Tomac Grabs First 450SX Championship, Osborne Earns First 450SX Win - Speedway Digest

Monster Energy Kawasaki’s Eli Tomac earned his first Monster Energy Supercross Championship in the 450SX Class at the season finale inside Rice-Eccles Stadium. Tomac won the title by 25 points after a smart ride to finish fifth in the race. Rockstar Energy Husqvarna Factory Racing’s Zach Osborne won the event, taking home his career-first 450SX Class victory. Second went to his teammate Jason Anderson, who led 15 of the 25-Lap Main Event. Rounding out an all-Husqvarna and team podium, Dean Wilson turned an early lead into his first podium of 2020, the second of his career.

Two 250SX regional titles were decided in the East/West 250SX Showdown, with GEICO Honda’s Chase Sexton pulling away to win the race and the Eastern Regional 250SX Class Championship by nine points, while three spots back in the race, Monster Energy/Star Yamaha Racing’s Dylan Ferrandis took home the Western Regional 250SX Class by a 20-point margin over his teammate Justin Cooper.

The tension was high for Tomac to deliver his first 450SX Class title in his seventh year in the class and after three second-place season finishes. Off the start, Dean Wilson got into the lead and ahead of his two teammates Anderson and Osborne. Tomac crossed the holeshot line in ninth position. The only rider still with a mathematical shot at the title, defending-champion Red Bull KTM’s Cooper Webb, was knocked over by another rider and started the race picking his bike up off the ground in the first corner.

Tomac slowly moved up the leader board. Webb recovered from his tip over but never caught up to Tomac. After sliding out on the opening lap, Team Honda HRC’s Ken Roczen split the two title contenders for the rest of the race. Roczen never broke free of Webb with enough positions to make up the points deficit he had on the second place spot in the points. Up front, Anderson wrestled the lead from Wilson six minutes into the 20-minute plus one lap event; immediately after that Osborne took second place from Wilson. Osborne got within striking distance a few times, but it wasn’t until late in the race, when Anderson’s seat had been pulled off his bike, that Osborne made the pass with just over one minute on the race clock. The three Husqvarna riders swept the podium, followed by a career-best fourth place finish from Smartop/BullFrog Spas/Motoconcepts Honda’s Malcolm Stewart. Tomac crossed the line fifth, as the 2020 champion.

The win marked Osborne’s first 450SX Class victory, as well as the first time inside Rice-Eccles Stadium that a 450SX rider has taken his first win. It also gives Husqvarna its first win of 2020 and brings the total number of race winners this season to five. Breaking records with his fifth place finish, Eli Tomac, at the age of 27, became the oldest rider to win his first 450SX Class championship, the first rider with 30 or more wins to earn his first title, and the first father to win a first Supercross premiere class title – fitting that it happened on Father’s Day. Another dad having a big day, Mountain Motorsports, cbdMD, CR22 Racing’s Chad Reed earned a top-ten finish in what likely is his final professional race. He has started more 450SX Class Main Events than any other rider, and the 2020 finale marked his 265^th start.

In a turbulent year, the extreme sport of Monster Energy Supercross managed to return to racing with a unique format of two-a-week races for the final seven rounds. Feld Entertainment and its partners, with the help of the Utah Sports Commission, were able to make history not only by completing the season’s full 17-race schedule, but by also becoming the first professional sport to complete its interrupted championship in 2020.

450SX Class Results

1. Zach Osborne, Abingdon, Va., Husqvarna

2. Jason Anderson, Rio Rancho, N.M., Husqvarna

3. Dean Wilson, Murrieta, Calif., Husqvarna

4. Malcolm Stewart, Haines City, Fla., Honda

5. Eli Tomac, Cortez, Colo., Kawasaki

6. Broc Tickle, Holly, Mich., Suzuki

7. Ken Roczen, Clermont, Fla., Honda

8. Cooper Webb, Clermont, Fla., KTM

9. Justin Hill, Yoncalla, Ore., Honda

10. Chad Reed, Cornelius, N.C., KTM

450SX Class Championship Final Standings

1. Eli Tomac, Cortez, Colo., Kawasaki (384)

2. Cooper Webb, Clermont, Fla., KTM (359)

3. Ken Roczen, Clermont, Fla., Honda (354)

4. Jason Anderson, Rio Rancho, N.M., Husqvarna (287)

5. Justin Barcia, Greenville, Fla., Yamaha (272)

6. Zach Osborne, Abingdon, Va., Husqvarna (252)

7. Malcolm Stewart, Haines City, Fla., Honda (252)

8. Dean Wilson, Murrieta, Calif., Husqvarna (239)

9. Justin Brayton, Charlotte, N.C., Honda (227)

10. Justin Hill, Yoncalla, Ore., Honda (213)

250SX East/West Showdown Results

1. Chase Sexton, Clermont, Fla., Honda

2. Shane McElrath, Murrieta, Calif., Yamaha

3. Michael Mosiman, Menifee, Calif., Husqvarna

4. Dylan Ferrandis, Lake Elsinore, Calif., Yamaha

5. Jett Lawrence, Wesley Chapel, Fla., Honda

6. Brandon Hartranft, Corona, Calif., KTM

7. Justin Cooper, Menifee, Calif., Yamaha

8. Jo Shimoda, Irvine, Calif., Honda

9. Derek Drake, Corona, Calif., KTM

10. Mitchell Oldenburg, Godly, Tex., Honda

Eastern Regional 250SX Class Championship Final Standings

1. Chase Sexton, Clermont, Fla., Honda (218)

2. Shane McElrath, Murrieta, Calif., Yamaha (209)

3. Jo Shimoda, Irvine, Calif., Honda (122)

4. Garrett Marchbanks, Coalville, Utah, Kawasaki (119)

5. Enzo Lopes, Huntersville, N.C., Yamaha (107)

6. Jeremy Martin, Rochester, Minn., Honda (105)

7. Jalek Swoll, Belleview, Fla., Husqvarna (104)

8. Kyle Peters, Greensboro, N.C., Honda (94)

9. Pierce Brown, Sandy, Utah, KTM (92)

10. RJ Hampshire, Minneola, Fla., Husqvarna (80)

Western Regional 250SX Class Championship Final Standings

1. Dylan Ferrandis, Lake Elsinore, Calif., Yamaha (200)

2. Justin Cooper, Menifee, Calif., Yamaha (180)

3. Austin Forkner, Richards, Mo., Kawasaki (176)

4. Brandon Hartranft, Corona, Calif., KTM (158)

5. Michael Mosiman, Menifee, Calif., Husqvarna (139)

6. Alex Martin, Clermont, Fla., Suzuki (124)

7. Derek Drake, Corona, Calif., KTM (120)

8. Mitchell Oldenburg, Godly, Tex., Honda (109)

9. Luke Clout, Hemet, Calif., Honda (106)

10. Jett Lawrence, Wesley Chapel, Fla., Honda (97)

Author
Recent Posts

Adam Sinclair

NHRA, IHRA, Motocross and other forms of motorsports Staff writer
About Me: Adam has been a race fan since the first time he went through the tunnel under the Daytona International Speedway almost 30 years ago. He has had the privilege of travelling to races all across the state of Florida (as well as one race in Ohio), watching nearly everything with a motor compete for fame and glory, as well as participating in various racing schools to get the feel of what racecar drivers go through every week. Adam has spent the last three years covering motorsports for Examiner.com., where he had the opportunity to see the racing world from behind the scenes as well as the grandstands. He invites everyone to follow him on Twitter, Facebook, and Google Plus, and looks forward to sharing his enthusiasm for all things racing with the readers of SpeedwayDigest.com.Be sure to tune in for his weekly sports talk program, Thursday Night Thunder, where he discusses the latest in motorsports news with drivers, crew members, and fans. The show takes place every Thursday at 8:00 pm EST on the Speedway Digest Radio Network.