down. Luckily, I didn't get hit and
the bike was still running but
in the second turn there were
a couple guys down, and I ran
right in there and had to pull my
bike out to get going again.
"After that I just went full
caveman style," Roczen added,
"and charged forward but had
fun with it because I had nothing
to lose."
Roczen is currently fourth in
the championship but will most
likely take over third next week.
He's just one point behind Webb,
who isn't expected to race the
final. Roczen, however, cannot
catch Tomac for second.
Cianciarulo rounded out the
podium in third, his first podium
since Houston in 2021. The
Monster Energy Kawasaki rider
started up front and is credited
with leading three laps after
Tomac pulled off. It's no secret
that AC has struggled the past
few seasons with injuries and
his return to the podium was vis
-
ibly emotional. This is Ciancia-
rulo's best result in 2023 and he
currently sits eighth in points.
"There's so many times I've
almost quit or said I was done,
and I really mean that," said
Cianciarulo. "Obviously I haven't
been where I want to be this
year. But right around Indianapo
-
lis I had a 'Come To Jesus' with
myself and said, 'This is no way
VOLUME ISSUE MAY , P81
TOUGH TIMES FOR
TEAM AUSTRIA
None of the factory 450cc Austri-
an-brand riders suited up to race in
Denver. Injuries have claimed all
their premier class riders, includ-
ing Cooper Webb (KTM), Marvin
Musquin (KTM), Aaron Plessinger
(KTM), Christian Craig (Husqvar-
na), Malcolm Stewart (Husqvarna)
and Justin Barcia (GasGas).
PRIVATEER POWER
With so many of the factory stars
out for the season, the privateers
have a chance to show their stuff.
Many of them logged great finishes
in the 450SX main event which saw
only two full-factory bikes (Sexton
and Cianciarulo) finish in the top 10.
JETT ON 450S
Salt Lake City will mark Jett
Lawrence's last race in the 250SX
class. After the season finale, he'll
jump up to the 450MX class for Pro
Motocross and will replace Colt
Nichols for the summer. Salt Lake
will also serve as Nichols' last ride
with the Honda HRC team. He
crashed out of the Denver round.
Briefly...
