Maybe none of the riders that filled the starting gates Saturday night at Phoenix’s Chase Field for the 250 and 450 Supercross main events speak French, but all probably can translate—or, more importantly, understand—the centuries-old saying, “Rome ne s’est pas faite en un jour.” So, too, championships aren’t won in a single evening. While neither Ken Roczen nor Jessy Nelson was able to duplicate his winning season-opening performance at Anaheim, both riders came away from the second round with expanded points leads in their respective classes. Meanwhile, Eli Tomac, Cooper Webb, and Malcolm Stewart had career-best placings, and after his podium finish, Ryan Dungey now trails Roczen by just nine points. Just like at Anaheim, Tomac was the quickest 450SX qualifier. Unlike at Anaheim, however, the Geico Honda rider kept his wheels underneath him all night. He posted the single quickest lap (54.403) and, after getting the holeshot and eventually working his way past early leader Roczen, headed the final two-thirds of the 20-lap main event. Margin of victory was 6.424 seconds.About his intense back-and-forth battle with the 20-year-old German, Tomac said, “We weren’t trying to take each other out. We were both going super hard. We weren’t worried about each other.” On the podium, RCH Racing Suzuki rider Roczen was asked if he was happy with his result. “Yes, I am,” he replied. “I got off to a fast start. That was key tonight. Eli beat me straight up, but that’s fine. It’s about smart racing; I’ll take a podium any time.” Roczen was forced to transfer to the main event from 450 Semi 1. “I got off to a decent start in the heat race, hit the tuff block in the first turn and dragged it all the way around,” he said. “They only take four riders straight to the main, and I couldn’t fight my way up there. I got the holeshot in the semi and had a good start in the main. So, overall, I’m happy.”
Weston Peick also made a great start and held off Dungey for most of the race. Prior to Phoenix, the Joe Gibbs Racing Yamaha rider’s best finish was fifth. “I made a pass on Dungey early in the race and just rode my own race,” he said. “I came up short on the triple in the back and rolled my ankle really bad. If it wasn’t for that, I think I would have had a solid podium.” Monster Energy Kawasaki ’s Davi Millsaps completed the top five. Regarding his late-race pass on Peick, Red Bull KTM -mounted Dungey said, “I wish it could have come sooner. I lost a lot of ground there in the beginning. [The track] kind of became one line over there. I started switching my lines up. One lap before I made the pass, I had something there, so I did the same thing, and it ended up working out that time.” Asked to evaluate the start of his season, former series champ Dungey replied, “The bike’s great, the team’s awesome. I’ve got everything I need—all the tools. I’ve just got to put it together. It will happen soon enough. I’ve just got to be patient.” Dungey also sent a message to his critics. “A lot of guys give me crap for not making passes or blowing people off the track,” he said. “I’d like to see them get out here and do it. It’s tough. These guys are going fast. You’ve got to be on top of your game.” 
Unlike in past years, Chase Field received a heavy watering prior to practice. “I would say this was the ‘wettest’ Phoenix we’ve had,” Tomac said. “In practice, we had legitimate ruts, almost East Coast-style. It was crazy. For the main event, it almost felt like Anaheim, where the moisture came up and out of the ground.” None of that appeared to bother Webb, who earned his first 250SX win on a Yamaha YZ250F . “It was actually a really rough week leading up to this,” he admitted, “but when it comes to race time, you’ve just got to put your head down. The heat race was a little scary; I got into a couple of pileups again. I felt like I could have got it done last weekend, but this feels just as good.” For early race-leader Stewart, Phoenix had the makings of a repeat of round 1. “After two weeks straight going to the LCQ,” he said, “I’m so thankful.” Nelson finished third on his Troy Lee Designs KTM. “I came around the first turn all right,” he said. “I think I was in third or fourth. I made a couple passes, and all of a sudden, I got really tight. I don’t think I was breathing. To come away with the points lead, it worked out really well.” Supercross returns to Anaheim this weekend for the third round of the 17-race series. 450SX Points Standings Rider - Brand - Points 1. Ken Roczen - Suzuki - 47 2. Ryan Dungey - KTM - 38 3. Jason Anderson - Husqvarna - 37 4. Trey Canard - Honda - 33 5. Weston Peick - Yamaha - 32 6. Andrew Short - KTM - 30 7. Eli Tomac - Honda - 26 8. Justin Barcia - Yamaha - 25 9. Broc Tickle - Suzuki - 22 10. Jacob Weimer - Kawasaki - 22 Western Region 250SX Points Standings Rider - Brand - Points 1. Jessy Nelson - KTM - 45 2. Cooper Webb - Yamaha - 39 3. Tyler Bowers - Kawasaki - 38 4. Zach Osborne - Husqvarna - 36 5. Justin Hill - KTM - 33 6. Aaron Plessinger - Yamaha - 32 7. Shane McElrath - KTM - 28 8. Malcolm Stewart - Honda - 23 9. Zachary Bell - Husqvarna - 22 10. Joshua Hansen - Kawasaki - 20 
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