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This Week in SMX: Supercross Round 3 – Anaheim 2

January 22, 2025

Eli Tomac

ELI TOMAC: Records 450SX Class win #53, steals red plate, and ties Chad Reed for most 450SX Class seasons with a victory (11). His 102nd 450SX Class podium moves him beyond Ryan Dungey for third on the all-time list. Tomac has 16 450SX Class wins aboard Yamaha and the brand has produced 190 450SX Class victories. He also recorded his 130th 450SX Class top-5 finish, good for fourth all-time.

Jett Lawrence

JETT LAWRENCE: Nabbed his 11th 450SX Class podium in just his 19th start. Jett has already tied Damon Bradshaw for 28th on the all-time SMX podiums list with 73.

Cooper Webb

COOPER WEBB: Captures his 64th career 450SX Class podium, moving him passed Ryan Villopoto for 11th on the all-time list. He also moves into 11th in 450SX Class top-5 finishes with 86, tying James Stewart. Webb’s 124th 450SX Class start sends him past Johnny O’Mara for 24th on the all-time starts list. The veteran Yamaha athlete is 15th in all-time SMX podiums with 108.

Ken Roczen

NOTES: Ken Roczen (4th) His 98th top-5 finish passes Ricky Carmichael for 7th all-time and looks for his 150th start in A2. Hunter Lawrence (5th) Nails his 75th career SMX top-5 finish and 5th in 450SX Class racing. Joey Savatgy (10th) Makes 200th career SMX start and scores 20th top-10 finish in 23 450SX Class starts. Vince Friese (15th) Enters top-25 in all-time 450SX Class starts with his 123rd, tying him with O’Mara.

HISTORY LESSON: On December 4, 1976, Marty Smith (Honda) won the first 450SX Class round in Angel Stadium. Supercross returned to Angel Stadium every year except for 1980, 1988, 1997, 1998, and 2021. Chase Sexton (KTM) scored the victory in the 2025 series’ first visit to Anaheim for the Opener.

A2: On February 6, 1999, Angel Stadium hosted the first Anaheim 2 and Ezra Lusk (Honda) took the checkers. The victory doubled as the first Anaheim sweep as Lusk won the Anaheim Opener as well. 2025 will mark the 26th “A2”.

GET A BROOM: There have been five Anaheim sweeps in 25 years of multiple rounds in Anaheim. The first two seasons included sweeps from Lusk (1999, Honda) and McGrath (2000, Yamaha). Years later James Stewart (2007, Kawasaki) and Chad Reed (2008, Yamaha) incredibly scored the only two three-round sweeps in history. Ryan Villopoto (2012, Kawasaki) was the most recent Anaheim sweeper. Sexton is looking to become #6 and the first to do it on a KTM.

CHAMPION’S CIRCLE: An incredible 17/25 (68%) A2 winners doubled as 450SX Class Champions that season, excluding 2024’s A2 winner Cooper Webb who was unable to win the title. Before 2024, A2 winners were on a four-season Championship streak (excluding 2021 when there was no Anaheim). From 2003-2010 the winner of Anaheim 2 won the title an incredible eight seasons in-a-row.

Julien Beaumer

JULIEN BEAUMER: Becomes 124th different 250SX Class winner and eighth to score their first win aboard a KTM. He will hold the red plate in Anaheim after only 12 career 250SX Class starts. After no top-5 finishes in his rookie season, Beaumer has nailed his first top-5, podium, and victory in the first two rounds.

Jordon Smith

JORDON SMITH: List climbing veteran ties Shane McElrath for second on the all-time 250SX Class podiums list with 26. He is only four behind record-holder Ramsey. Smith’s 70th 250SX Class start pushes him inside the top-10 all-time, tied with Josh Hansen. His 42nd top-5 finish puts him in second alone, passing Jeremy Martin. He also moved into the top-10 in 250SX Class top-10 finishes, tying him with Zach Osborne and Brock Sellards with 52.

Haiden Deegan

HAIDEN DEEGAN: Scores first podium of the season and ninth of his 250SX Class career. He holds 30 SMX podiums and is only 10 points off the red plate going to A2.

Cole Davies

NOTES: Cole Davies (4th) Earned his first Heat Race victory and led the Main Event before settling for his first top-5 finish. Ryder DiFrancesco (5th) Has scored his first two career 250SX Class top-5 finishes to begin the season. He now has four total in 45 career SMX starts. Michael Mosiman (9th) Made his 50th 250SX Class start and earned his 36th top-10 finish. Mosiman has 65 top-10 finishes in 97 SMX starts. Nico Koch (17th) First career 250SX Class start and SMX start for the German MXGP athlete, in his first attempt.

HISTORY LESSON: The first 250SX Class round held in Anaheim was on February 2, 1985, and Mike Healey (Suzuki) won.250SX Class racing has continued in Angel Stadium every season except for 1988, 1997, 1998, and 2021. This will be the 77th time the gate will drop for a 250SX Class race in Angel Stadium.

A2: The first 250SX Class Anaheim 2 was on February 6, 1999, and Nathan Ramsey (Kawasaki) won. Anaheim 2 has returned in every Western Regional 250SX Class season other than ’21, and stands to make its 26th appearance, just like the 450SX Class.

GET A BROOM: Levi Kitchen scored the seventh 250SX Class Anaheim sweep in the 2024 Western Regional Championship by winning the Anaheim Opener and the A2 Triple Crown a few weeks later. Previously, Ernesto Fonseca (Yamaha) had nailed the first 250SX Class Anaheim sweep in 2001. Ivan Tedesco (2004, Kawasaki), Ryan Villopoto (2007, Kawasaki), Josh Hansen (2011, Kawasaki), Cooper Webb (2016, Yamaha), and Christian Craig (2022, Yamaha) also completed the feat before Kitchen last year. Kawasaki has won almost half of the 250SX Class Anaheim 2 rounds (12/25). Jo Shimoda (Honda) won the Anaheim Opener to kick off the 2025 Western Regional 250SX Class and will look for the sweep at A2.

CHAMPION’S CIRCLE: The winner of Anaheim 2 has won the Western Regional 250SX Class title in 15/25 (60%) seasons. Kitchen won Anaheim 2 but failed to win the title in the previous two Western Regional Championships. Incredibly, from 2003-2007 every Anaheim 2 winner in both 250SX and 450SX Classes won their Championship.