Kawasaki rider Eli Tomac grabbed his 30th career win and the title points lead at Round 7 of the AMA Supercross Championship in Tampa.
Smarttop/BullFrog Spas/Motoconcepts Honda’s Vince Friese crossed the holeshot line first but before the second corner Monster Energy Kawasaki’s Adam Cianciarulo sailed past.
Team Honda HRC’s Ken Roczen, the points leader going into this round, was buried in the pack; last weekend’s winner, Cooper Webb of the Red Bull KTM team ran just outside the top five at the holeshot line.
The racers on the move early trying to chase down Cianciarulo were Tomac, Smarttop/BullFrog Spas/Motoconcepts Honda’s Malcolm Stewart, Webb and Roczen who’d made his way to fifth after five minutes of racing.
The track was slick in areas with a challenging sand section, and Tomac used the split lanes in the sand to rail an outside berm and take the lead away from Cianciarulo on Lap 11.
With just over eight minutes and one lap of racing left Webb jumped past Stewart into third. Roczen passed Stewart next, but a tip over allowed Stewart by at about the same time Cianciarulo crashed in the whoops, dropping from second to tenth. Roczen made it back around Stewart and the top three riders in points held onto the podium positions.
450SX Class Results
1. Eli Tomac, Cortez, Colo., Kawasaki
2. Cooper Webb, Clermont, Fla., KTM
3. Ken Roczen, Clermont, Fla., Honda
4. Justin Barcia, Greenville, Fla., Yamaha
5. Justin Hill, Yoncalla, Ore., Honda
6. Dean Wilson, Murrieta, Calif., Husqvarna
7. Malcolm Stewart, Haines City, Fla., Honda
8. Adam Cianciarulo, New Smyrna Beach, Fla., Kawasaki
9. Justin Brayton, Charlotte, N.C., Honda
10. Jason Anderson, Rio Rancho, N.M., Husqvarna
450SX Class Championship Standings
1. Eli Tomac, Cortez, Colo., Kawasaki (155)
2. Ken Roczen, Clermont, Fla., Honda (151)
3. Cooper Webb, Clermont, Fla., KTM (144)
4. Justin Barcia, Greenville, Fla., Yamaha (135)
5. Adam Cianciarulo, New Smyrna Beach, Fla., Kawasaki (128)
6. Jason Anderson, Rio Rancho, N.M., Husqvarna (118)
7. Malcolm Stewart, Haines City, Fla., Honda (106)
8. Justin Brayton, Charlotte, N.C., Honda (103)
9. Justin Hill, Yoncalla, Ore., Honda (93)
10. Blake Baggett, Grand Terrace, Calif., KTM (91)
Eastern Regional 250SX Class Results
1. Shane McElrath, Murrieta, Calif., Yamaha
2. Chase Sexton, Clermont, Fla., Honda
3. Jeremy Martin, Rochester, Minn., Honda
4. Garrett Marchbanks, Coalville, Utah, Kawasaki
5. Jordon Smith, Ochlocknee, Ga., Kawasaki
6. RJ Hampshire, Minneola, Fla., Husqvarna
7. Kyle Peters, Greensboro, N.C., Honda
8. Joey Crown, Metamora, Mich., Yamaha
9. James Decotis, Huntersville, N.C., Suzuki
10. Jo Shimoda, Irvine, Calif., Honda
Eastern Regional 250SX Class Championship Standings
1. Shane McElrath, Murrieta, Calif., Yamaha (26)
2. Chase Sexton, Clermont, Fla., Honda (23)
3. Jeremy Martin, Rochester, Minn., Honda (21)
4. Garrett Marchbanks, Coalville, Utah, Kawasaki (19)
5. Jordon Smith, Ochlocknee, Ga., Kawasaki (18)
6. RJ Hampshire, Minneola, Fla., Husqvarna (17)
7. Kyle Peters, Greensboro, N.C., Honda (16)
8. Joey Crown, Metamora, Mich., Yamaha (15)
9. James Decotis, Huntersville, N.C., Suzuki (14)
10. Jo Shimoda, Irvine, Calif., Honda (13)