In Quotebook, a selection of riders detail how their races played out at round 16 of the 2021 Monster Energy Supercross championship, the penultimate round of the series at Rice-Eccles Stadium.

450SX

Image: Octopi Media.

Marvin Musquin (Red Bull KTM) – First:
I can’t believe it right now – I’m standing on the top of the podium. I have had some struggles this season but my goal is to come back and keep getting better. There are so many good riders, so the start is super important and I was just trying to be consistent, those whoops were really tough. I’m so proud, I gave it my all tonight.

Cooper Webb (Red Bull KTM) – Second:
I didn’t get a great start tonight, which hindered me a little bit. Those whoops were super tricky, I finally found a good line and made a charge there at the end. I thought I was in a good position and Marvin picked it up a lot there at the end. Getting points is key but you want to win when you’re that close. We’ll come around next Saturday and see what we can do!

Dean Wilson (Rockstar Energy Husqvarna) – Ninth:
I was in the mix pretty good but unfortunately, a lapper washed out in front of me and I had to roll the triple and just lost touch with the guys in front of me. It wasn’t an amazing Main Event for me but I think if I can get that start and push to be at the front, I’ll have a good result.

Justin Barcia (TLD Red Bull GasGas) – 14th:
I felt really good in practice and in the heat but unfortunately, I ended up going down and tearing my radiator. Thankfully the team got it repaired quickly and got me ready for the LCQ. The Main Event was difficult to say the least. I got pushed out off the start, somehow cross-jumped into the bails and ended up going down and the bike hit me in the back. I charged up to 11th and was still moving forward and then I ended up endo’ing and bending my bike up pretty good. It’s definitely super disappointing on my end but I’m going to regroup and do the best I can do next week to finish the season out strong.

Malcolm Stewart (Monster Energy Star Yamaha Racing) – Third:
It was a great day! I felt good and rode well all day and just let the race come to me. I didn’t have the best start in the Main Event, but we made it work the first couple of laps. Then Coop (Cooper Webb), (Jason) Anderson, and I had a pretty gnarly battle. I was really strong in the whoops tonight, and even the corner after the mechanics’ area, and kept gaining ground. I’m just so stoked to finally get on the box. It’s been hanging over my head for a long time, and we finally got it. We finally did it! It’s a dream come true. It’s one of those moments I’ll never forget. Everybody says that after your first one, it comes easy, so this is one of many. I’m looking to have some more fun next weekend and go out here for a repeat.

Dylan Ferrandis (Monster Energy Star Yamaha Racing) – Fourth:
It was a tough day. We made some changes this week to improve the bike, and it didn’t really work in the first practice, so we had to keep working on more changes, which made it hard to get comfortable. In the heat, we went the wrong way, but we made another big change and the bike was really awesome in the main. I had a good start, then Anderson pushed me off the track, and I lost a couple of positions. It took me a few laps to learn the bike and to feel comfortable on it because it was a new setting that I had never tried before. Then when I felt comfortable, I pushed and gave everything that I had. I made some good passes on some strong riders and I came back to fourth. It’s a good result overall, and we look to come back next weekend and do better at the finale.

Aaron Plessinger (Monster Energy Star Yamaha Racing) – Eighth:
The day started out a little slow, I wasn’t really gelling with the bike in practice. That was kind of how it went all day long; I was just struggling with the bike setup and trying to get going. I had a good heat race going but about ripped my shroud off and then couldn’t really turn right that well and finished fourth. In the main, I didn’t get a good start and was battling mid-pack. I made my way up to the back of Dylan, but I just couldn’t get around him. Then I made a few bonehead mistakes and finished eighth.

Max Anstie (Twisted Tea HEP Suzuki) – 13th:
Salt Lake went well. I felt like I was riding strong. We made progress all day and the team did a great job setting the bike up for the altitude. Each time out there I’m getting some good laps in and we’ll continue making progress. I definitely feel like now, going into this last race, we’re ready to go and have a good battle with the guys. I’m looking forward to being back here in seven days.

Brandon Hartranft (Twisted Tea HEP Suzuki) –18th:
From practice one all the way to the main event it was a lot better day today. I was hitting the whoops nicely. In the main event the track was really gnarly, especially the whoops. The high altitude made breathing a little harder, but all in all it was solid day.

Ken Roczen (Team Honda HRC) – Sixth:
What a bummer, once again. I got the holeshot in the main and gapped the field, but just found myself on the ground after tucking the front before the whoops. I dropped back to sixth, and that’s where we finished as well. There’s not much that I can say about it, to be honest; it’s unfortunate. I’m finding myself on the ground lately in general, which normally is not my style. I’m just trying to put my team and myself on the top step and it just hasn’t been working out, so I’m looking forward to next weekend.

Chase Sexton (Team Honda HRC) – Fifth:
Round one here in Salt Lake City started off rough. I had a big crash in qualifying, which could’ve ended my night; it was pretty gnarly. After the crash, I was really sore and my heel, left shoulder and right hip were pretty banged up. We did some work and we got myself to where I was able to race. I had a pretty good heat race, coming from a ways back. I didn’t get a good start in the main event, but like the heat race, I just tried to fight my way up. I feel like I was riding pretty good, but kind of lost it with about five minutes to go and got passed by [Dylan] Ferrandis. It was a good top-five after what could’ve been no race at all. It’s something to build off of and we have another race to go, so we’ll just try and get better.

Eli Tomac (Monster Energy Kawasaki) – 10th:
Man, I was feeling so good on the bike all day long and I’ve been looking forward to coming back to Salt Lake City. I always enjoy riding here and felt confident heading into the main, especially after qualifying fastest and winning my heat race. Unfortunately, I made a few mistakes and ran out of time. I’m looking forward to coming back next weekend to finish out the season strong.

250SX East

Image: Octopi Media.

Michael Mosiman (TLD Red Bull GasGas) – Fourth:
It’s been a long time off the bike and a long time off racing but it felt great to get back into it today! I felt like I was the fastest guy out there today, I just crumbled on the racecraft, trying to make passes in spots that weren’t ideal and it cost me the win. I believe I was the guy that should have been winning and it’s disappointing but I’m trying to learn from it. I will be better going forward.

Jo Shimoda (Monster Energy Pro Circuit Kawasaki) – First:
This is a dream come true for me,” said Shimoda. “When I came to the U.S. I had to leave some of my family back in Japan and it was really hard at first. To be standing on top of the podium is awesome. I’m so thankful for all the people that helped me in my journey. I still can’t believe it.

Colt Nichols (Monster Energy Star Yamaha Racing) – Third:
I don’t even know what to say. It was a good night, getting on the podium, so that’s always awesome. It’s just been a roller coaster of emotions kind of day, we came into this battling my teammate and we were looking to have two really good races here in Salt Lake City, me and him going head-to-head with only eight points separating us, so it was unfortunate that he crashed out and ended up hurting his ankle. That just puts you in a weird spot. I needed to execute a little better in the main and I didn’t. I got a horrible start which made it hard on myself and I had to come through the pack. I felt like I didn’t start riding very well until about 10 minutes into that main and then I started to get going. I just waited around too much. In order to wrap it up tonight, the one guy I didn’t need to win was Jo (Shimoda), and he did. Looking at the big picture it’s good, though. If you would have told me I would have had a 23-point lead going into the final round, I’d be pumped. So overall, it’s awesome to be so close. We’ll try again next weekend.

Christian Craig (Monster Energy Star Yamaha Racing) – DNS:
It’s hard to put into words, we’ve been working so hard this season. Things were going so well at the start of the day and then I was on the ground. I tried everything to race but just couldn’t put any pressure on my leg. As of now, it looks like I fractured my fibula and sprained my ankle. We’re going to get checked out at home and get ready for the outdoor season.

John Short (BarX Chaparral Suzuki) – 10th:
It’s been a while since I’ve been at the races and it was exciting to be back in the stadium and be around the whole Supercross environment. I felt good on the bike and I was very motivated to do well in the main event. Unfortunately, I had a small crash in turn two in the main and I put myself in a position where I was racing from the back. I raced hard and 10th place was what I was able to do. I’m very grateful to be healthy and racing my RM-Z250. I’m looking forward to the showdown next weekend.

Jett Lawrence (Team Honda HRC) – Third:
I started the day off good, getting P4 in the first qualifier, and I was able to go fastest in the second one, putting me third overall on the qualifying side. In the second heat race I got a good start and won that, so I had first gate pick. In the main event I was a little slow out of the gate, which didn’t help. I was fourth on the first lap, and I was able to make a couple passes and get to second. I tried doing a little last-lap charge to Jo [Shimoda] but made a few mistakes in the rhythm, which didn’t help me. He nailed the long rhythm, so good job to him, but it would’ve been nice to have those points. Overall, it was a good race. I felt good to see everyone and get back to racing. I was happy with it and can’t wait till next weekend for the East/West shootout.