Anderson To
Compete in
SuperMotocross
Playoffs; Roczen
Says He's Ready
S
uzuki announced that Twisted Tea/Pro-
gressive HEP Team rider Jason Ander-
son will compete alongside fellow Suzuki
riders Ken Roczen, the 2026 Monster
Energy AMA Supercross Champion, and
Colt Nichols. Anderson has not competed
in an AMA race since February 21, 2026,
when he finished 21st at the Arlington
Supercross. Since then, Anderson stepped
aside from racing to address health and
personal issues. However, he did start his
title defense at the opening round of the
World Supercross Championship earlier
this summer. Anderson has since switched
focus to the hybrid SX/MX tracks of the
SMX Playoffs and SMX World Champion-
ship Final. Anderson tallied enough points
through a partial season in the Monster
Energy AMA Supercross season, includ-
ing two top five results, to earn a spot in
the wild-card seeding in the SMX Playoffs.
Anderson and Nichols must compete in the
wild-card qualifiers and place well enough
to advance to the feature motos.
After winning the 2026 Monster Energy
AMA Supercross Championship, Roczen
chose to sit out the outdoor AMA Pro Mo-
tocross Championship but has been work-
ing hard out of the spotlight this summer,
prepping and fine-tuning his RM-Z450 for the
Playoffs.
"My preparation has looked very good so
far," said Roczen. "Overall, I feel really good
on the bike and I'm excited to start up racing
again after clinching the Supercross Cham-
pionship. I feel good about it. I'm ready to
go racing, and I feel like I'm as fit as I could
possibly be. I'm stoked that Larry's [Brooks,
team manager] going to be there for the first
round, and let's see what we can do."
Brooks operated the team remotely
as he battled cancer during the Super-
cross season.
"We're looking forward to the start
of the Playoffs and being back in the
stadiums where we are most com-
fortable," said Dustin Pipes, Twisted
Tea/H.E.P. Motorsports/Suzuki team princi-
pal. "Ken and Jason have been working hard
to get ready, and we are happy to see them
back behind the starting gate. It's three short
rounds, but we plan to maximize the most
out of them."
CN
VOLUME 63 ISSUE 36 SEPTEMBER 9, 2026 P29
Jason Anderson
is expected
to suit up for
the upcoming
SMX World
Championship
Playoffs.
PHOTO:
OCTOPI MEDIA
