The mud claimeth.
The mud taketh.
Last night, the city of Seattle did not do well for itself on the national stage when it comes to the misnomer, “It always rains in Seattle.”
The Monster Energy AMA Supercross returned to CenturyLink Field, along with a 100% chance of rain and turning the Supercross into the Mudcross. Riders had to slug it out every step of the way, and one can only imagine how happy all of them were when it was over. Even though the weather was bad they did capture some pretty amazing photos and videos, its all about finding the right instagram dimensions to make them stand out even more. While it may have been daunting and just an absolute mess for all on the track (God bless those who work on the track and had to stand in the mud and the rain the entire time) – it was still a fun race to watch! Seattle fans are a dedicated bunch as they simply donned rain jackets or ponchos and sat through the endless rain to cheer on their favorite riders. You know it’s going to be an epic night when Supercross turns into a game of who can survive?
Some of the more muddy race moments:
- Yellow flags out on almost every section during qualifying
- Riders not being able to make it up hills
- The whoops section eventually having to be bulldozed away due to riders slipping and sliding everywhere
- Even the big names were getting stuck in the mud (did you see those ruts??)
- Engines overheating with billowing smoke
- Chad Reed’s 450SX Main Event finish was the most fitting moment of the crazy evening (more on that below)
All of the crazy mud jokes aside, I really have to give a kudos to the AMA and the track maintenance crew. The track almost completely morphed after each event. For example, they lessened the steepness of the finish line, and as I said above – they eventually bulldozed the whoops section. Between qualifying, heats, LCQ and the main event – you know how much they all had rider safety in mind.
Heat 1 for the 250SX had Adam Cianciarulo not able to get his bike up over one of the hills and he eventually had to walk away as his bike was stuck, which put him in the rare position of having to go into LCQ. Phil Nicoletti (taking the nickname, Filthy Phil to a whole other level!) eventually won heat 1. Heat 2 had some crazy crashes from Justin Hill and Joey Savatgy with Aaron Plessinger easily cruising to a first place finish (and you could tell he was always the leader because he wasn’t as muddy as his counterparts!).
Heat 1 for the 450SX had big names like Cooper Webb losing all traction with his bike and falling over more than once and then eventually racing against Josh Hill to make it into the top nine. Marvin Musquin stayed ahead the entire heat, and much like Plessinger, was relatively clean! Heat 2 was, as I heard someone say, “a slow motion drag race.” Jason Anderson went down, Chad Reed’s engine was overheating, Adam Enticknap went down, and Eli Tomac stayed ahead of the pack for the win.
The 250SX LCQ had Cianciarulo racing for his life but he easily made it into the main event. Kele Russell (out of Seabeck, WA!) also made it into the main! Kele was so excited that he did a little dance at the end, much to the enjoyment of the crowd! Benny Bloss eeked out the win in the 450SX LCQ, just in front of Christian Craig.
And finally, it was time for the Main Event!
The 250SX Main Event was just as crazy as all the previous races. The ruts were getting so deep and you could see the mud spraying everywhere. Joey Savatgy crashed and took awhile to get up, eventually ending up in 12th overall. Aaron Plessinger once again stayed in the lead (and relatively clean) the entire race, with a 33-second margin of victory over 2nd place finisher, Chase Sexton. Cianciarulo ended up in 3rd, with Shane Mcelrath in 4th and and Justin Starling in 5th. Plessinger celebrated his win by jumping face first into a giant puddle of water.
The 450SX Main Event wasn’t an easy victory for the winner! Anderson started off in the lead with Marvin Musquin not far behind him and Tomac on their tails. At one point Tomac lost traction and almost fell but he was able to stable himself and continue on. Broc Tickle kept pace with the leaders in 4th place with Reed in 5th. With about 5:25 left to go, Tomac started to close in on Anderson. Suddenly, Anderson went off the track and it looked like his bike stalled, which let Tomac take the lead all the way to the finish line. Rounding out the top five were Anderson in 2nd, Musquin in 3rd, Tickle in 4th and Webb in 5th.
To top off the crazy evening was Chad Reed’s finish. While he placed 7th, he had to walk his bike over the finish line (they had to verify if he did indeed cross it) with smoke pouring out of his engine. Talk about a memorable way to end the Mudcross! It was a very fitting way to close out the soggy evening.
Next up – Minneapolis, Foxborough, Salt Lake City and then Las Vegas!
https://www.supercrosslive.com/
