Photo by: Simon Cudby
Round 15 of the 2019 Monster Energy Supercross, an FIM World Championship series, and round 9 of the Western Regional 250SX Championship landed in the Mile High City for the 2019 Denver SX. The day started out with qualifying in the snow, but the sun came out and made for some great racing when the lights came on.
In the 450SX class main event, Monster Energy / Kawasaki’s Eli Tomac won his second main event in a row, with the Red Bull / KTM duo of Cooper Webb and Marvin Musquin occupying the final two spots on the podium. The win by Tomac only shaved three points off of Webb’s stranglehold on the points, leaving the #3 with an 18 point mountain to climb with just two main events left in ’19.
In the penultimate round for the 250SX West—only the Las Vegas East/West race remains for them—Monster Energy / Pro Circuit / Kawasaki’s Adam Cianciarulo ran away with a dominant win after two straight wins by Monster Energy / Yamaha’s Dylan Ferrandis cut his lead to just five points. AC stretched his lead to 8 points with the Star Racing duo of Ferrandis and Colt Nichols finishing in 2nd and 3rd.
After the racing in Denver was over, we gathered some quotes from the riders. Check out some post-race quotes from the Denver SX below.
Eli Tomac: (1st in 450) “Wow, tonight was like something I dreamed of; this was the loudest crowd I have ever heard and it was so special for me to kind of repay them with this win. It has been such a great weekend and I mean, it wouldn’t be Colorado without some snow! I’m thankful for my entire Monster Energy Kawasaki crew and proud of all the progress we’ve made throughout the season. We’ll continue to work hard and keep pushing to close the gap on the title for the next two rounds, it’s not over yet!”
Adam Cianciarulo: (1st in 250) “At altitude, we have to start in first and get up to second pretty quick so the start was tougher than normal for a taller guy like me. It was hard to find a clean place to pass and I didn’t want to do anything stupid. I feel like I’m always at my best when my back is against the wall. We have one more to go and I’ve had a good record in Vegas. After two weeks thinking about those races, it’s a great feeling to get this one off my chest”
Cooper Webb: (2nd in 450) “I rode really well once I got around Joey [Savatgy], I was really good in the whoops, good on the whole track and I was able to catch Marvin and actually pass him put a little gap. I felt like I caught Eli a little bit but he was kind of riding his own race. Overall, it was a good weekend. Obviously, I want to win but it’s still good points and we’ll enjoy this off-weekend.”
Dylan Ferrandis: (2nd in 250) “The track was difficult to pass on tonight and that really cost me after starting around eighth. I didn’t struggle with the altitude so much as I did with the cold. I never felt like I could get warm and it was tough. But it is how it is. It’s not the scenario we were hoping for after two very good weekends. We have a weekend off and will use that time to keep working. We will give it everything we’ve got in Las Vegas and make sure it goes down to the final lap for the championship.”
Marvin Musquin: (3rd in 450) “I was not very confident going into the Main after a difficult heat race but good thing we made some changes and they helped me pull off a good start – that was the key to getting on the podium tonight. The track was very difficult with the hard surface and ground but no excuses I gave my best.”
Colt Nichols: (3rd in 250) “It was a good night at the Mile High Stadium overall. I felt I had the speed to contest for the win but just didn’t execute the start. I ended up messing it up and got pushed out, so I had to come through the pack. The team really did our homework coming into this race so the bike felt awesome and I could really push through the pack. After the start, I really had to work for it, but I rode like myself and I’m leaving this race happy knowing that I left it all out there on the track, which is about all I can do. It’s all good though, I’ve got a few weeks to clean it up and to come out swinging at Vegas”
Joey Savatgy: (in 450) “I wasn’t sure how this weekend was going to go after hurting my shoulder last weekend, but I was determined to get back out there and give it my all. It wasn’t easy, but overall I’m proud to put Kawasaki up front again and thankful for my team’s support. I got more experience running up front with the top contenders and I’m still shooting for a podium finish, but another top-5 is good, especially given the circumstances. I’m looking forward to a weekend off and allowing myself to rest up and get ready for New Jersey”
RJ Hampshire: (4th in 250) “Felt like I rode well throughout the day, just found myself getting caught up in a couple crashes early in the main which cost me a few positions and a lot of time. Thanks team GEICO / Honda for the work! One more to go.”
Ken Roczen: (7th in 450) “”
Michael Mosiman: (5th in 250) “I was able to get off to good starts tonight and I think that’s what has really changed for me this second half of the season. To be able to get out front and lead some laps felt really good and was a huge confidence booster. It was a big-time learning experience and I was able to cherish the moment and stay relaxed throughout the race.”
Zach Osborne: (8th in 450) “The heat race was really positive for me, I was able to get second and I felt like I had the speed to win but just wasn’t really executing. In the Main Event, I got off to a decent start and was in position to really charge for a podium but the second half of my Main I had a hard time getting back into the flow after the red cross flag came out.”
Joshua Grant: (9th in 450) “I’m stoked on how the weekend went here in Denver. It was just all in all a really good day. The bike was really working with me from pretty much start to finish. A little bit crazy of a day with the snow in practice, and being super cold. I didn’t really know what to expect, but once the sun came out it was a good track. Obviously, a little slick coming out of the turns and whoops, which made it difficult to make some passes and made the track really one-lined. I’m really happy with how my night went and looking forward to carrying that momentum forward into the next race.”
Garrett Marchbanks: (22nd in 250) “It was such an up-and-down day. I felt great in practice and then had to go to the LCQ. Then I won the LCQ and almost got the holeshot from the outside. And then I got sideways and went down pretty hard. I think the biggest bummer is that I was finally starting to feel good and confident there in the LCQ and it came out when the gate dropped. We have one more shot in Vegas to put it back in the top 10, but hopefully better than that.”
