Round 11 of the 2024 Monster Energy Supercross season came down to who made the fewest mistakes as Cooper Webb gritted out the Main Event to win by a half second over Chase Sexton. Jett Lawrence finished a distant third, allowing his two closest points’ competitors to close the gap and create additional drama surrounding the title hunt.
Sexton got the holeshot with Webb chasing him during the opening laps. On the other hand, Lawrence got a poor start and was as far back as ninth in the opening laps. Anyone following the sport this year, knew that would not last as Lawrence dug deep and charged back through the field.
“We keep saying this every weekend but that was probably the gnarliest track I’ve ridden,” Webb told Peacock’s Will Christien from the top of the podium. “It was really tough and we were all trying to push the pace but you had to look out for the changing line — and the lappers.”
At the end, Webb experienced arm pump in the closing laps with Sexton breathing down his neck.
Both riders had their share of problems, but Sexton jumped wide on a couple of occasions and stalled his bike once, which caused him to momentarily lose contact with Webb. Arguably, Sexton made more mistakes during the race — but that also suggests Sexton had the faster bike.
As the gap widened and narrowed, Webb stayed in the deep ruts better than Sexton to win his third race of the season. He is now 16 points behind Lawrence with Sexton seven points further back.
But the race was as much about gritty determination as it was lessening mistakes.
WHAT. A. FINISH 🔥
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Webb first had to survive a fierce challenge by Lawrence, who overcame his poor start and had the speed needed to win the race. When Lawrence attempted an aggressive pass on Webb for the runner-up position, Webb kept his bike upright. Lawrence was the rider to fall and that caused him to momentarily lose contact with the leaders.
The 18 and 2 come together‼️
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Lawrence roared back and challenged once more. In the middle stages of the race, he ran up on a lapped rider and lost considerable time. The points’ leader saw the writing on the wall and decided it was time to stop forcing the issue so he would not crash again.
In the post-race news conference, Lawrence said he sustained minor damage on his bike and that also encouraged him to settle into the safer rhythm.
Finishing fourth, Aaron Plessinger earned his best finish in the last four weeks.
Ken Roczen rounded out the top five and there was a moment when no one would have thought that possible. Roczen crashed early in his heat, lost a lap in that race and was forced into the Last Chance Qualifier for the first time in his Supercross career. He won the LCQ, got a great start in the Main and challenged for a top-five throughout the night.
Click here for complete 450 results
Click here for 450 points
In the 250 West division, Levi Kitchen rode away from the field to beat RJ Hampshire to the finish line by more than 20 seconds at Lumen Field in Seattle, Washington.
His third victory overall, this is the first time Kitchen has won a traditional format race with his two previous victories coming in Triple Crowns. Best yet, Kitchen was able to score this victory in his home state. Reared about three hundred miles south of Seattle near the Pro Motocross track in Washougal, Washington, the stands erupted when their favored son grabbed holeshots in both his heat and the main.
“I’ve been waiting for a night like this for a long time,” Kitchen told Peacock’s Jason Thomas from the top of the podium. “I just finally rode like myself and to do that in front of the hometown is awesome. I just felt good on my dirt bike.”
Hampshire entered the race as one of the title contenders and finished second. His first few laps were hindered when it took too much time to get around rookie Julien Beaumer. Once that battle — for third and the time — was settled, Hampshire was already 11 seconds behind Kitchen.
Hampshire is now eight points behind Kitchen and his closest competition for the 250 West title.
Jo Shimoda needed a good run and took the final spot on the podium.
“It was the gnarliest track I’ve ever rode,” Shimoda said. “Honestly from the heat race I just kept dragging my foot peg and that threw me off.”
With another podium in the most recent 250 West race in Glendale, Shimoda is finally getting comfortable on the bike vacated by Jett Lawrence.
Smith goes down hard while running second 😖#SupercrossLIVE #SMX pic.twitter.com/KUI240MkgI
— Supercross LIVE! (@SupercrossLIVE) March 24, 2024
Jordon Smith provided perhaps the most dramatic story of the night. He was chasing Kitchen and kept him within six seconds until he cross rutted on a jump late in the Feature and landed on a Tuff Blox. Smith then hit one of the cameras, took a while to remount and crashed twice more before the night was over.
Smith finished 14th and is now 21 points outside of the 250 West lead.
Garrett Marchbanks in fourth and Carson Mumford rounded out the top five.
Click here for complete 250 West results
Click here for 250 West points
Click here for combined 250 West / East results
In Race Notes
Lawrence expects to keep his momentum alive for a fourth consecutive win, but the remainder of the field knows they cannot let him get away.
Round 11 of the Monster Energy Supercross season at Lumen Field in Seattle, Washington, is one of the most important weeks on the schedule.
If Lawrence has shown any little bit of weakness, however, it has been how he performs in muddy conditions. There is less than a 10 percent chance of rain through 7 p.m. Pacific with only a gradual increase through the Mains.
Meanwhile, the 250 West division returns to action with home state native Kitchen looking to keep the red plate affixed to his bike when the series rolls out of Washington.
It’s beginning to look like this track will be similar to Daytona: wet and soft, but not a full mudder.
Mains
450s
Sexton gets the holeshot and remarkably Roczen settles into second after advancing through his first Last Chance Qualifier (LCQ).
This could be the night Lawrence’s winning streak ends. He settles into ninth on the first lap and is 7.4 seconds behind.
Not so fast: Lawrence is making the most of the night and still has time to catch the leaders. He moved into third with 14 minutes, 42 seconds remaining.
Sexton leads Webb.
And now Lawrence has caught Webb but almost as soon as he does, Lawrence crashes.
Lawrence tried to push Webb out in a turn — but Webb is one of the hardest riders to pass.
Lawrence loses one position only but is now 10 seconds behind with 12 minutes remaining.
Sexton jumps wide and Webb catches him at the halfway mark.
Lawrence has passed Roczen and is now eight seconds behind with Sexton’s mistake. This isn’t over yet.
Webb triples a rhythm when Sexton doubles and the two are on top of one another. A bobble by Webb gives Sexton some breathing room.
Lawrence closes to six seconds of Sexton.
Aaron Plessinger has moved into fourth. Roczen is fifth.
Sexton stalls his bike and lets Webb past. Sexton also had a stall in his heat.
Meanwhile, Lawrence must have made a mistake on that same lap and falls to eight seconds back. A replay shows Lawrence ran up on Vince Friese and couldn’t get around.
Now Webb bobble and Sexton leads.
Webb comes back.
The back-and-forth may be over. Sexton clips a Tuff Blox and drops to 4.7 seconds back.
Sexton regains his composure and closes back in on Webb. They finish a half second apart.
250s
Kitchen starts the Main the way he started his heat: with the holeshot.
Smith is slowly losing ground. On Lap 3, he is 2.6 seconds behind. It took a little while to get around Julien Beaumer.
Shimoda takes a fall with 10 minutes remaining. He crossrutted on the face of a jump.
Hampshire finally gets around Beaumer but lost 11 seconds in the process.
In his first race this year, Michael Mosiman is in a top-10 position in seventh.
Shimoda passes Mosiman.
Shimoda is flying.
The gap between Kitchen and Smith had stabilized at six seconds but Smith goes down and it’s taking a while to get up.
Smith falls back to 12th. He’s just in front of Kitchen to get lapped.
Hampshire is 20 seconds back with two minutes remaining.
Smith goes down again and then hits another rider as he tries to remount. Smith is going to take a huge hit in championship points.
Shimoda has moved up to third.
Kitchen wins. This is his first traditional format win; his other two victories were Triple Crowns.
Last Chance Qualifier
450s
In his 133rd night of racing, this is the first time Roczen has ever been in an LCQ.
From well outside, Roczen gets the holeshot.
Halfway through, Roczen has a six-second lead on Ty Masterpool but the real drama is for third between Vince Friese, Tristan Lane and Anthony Rodriguez.
It’s not always pretty, but the final transfer in the LCQ is often the best race of the night. Now it’s between Friese, Breece and Chisholm.
Roczen walks away from the field and Masterpool finishes second.
Chisholm crashed on the last lap so Friese finishes third and Breece fourth.
Click here for complete 450 LCQ results
250s
Four 250 West riders have five minutes to keep their night alive.
Blake Gardner gets the early lead but crashes in the sand.
After a strong qualification effort, Lux Turner takes the lead.
On the white flag lap, Matti Jorgenson surprises Brad West and grabs the final transfer spot.
Turner wins the LCQ with Talon Hawkins second.
Josh Varize rounds out the podium and Jorgenson holds onto the final transfer.
Click here for complete 250 LCQ results
Heats
450s
In Heat 1, Sexton earns the holeshot but Hunter Lawrence gets a good start as well.
Lawrence bobbles and lets Mitchell Oldenburg close in.
Roczen crashes and has a hard time getting his bike restarted. He remounts in 20th.
And now Sexton stalls his bike from the lead. He falls to fourth.
The podium resets this way: Lawrence, Oldenburg and Sexton.
Oldenburg fades with two minutes remaining, so move Eli Tomac into podium contention.
One minute remaining and Roczen is only 19th. Looks like he will go to the LCQ.
Tomac gets a great run through the rhythm section and takes second from Sexton; time has run off the clock.
This is Lawrence’s first 450 heat win; in fact, it’s his first podium.
“It’s just a heat, but it’s cool,” Lawrence says from the top of the box. “Heat races aren’t my strength, so we will take it.”
Tomac holds on for second with Sexton third.
Justin Barcia in fourth and Adam Cianciarulo round out the top five
Roczen finishes 17th and will head to the LCQ.
Click here for complete 450 Heat 1 results
In Heat 2, Plessinger gets the holeshot but Friese challenges.
After one minute, Jett Lawrence moves into second. He sets his sights on Plessinger.
Friese has problems; Benny Bloss moves into third.
With one minute, 30 seconds on the clock, Lawrence catches Plessinger.
Lawrence takes the lead; Plessinger fights back.
Jett matches Hunter’s heat win, holding off Plessinger.
Webb moved into third.
In fourth, Malcolm Stewart and Justin Cooper round out the top five.
Bloss fell to sixth. Friese dropped all the to 14th and heads to the LCQ.
Click here for complete 450 Heat 2 results
250s
The track certainly has a lot of wetness to it, but Jason Weigandt and Ricky Carmichael remark it is racing like a dry one.
In Heat 1, the crowd is happy to see Kitchen get the holeshot and early lead.
In a lap and a half, Kitchen already has a 2.5-second lead over Hampshire.
Kitchen walks away from the field with a 9.6-second win over Hampshire. Beaumer takes the final podium position.
Ryder DiFrancesco and Anthony Bourdon round out the top five.
Click here for complete 250 Heat 1 results
In Heat 2, Shimoda gets the holeshot. He needs a good run on his new Honda.
Smith doesn’t let Shimoda get away, however. This one is going to be closer than Heat 1.
Nate Thrasher crashes early, but has time to recover.
Shimoda falls on the last lap to hand the lead over to Smith. These two had a big advantage on third though so Shimoda holds onto second.
The incredible season for Marchbanks continues with a third-place finish.
Mumford in fourth and Mosiman round out the top five.
Thrasher moves directly into the 250 Main as well with an eighth-place finish.
Click here for complete 250 Heat 2 results
Qualification
450s
Tomac (52.325) sets the fastest time in Qualification 1 with Jett Lawrence (52.603) .278 seconds behind.
Sexton and Webb stake a claim to keeping championship hope alive in third and fourth respectively.
This is the first time Tomac has been fastest in a 2024 qualification session.
The track is tricky; Roczen hits the ground during Qual 1.
Click here for complete 450 Group A times
In the mock start, Webb gets the holeshot as Lawrence goes wide - but that’s the reason they practice.
Webb and Lawrence are challenging one another for the top spot.
Lawrence ends qualification on top of the board at 52.115. Tomac’s Q1 time stood up for second.
Webb rounds out the top three with Sexton and Jason Anderson rounding out the top five overall.
Click here for complete 450 Group A Qualification 2 times
Click here for combined 450 times
250s
In qualification, the track looks heavy so no one knows what the evening program will bring.
Mosiman returns to the field this week and he’s going to the in Group B this week. He starts the session two seconds faster than anyone else in this Group with seven minutes remaining.
Turner closes the gap.
Mosiman swaps ends with two minutes remaining and goes down. He’s still fastest over Turner. When Group A hits the track, remember the time of 51.803 seconds and how it compares to Group B. For comparison, Turner was second at 53.009.
In Group A, it appears the track is slowing down. That is good news for Mosiman, although there wasn’t a lot of concern about his speed in his return. With three minutes remaining, Kitchen (52.798) is fastest A rider in this session.
Click here for complete 250 Group A Qualification 1 times
Times have slowed for Qualification 2 but the Mosiman remains the fastest for the conditions. He’s dropped to 52.780 but his Q1 time will stand as the best.
Shimoda at the tops Group A with points’ challenger Smith second on the board. Thrasher and Hampshire are third and fourth respectively with Kitchen down in fifth for this session.
Mosiman ends up posting fast time in qualification with Kitchen and Shimoda taking the next two spots on the podium.
Tuner in fourth and Smith round out the top five overall.
Click here for complete 250 Group A Qualification 2 times
Click here for combined 250 times
Free Practice
With a wet track and standing water, Free Practice was cancelled for the weekend.
More Supercross News
Check up on some recent Supercross coverage as we wait for tonight’s mains.
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Coty Schock returns to SX only five days post-surgery
Michael Mosiman joins Star Yamaha
Robbie Wageman reprises retro gear
5 things to watch for in Indy
Haiden Deegan penalized for second time at Birmingham
Jett Lawrence extends points lead with Birmingham win
Haiden Deegan ends Coty Schock’s Cinderella season
Colt Nichols returns with a top-10 on his mind