With Ken Roczen sitting 19 points out of the lead in the Monster Energy Supercross Championship, fans everywhere are thinking “if only Tampa.” If it weren’t for that race where Roczen got tangled with a lapper and derailed his chain, finishing 21st, Kenny could be right in the mix with Cooper Webb and Chase Sexton for the championship.
Of course that is how championships go, there are plenty of riders, like Eli Tomac and the Lawrence brothers, who could say “If only I didn’t get hurt.” Considering that, Kenny is in a better spot. He's still healthy and capable. Ken has been on the podium five times in seven rounds, just as many as Webb, and one more than Sexton. He is riding better than he has in years, consistently putting himself towards the front, even on his off nights, as he said in the post-race press conference:
“I'm just trying to do my job during the week to feel comfortable on the bike and confident, and I think the rest sometimes comes a bit automatically. Having said that, especially tonight like I said, this is my least favorite dirt out of the whole year. So, in the end, with this bit of speed that I had, I was totally happy with it. So, I think it's a little bit track dependent for me as well. But yeah, I wanna go back and definitely work on some things, but at the same time, I'm not gonna spin in circles and try to reinvent the wheel. I'm just gonna stick to the program and just be happy and confident and comfortable on the bike.”
Ken definitely looks more comfortable on the Suzuki this year, and at the Arlington Triple Crown was able to go 1-5-3 for another podium, on his least favorite track.
“Of course, out of the three starts, there always has to be one bad one! So that really hurt me for the overall, but I did the best I could today. Honestly, this track or this type of dirt is my least favorite out of the whole year. It looks good, it looks tacky, but it really is not. And then the Triple Crown on top of that, it's just a recipe for madness. And you could see that in that last main, it was super fun being in that battle and going back and forth. I'm sure it was awesome to watch. And a little bit on the short end of the stick. Like, I think I'm just not fast enough. I need a couple more tenths a lap and then obviously Jason [Anderson] got by us too because we were passing each other back and forth and just lost so much time. But overall, with everything that went on, I'm just happy to be back on the podium. I've been on the podium quite a bit this year, and I'm really happy and proud of that, and I'm just going to keep doing the same thing as I have been and just see where it takes me. But I had a good time tonight and I'm glad to get out of here healthy.”
At almost 31 years old, Ken is aware it is a long championship, and the most important thing is to be in it every weekend, “I'm losing a couple of points here and there, but championship is still long and keep being on the podium and just do the best I can. Hopefully we can close the gap at some point.”
Ken has been one of the most consistent riders so far this year, with a little bit of bad luck on his side. The thing about luck though, is it eventually swings back around. There is no doubt Ken is a threat for wins this season, the question is, can he get lucky enough to dig him out of this hole, so that he can once again be a threat for the championship?
