Racing

2019 Detroit Supercross 250 Class Race Report

Austin Forkner wins all three main events to take Triple Crown victory

February 26, 2019

Monster Energy/Pro Circuit/Kawasaki’s Austin Forkner claimed his third consecutive 250SX class victory at Ford Field in Detroit. Forkner won all three main events and, in doing so, became the first rider to win all three main events in either class at a Triple Crown race. He maintains the Eastern Regional 250SX class point lead heading into the next round at Mercedes-Benz Stadium in Atlanta.

“Three for three baby!” Forkner said. “I am obviously pumped on how today went and that I was able to continue to extend my point lead. My Monster Energy/Pro Circuit/Kawasaki KX250 was once again a rocket ship that got me out of the gate and up front in each main event, which was crucial to winning the races. I am looking forward to having some fun in Atlanta next weekend and mixing it up with the West Coast riders as well.”

Troy Lee Designs/Red Bull/KTM’s Jordon Smith came into the night nursing a wrist injury he sustained at the previous round at AT&T Stadium in Arlington, Texas, but managed to go 2-2-4 in the three main events to finish second overall.

“It’s a lot of riding here at the Triple Crowns,” Smith said. “It’s 60 minutes of riding [including qualifying] and I didn’t get to do any riding this week. I went to Dr. Berg and got an X-ray and MRI, and luckily [there were] no breaks or tears; it was just bone bruised really bad. So [I] did as much therapy as I could during the week and I did one 10-minute moto on Thursday and, man, I was bummed after that 10-minute moto because it was hurting really bad and I wasn’t sure if I was going to be able to make it through the whole day. I’ve got to give it up to the whole [Troy Lee Designs/Red Bull/KTM team]. They worked with me all day. Even the suspension guy was making changes to try and help my wrist instead of necessarily help my bike out there at times. I’ve just got to give it up to them and Dr. Navarro; without them I wouldn’t have made it through the night. It was definitely tough, and it got tougher and tougher as the night went on.

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Geico Honda’s Chase Sexton was the fastest qualifier early on in the day, and in the night program, he went 4-4-2 in the three main events, which gave him third overall in the Motor City. Sexton is ranked fourth in the point standings after three rounds of racing.

“[I was the] fastest qualifier and [finished] third on the night,” Sexton said. “[I will] not [be] satisfied until I’m on the top, so [it’s] back to work this week so we can come out swinging in Atlanta.”

Monster Energy/Yamalube/Star/Yamaha Racing’s Justin Cooper and Monster Energy/Pro Circuit/Kawasaki’s Martin Davalos rounded out the top five, respectively.

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JGRMX/Yoshimura/Suzuki Factory Racing’s Alex Martin’s best main event result came in the second race, where he earned third. His overall finishes put him in sixth in the Motor City. “I was happy with my riding in Detroit,” Martin said. “I qualified third fastest in practice, which is something I haven’t done for a few years in Supercross. I had a great jump in the first main, but I got pushed off the track on the start. I was only able to get back to 10th place. I was very happy with my third-place finish in the second main. It was the best I have ridden in a Supercross race in a long time. The third main event, I pretty much finished where I started. We’re making good strides toward being on the podium. My consistency on the starts is something we will work on this week.”Brown Dog Wilson

Monster Energy/Yamalube/Star/Yamaha Racing’s Mitchell Oldenburg put his YZ250F in seventh place overall for the evening. “Tonight as a whole was all right,” Oldenburg said. “It’s just a little frustrating that my results aren’t showing what I’m capable of and how good I’m feeling and riding. We’re going to work on the starts. [My] starts are definitely slacking right now. So we’ll go back to the drawing board this week [and work on getting] some good starts. The track was really fun. I really enjoyed the Triple Crown format with the three mains. It was a pretty quick night for us and we were go, go, go. Like I said before, [the] results aren’t showing what I’m capable of and how good I’m riding. If we can get a start, we’ll be up there for some wins and some podiums. I know it.”Brown Dog Wilson

JGRMX/Yoshimura/Suzuki Factory Racing’s Kyle Peters improved in every main event, which netted him eighth place overall. “It was an off weekend in Detroit,” Peter said. “I wasn’t riding to my potential, but I improved throughout the night. I’m ready to put in work for Atlanta. I’m solid during the week, but I’m having difficulty carrying that over to the races.”Brown Dog Wilson

HRT/Freedom Powersports/Merge Racing/Honda’s Kyle Cunningham claimed his third consecutive top-10 finish in Michigan.Brown Dog Wilson

Tilube Honda’s Blake Wharton rounded out the top 10 on his CRF250R.Brown Dog Wilson

2019 Eastern Regional 250SX Class Championship Standings

Position	Rider	Brand	Points
1	Austin Forkner	Kawasaki	78
2	Jordon Smith	KTM	65
3	Justin Cooper	Yamaha	63
4	Chase Sexton	Honda	60
5	Alex Martin	Suzuki	51
6	Mitchell Oldenburg	Yamaha	50
7	Kyle Peters	Suzuki	44
8	Martin Davalos	Kawasaki	43
9	Kyle Cunningham	Honda	43
10	Brandon Hartranft	Yamaha	41