AMA Supercross 2023 Results
Denver was an unexpected surprise at its gate drop; Chase Sexton won his class after an eventful season of 450SX competition.
Riders of powerful dirt bikes must navigate around treacherous tracks at high speeds. Doing this requires strength, endurance, coordination and concentration that cannot be found elsewhere – something few sports can match.
Chase Sexton Wins Salt Lake City
Chase Sexton claimed his fourth premier-class win for CRF450R during 2023 season finale at Salt Lake City to claim the championship and become just the fourth Honda-mounted rider to do so in Utah, following Ricky Carmichael, Kevin Windham and Ken Roczen. Hunter Sexton placed second in 250SX West race to finish in third position for series third-place standing while their teammate Jett Lawrence won Dave Coombs Sr. East/West Showdown championship clincher!
Due to Eli Tomac’s injury in Denver, Sexton saw his opportunity for taking the 450SX title with a victory at Salt Lake City and did just that by dominating from start to finish – starting out strong before leading every lap from holeshot. Team Red Bull KTM’s Aaron Plessinger finished second behind Team Tedder Monster Energy Mountain Motorsport’s Justin Hill who took third overall and gave Honda their first manufacturer’s championship since 2003 with Carmichael. Rumors of Honda leaving are becoming louder; it remains to be confirmed if anything official.
Eli Tomac Wins Denver
Eli Tomac of Cortez, Colorado made an incredible comeback to win the 2022 Monster Energy AMA Supercross season championship on a dramatic night of racing at Empower Field at Mile High on Saturday night – leading by 22 points over Chase Sexton for victory! His home fans in Denver cheered wildly throughout his victory laps.
Tomac secured an early lead after taking an aggressive start with his holeshot, pushing Honda teammates Colt Nichols and Chase Sexton down into second and third respectively. Over two laps later, Tomac caught and overtook Nichols to gain the top position but struggled against Roczen to break free.
Monster Energy AMA Supercross 2023 and Pro Motocross series finale will take place August 26 in Los Angeles at LA Memorial Coliseum. Live coverage for all 31 races of this combined season will be streamed via Peacock and NBC Sports digital platforms; top contenders from each series will then compete in AMA Pro Racing’s new SuperMotocross Championship Powered by YZF-R1 sanctioned competition.
Ken Roczen Wins Salt Lake City
At Salt Lake City’s Rice-Eccles Stadium, GEICO Honda’s Ken Roczen put on an incredible show after returning from COVID-19-induced suspension. Starting off quickly in his opening 450SX Heat Race by taking an early lead over Dean Wilson, Roczen ran away with seven-second advantage before relinquishing it later on in the race.
In the main event, Roczen chased down Cooper Webb and Eli Tomac before maneuvering around a technical inside rut in the last laps to score his fourth win of the year and 15th career victory. Webb came in third while Tomac dropped back into sixth, ultimately clinching the 2023 450SX Class Championship with two victories and 14 top-10 finishes over this past season.
Chase Sexton of Team Honda HRC took first in his 450SX Heat Race and Hunter Lawrence finished seventh in his 250SX East final. These achievements resulted in Honda earning their third Manufacturers Championship since Jett Lawrence won first overall back in 2023.
Aaron Plessinger Wins Salt Lake City
AMA Supercross 2023 season produced many memorable stories: Cooper Webb and Eli Tomac both suffered injuries; Chase Sexton won his championship; but one story that went largely unrecognized was Team Honda HRC’s Aaron Plessinger’s outstanding achievement.
Aaron Plessinger had one goal in mind for Rice-Eccles Stadium in Salt City: winning his inaugural premier class championship! At Rice-Eccles Stadium he achieved just that goal and capped it all off with a decisive victory to cement it all.
The 450 Heat Races got underway on a wet track with Dean Wilson taking the holeshot, but that wouldn’t last for long as Ken Roczen quickly passed him and took control. Riders became mired up in whoops, while Talon Hawkins dropped from second place to 14th after becoming lodged into a bowl corner. Dean Wilson and Josh Hill achieved some of their best results of the year as Dean finished third overall and Josh came third overall in Moto 1.
