcycles on the start of his heat race, it’s a wonder he was even able to come back for another crack at it in the LCQ. Unfortunately he had a pretty bad start and came out on the short end of a finish line thriller with Cade Clason, but hey, there’s always next week. Don’t expect Hunter Lawrence to miss the main this time around. -Hansel
Blue Optics
Cooper Webb’s sixth place doesn’t do justice to just how good he was at A1. The Monster Energy Yamaha Star Racing rider had some blistering laps in practice, won his heat race, and held third for most of the 450SX main event. He was all over Jason Anderson for second too, but unfortunately went down while giving chase. He clearly had speed at A1, and is much improved from when we saw him compete in SuperMotocross. Look for Webb to be battling up front in San Francisco. -Hansel
Solid Start
The weekend wasn’t the rip-roaring start reigning 450SX champion Chase Sexton would have preferred. The Red Bull KTM rider ran fourth for most of the race and was never in the fight for the lead, or podium. He ended up on the podium anyway, however, due to Webb crashing late in the race. But regardless of how he got there, a podium is a podium, and it’s a solid start for Sexton (or anyone, really), especially considering it’s his first race with his new bike and team. We’ll see if Sexton can insert himself, and his big #1 plate, into the battle for the win in San Francisco. -Hansel
You’re Lying...
...if you predicted Justin Cooper would beat his teammate, Eli Tomac, in the season opener. But that’s what happened, thanks in part to an extremely solid night on Cooper’s part, and an off-night for Tomac. Cooper is coming into the season a bit under the radar, which is understandable considering his 450SX teammates are both double 450SX champs, but if he keeps putting in solid work like this each weekend, he’s not going to stay there for long. Cooper said he learned how aggressive the top stars are through the first few turns, and he needs to learn that. If he does, does he get closer to a top five this weekend? -Hansel
Happy Time
Dylan Ferrandis just wanted to ride a Honda, and thus he's been one of the happiest riders during this off-season. However, it was a short one for him, because he signed his Phoenix Honda deal late, and this is a whole new 450SX venture for the team and Factory Connection suspension. That all said, then, it was a solid debut for Ferrrandis on a Honda, with a quiet but effective fifth. A rider and team with short prep time managed to put a whole lot of big names behind them. Last year, though, Anaheim 1 ended up being the best supercross race of the season for Dylan (fourth). Will he move upwards this year? -Jason Weigandt
- Supercross
San Francisco
Saturday, January 13- QualifyingLiveJanuary 13 - 3:00 PM
- QualifyingLiveJanuary 13 - 3:00 PM
- Night ShowLiveJanuary 13 - 8:30 PM
- MotosLiveJanuary 13 - 8:30 PM
- Nigh Show (Re-air)January 14 - 2:00 PM
- Nigh Show (Re-air)TBA
Winning Time
After winning A1, RJ Hampshire stated that maybe he was this good last year but was overlooked because he was going up against the guy who would later go on to win every Pro Motocross national moto in the 450 class. Could this finally be RJ’s year or is it too soon to tell? -Sarah Whitmore
Tut Tut, Looks Like Rain?
Fans may be a little weary of rain in the forecast for San Fran after last year’s race in Oakland was postponed. However, our Norcal local, Hansel, says last year there were major floods in the area which resulted in cancelling. But, with a 98 percent (as of Thursday) chance of rain Saturday, we may be in for a good old fashioned mud race. -Whitmore
Maximum Vohland
After missing a main event last year on his KTM, Max Vohland won his first ever heat race at A1 aboard his Monster Energy/Pro Circuit Kawasaki. Which must have made Mitch Payton happy about his decision to hire him. Will Max be able to back it up this weekend? Being from Northern California he will have plenty of friends and fans in the crowd pulling for him. -Whitmore
