Image: Supplied.

Monster Energy Kawasaki press release:

Round 9 of the Monster Energy® AMA Supercross, an FIM World Championship arrived at Daytona International Speedway where Kawasaki showed its championship character sweeping both classes for the third year in a row. Monster Energy Kawasaki rider Eli Tomac captured his record-tying fifth victory at Daytona Supercross, while Monster Energy/Pro Circuit/Kawasaki rider Cameron McAdoo captured his first career 250SX win with teammates Jordon Smith and Seth Hammaker finishing 10th and 11th respectively.

Despite rain and lightning causing a delay in the schedule early in the day, Tomac didn’t let that stop him from laying down an electric lap time of 1:09.2 and qualifying first in the first timed session. Tomac went on to qualify third overall for the day.

450SX Heat 2 saw Tomac in third out of the gate, where he battled both for the lead and the challenging track eventually finishing in third.

As the gate dropped on the 450SX Main Event, the No. 1 KX™450 charged out of the starting gate aggressively and took the lead by the second turn of the first lap. Tomac continued showing great speed as he led the race for all 18 laps from start to checkers, earning his second win of the season. Saturday’s win marks the third consecutive year Kawasaki has won Daytona Supercross and Tomac’s fifth time to claim the top spot, tying Ricky Carmichael for the most wins of all-time at the legendary Daytona International Speedway.

“That was fun! I always enjoy riding at Daytona and it’s always been good to me. I was pretty strategic when picking my gate in the main because I was watching the other class and heat races and realized the inside might be my best shot at getting up front, which is exactly what I did. I fought for it too. Once I got out front, I wasn’t looking back. We’re still in this championship, so I’m not going down without a fight. I think we’ve found a good groove and I’m looking forward to our next stop in Dallas. I’m grateful for all the hard work and support from my entire Monster Energy Kawasaki team, I couldn’t have done this without them, especially five times!” – Eli Tomac