Image: Supplied.

Entering his second 450SX campaign, Chase Sexton has added calm leading into Anaheim 1, better prepared with more maturity ahead of the 2022 Monster Energy Supercross Championship.

The Team Honda HRC rider displayed exceptional speed in his rookie 450 campaign, notching three podiums in the second half of the 2021 season after missing rounds three through eight due to injury.

With more experience and a positive pre-season under his belt, 22-year-old Sexton enters 2022 as a title factor in the premier class, labelled as fast and as gritty as current 450SX champion Cooper Webb by analyst Daniel Blair in the preview show.

“I wouldn’t really say it’s a lot of pressure, I appreciate what he says and I feel like I have the potential to do big things in the sport and it’s been my dream since I was a little kid,” two-time 250SX champion Sexton commented.

“For me, this year I’ve had a really good off-season as everybody has said, had a lot of fun, switched things up a bit with my program and yeah I just feel refreshed and a little bit more calm coming into this year.

“Last year I feel like I was a little underprepared coming into the first race and it kind of snowballed as I had a few crashes and never really got in front of the eight-ball… I felt like I was always climbing and trying to get to a good spot.

“This year I feel calm, more mature and hopefully a better version of what I was in 2021.” He’s no longer working with James Stewart this year.

Sexton ultimately finished last year’s 450SX championship 12th overall, however, if he can complete a full season and continue to build on his impressive speed then one would expect him to be much higher when this season ends.

The 2022 Monster Energy Supercross Championship begins this Saturday at Anaheim, CA, and will see Sexton line up against a field of hungry contenders determined to start their 2022 season strongly.