In Quotebook, a selection of riders detail how their races played out in the 13th round of the 2022 Monster Energy Supercross Championship at St. Louis.

450SX

Image: Octopi Media.

Marvin Musquin (Red Bull KTM) – First:
It’s tough to win the Triple Crowns but my starts were awesome and the riding was good, I was trying to apply the best technique as possible. This track was awesome today, super technical, and I enjoyed it so much. I knew I needed to get a good start to win and that’s what I did. I was just trying to be consistent, as always. It was a fun race!

Jason Anderson (Monster Energy Kawasaki) – Fourth:
This weekend was a bit odd for me. I found it difficult to get into a rhythm during the race and lock into my flow state. I still did my best in each main event and gave it everything I had, so I’m proud of that. We also made up some ground in the championship hunt and gained another point over third. There’s still plenty to race for going forward, so it’s back to work on Monday for the next weekend’s race.

Justin Barcia (TLD Red Bull GasGas) – Fifth:
I had a good practice going, I qualified fifth and I was really happy with that. I had that weird crash on press day, which kind of threw me off a little bit, and I was pretty stiff all day but I pushed through it. I wasn’t comfortable in the Main Events, I struggled to get a flow and never felt like myself, which is disappointing because I really enjoy this track and stadium. I’m looking forward to Atlanta next weekend to get back on the box.

Chase Sexton (Team Honda HRC) – Second
It was good to come out and get a win in the first race. I felt good on the bike all day. I did some outdoor riding on our week off and then did a little supercross testing last week. We found some things, and I just felt more comfortable. My starts fell off the last two races, and everyone was on it; I had to kind of catch back up in that third one. Overall, it was a good step, and I’m happy to be healthy after all the crashes I’ve had. I’m just looking forward to building and going back to Atlanta Speedway

Eli Tomac (Monster Energy Star Racing Yamaha) – Third:
It was a good day and another good night for the championship points. It was hard-fought in the first two motos because I didn’t put myself with the lead group, so I was stuck behind in both of those first two. That was a little bit frustrating, but we never gave up, and then in the third moto, I got a really good holeshot and rode much better and found good lines on the track. It was a very technical track this week. It was a little bit of a slower track and a steeper track, so it was just a different feeling.

Brandon Hartranft (H.E.P Suzuki) – Eighth: 
I’m pretty happy with my riding and my whoop speed. In main event three, I actually started up in second place. Never done that before, so that was a different experience. I battled hard with my teammate and another rider. I have a lot of positives to take away from the race. I got eighth overall, which is my best 450 overall. It’s just crazy; sometimes the day’s not going well, but if you just keep your head down and don’t quit, great outcomes can happen. I’m really looking forward to next weekend.

Justin Bogle (H.E.P Suzuki) – 10th:
In the first main event I got a decent start, but then I had a crash in the same corner a couple laps in a row. So, it was a rough beginning to the night. In the last race I got a bad start but rode well and ended up coming up to eighth. The last main was strong, and something to build off of. We’re just trying to keep improving. I’m happy with the direction we’re headed in and to just keep working.

Adam Enticknap (H.E.P Suzuki) – 19th:
The second qualifying session ended up being slower than the first, which never happens, and I ended up qualifying 20th in the first session instead of top 18, so we went to the LCQ. The Triple Crown qualifying format advances 22 riders into the night show’s three races. In the LCQ I got a decent start and was around ninth. I worked my way up and ended up third, so that was awesome. As the night program went on, I just had three solid races. I was pretty stoked on just making through all the motos clean, not getting any nicks, and moving on to Atlanta.

250SX

Image: Octopi Media.

Pierce Brown (TLD Red Bull GasGas) – 16th
Not the best night, I struggled with a lot of things. I was in a bad position in the first race and then another rider hit me and my bike malfunctioned. The team was doing everything they could to get me back out there for the second race but unfortunately the bike just wasn’t 100 percent fixed. Tough one, but we got to start back up in the third moto and I had a good start and ended up passing for the lead. I led for a lap or two but I made a few mistakes and ended up sixth.

RJ Hampshire (Rockstar Energy Husqvarna) – First:
This is unreal. This has haunted me for so long, I can’t even get words out. I had good times in practice and felt a lot more comfortable on the bike. My starts tonight were unreal and you could tell we made a lot of progress because I holeshot every time I was on the track and led a lot of laps. I’m just so dang stoked for the team to finally get one of these. Big thanks to the guys that have been putting in the work behind the scenes. We put it together tonight, it was our night.

Kyle Chisholm (Monster Energy Star Racing Yamaha) – Fourth:
With the weekend off, we had a little bit more time. I went up to the farm, spent time with the team, and spent more time on the bike. So I felt super comfortable and like I could actually race around the track and not just make it around. In qualifying, I was feeling good. I was second, but I jumped on a red flag, so they took that time, but I was still third. That’s super good for me because I’m not that great at doing the one-lap thing. I didn’t get a great start in the first race, but I got through the first turn pretty good. I had some good starts in the other ones and went 4-4-3. I was pretty bummed, though because I was really close to a podium. Mitchell Oldenburg and I were close in points going into the last main. I just needed one guy in between us, and close to the end, Pierce Brown was between us, but then Mitchell got by Pierce right at the end to knock me to fourth. Again, I’m bummed to not get on the podium, but all in all fourth is good and is much improved over the other couple of races that I got to do. It’s great to feel good on the bike, and I’m super grateful for the opportunity to work with such a great team.

Jett Lawrence (Team Honda HRC) – Second: 
I was looking forward to maybe going for a clean sweep, even if RJ [Hampshire] was for sure making it hard on me. I didn’t really do any practice starts on Thursday and was thinking I should be okay, but I guess I wasn’t. I thought I gave that guy enough room in race 3, but I guess you just have to be a little more cautious; I blame myself. RJ deserves it tonight; he was there each time and put himself in good positions. I wish I could’ve kept the win streak going, but it is what it is. I still got second, thankfully, and we’re just going to keep on charging. Hopefully we can finish it off sooner than later.

Derek Drake (BarX/ Chaparral Suzuki) – 11th:
In the second main I had a great start and was running up front, but unfortunately it got red flagged. On the restart I didn’t have the greatest start but came back up to ninth. In the third main I had a little better start, made some quick passes, and ended up seventh. Those races definitely showed some steps in the right direction.

Jordon Smith (Firepower Honda) – Sixth: 
I wish I knew why I was making these mistakes. I feel good, the bike is good, and we made some massive improvements these past weeks, practice was hard as I crashed hard with another rider and the crashes in the races shouldn’t be happening. I feel I am trying a little to hard and I lose the flow that we have during the week. I will regroup with the team on Monday and prepare for Atlanta. We have a real shot at an overall podium, and I am focused on that as well as earning the team and I a round podium.

Jarrett Frye (Firepower Honda) – 15th:
That was better, but I need to keep moving forward. The goal is top 10 from here forward. We have three rounds left and I need to be running inside the top 10. I am looking forward to Atlanta. I also want to finish inside the top 15 in the championship so good points in these remaining rounds are important.