Supercross Statistics | Numbers in East Rutherford 1

Another round of the 2023 Monster Energy Supercross season is sat in the rear-view mirror and that means that it's time to dive into even more statistics, so settle down and prepare to digest many facts and figures. In this regular feature that has become a hit, uncover points of interest that lurked in the shadows at the MetLife Stadium.

• Jason Anderson halted that streak of consecutive pole positions that Chase Sexton has had at six, as he topped the classification in East Rutherford for the first time since Arlington back in February (that was the only other time that he has done that this term). It has been a wayward season, but he is one pole position away from matching his total from last year. The speed has seemingly not vanished and that, in such a difficult time, is something to cling to.

• Eli Tomac completed one timed session in East Rutherford, because of a fall, and that meant that he was classified in seventh moving into the night show. Seventh was where he qualified in Atlanta too and therefore his consistent streak of timed qualification results is maintained. 3-3-3-4-4-5-5-5-5-7-7 are his last eleven results in the daytime. It means nothing, but it is oddly satisfying. It is a trend and a trend is a statistic, so that works for this feature.

• When was the last time that Tomac qualified outside of the top six on consecutive race weekends? This required a dive into the archives, but it was at races four and five (Glendale and Oakland) of 2018 Monster Energy Supercross. It had been 1904 days since he last had a streak like that. '1' was tenth and eighth at those races, so it was a little worse than what has just happened. This is evidence to not read into what happens in the day, although Tomac is guilty of that.

• There have now been five different winners this term, which is consistent with what has happened in recent seasons. Tomac (seven), Chase Sexton (three), Cooper Webb (two), Ken Roczen (one) and Justin Barcia (one) have been the victors. Five winners could be considered fairly predictable, but it seemed quite unlikely in the weeks before the first event. The last time that there were less than five winners was in 2018, when just four riders stood atop the podium.

• It is not a shock to see five stars win a main event in a Monster Energy Supercross season, but it is so rare for five different manufacturers to experience success at the highest level. The last time that occurred was back in 2020 when Barcia (Yamaha), Tomac (Kawasaki), Roczen (Honda), Webb (KTM) and Zach Osborne (Husqvarna) won. How hilarious that those are the same winners as this season, with the exception of Osborne? The talent turnover is not so high at the moment.

• Barcia was added to the list of winners in East Rutherford, of course, and it was quite the occasion. Saturday night was the first time that he had climbed to the top of the Monster Energy Supercross podium in eight hundred and twenty-eight days. The last time that '51' won was at the first round of the 2021 term in Houston, Texas. The same facts are true for GASGAS, seeing as Barcia is still their only supercross winner.

• In recent weeks, this scribe has harped on about the fact that Barcia was so close to matching his longest streak of successive top four results. Well, he managed that in Atlanta. The victory in East Rutherford pushed him to seven in a row and that means that this is his longest streak of top four finishes ever. All of the statistics lean towards this being his best season, but that is subjective to an extent.

• On a similar note, this is the most podiums that Barcia has had in a row since entering the premier class in the January of 2013. Previously, the most trophies that he had claimed in succession was three. Those accolades came across rounds eleven, twelve and thirteen (second, third and second) in 2014 Monster Energy Supercross. Barcia has four in a row currently and, hey, it seems that he is not going to stop anytime soon.

• Yet another Barcia statistic. Hurrah! It is well documented that he has won the first round on three different occasions, but when was the last time that he won a race that was not in January? It has been a while. It was at round fifteen, Seattle, in the 2014 Monster Energy Supercross series, which was 3297 days ago. It was in that season that he last won multiple races, so perhaps that will be the next streak to be broken?

• East Rutherford marked the one hundred and fifteenth time that Barcia has finished in the top ten in a main on a 450F. Who would have thought? Include his top ten results from the 250SX classes and that boosts the figure to one hundred and forty-one. Now that '51' has pocketed a two-year extension with the Red Bull GASGAS Factory Racing squad, there is simply no doubt that he'll end up blowing past the one hundred and fifty mark.

• One more before it is time for us to advance. East Rutherford was the seventieth time that he has slotted into the top five in a 450SX main event. Another milestone! The most top five finishes that he has had in a single season is thirteen, so he will not hit that figure this term. Eight is his current total and there are three rounds to go, so he could match his second-highest total of eleven from the 2014 and 2022 seasons.

• It was a fairly dominant showing for Barcia, despite the fact that he only led twelve of the eighteen laps, but he was only the fastest athlete on track for five of the eighteen laps. That was still more than anyone else though! Tomac, Roczen and Sexton were the fastest on track for four laps apiece. Tomac was the best on laps twelve, thirteen, fifteen and seventeen and that's in line with his late push for second.

• Roczen took control of the lead on the first lap and tried to take advantage of his clear vision by sprinting in the early stages. Those first four laps were when Roczen was the fastest on track and the table below, which covers the start of the race, confirms how he built an advantage of 03.410. It was on lap seven that Barcia made the pass to take control of the lead and he maintained that until the end, of course.

• After casing the finish double and bashing his head on the handlers, which prompted him to throw his goggles, Roczen was powerless when it came to stopping Tomac from stealing the runner-up position. '1' was running an incredible pace in the second half and the difference in times is rather staggering. The difference between those former foes is highlighted below. Remember that Tomac was the fastest man on track on laps twelve, thirteen, fifteen and seventeen.

• Roczen was eventually classified in third and therefore claimed successive podium finishes for the first time since the latter stages of 2021 Monster Energy Supercross. '94' was first and second at the fourteenth and fifteenth races, Atlanta 2 and Atlanta 3, in April of that year. The biggest streak of podiums that he has ever had is five and that's a surprisingly low number, no? Roczen had five in a row in both 2016 (rounds twelve through sixteen) and 2021 (three through seven).

• Speaking of Roczen and podium finishes, taking third in East Rutherford altered his career podium percentage. It was forty-seven percent prior to the weekend and that figure is now forty-eight. It takes a lot to make a jump up like that, when you have completed as many races as he. Going another race without a win, in contrast, caused his career victory percentage to fall from seventeen to sixteen.

• It was yet another positive weekend for Suzuki, who had two 'yellow' riders in the top six for the first time in years. When was the last time that it happened? It was in the city of Las Vegas in the May of 2016 and, shockingly, that did not include Roczen, James Stewart or any of their big stars from the last decade. Blake Baggett (fifth) and Broc Tickle (sixth) positioned the RM-Z450s in the top six on that muddy night in the desert.

• Whilst on the subject, Shane McElrath (sixth) was not the only rider who took a season-best finish in New Jersey. Barcia (first), Kevin Moranz (seventh), Benny Bloss (eighth), Fredrik Noren (eleventh), Justin Starling (fourteenth) and Chase Marquier (seventeenth) exited MetLife Stadium with a reason to smile. Colt Nichols (sixteenth) was the only rider who posted his worst result of the term, which is a surprise considering the conditions.

• Anderson, who recorded one of his worst rankings of the season, actually showed flashes of speed in the main event. There are a handful of times that are questionable though, to say the least. '21' was the fastest in sectors three and five in the main event. Somehow, however, he recorded times that were significantly quicker than anyone else on each portion. Anderson was 01.425 better than anyone in sector three and 00.559 better in sector five. Is it correct? Debatable.

• What makes the situation even more curious is the fact that the quickest lap that Anderson set in the main event was a 01:06.302, which made him the eleventh-fastest rider. Perhaps he was just slow in the other areas on the track? The mind boggles. Anderson is experiencing a terrible year and there are few positives to shout about. Those sector times, if legit, are something that he can extract confidence from, especially with another mudder on the horizon.

• There was no Kawasaki in the top ten in East Rutherford, but when was the last time that happened in the premier class? It was not too long ago, as it occurred in Detroit last year. Anderson crashed out of the main and therefore the top Kawasaki pilot was Logan Karnow in fifteenth place. Fredrik Noren took that title on Saturday via an eleventh. Will the 'green' team steal a win before the end of the current season?