Cycle News is a weekly magazine that covers all aspects of motorcycling including Supercross, Motocross and MotoGP as well as new motorcycles
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SUPERCROSS ROUND 5 / FEBRUARY 4, 2017 OAKLAND ALAMEDA COLISEUM / OAKLAND, CALIFORNIA P66 MONSTER ENERGY AMA SUPERCROSS SERIES My Own Race: 21 JASON ANDERSON 4TH 450SX Rockstar Energy Husqvarna's Jason Anderson scored his third fourth-place finish of the season in Oakland, after a rough couple of weeks following a DQ at Anaheim II and being sick all week before Phoenix. He has set his sights higher than fourth, though. "I had the flu the week before Phoenix, and I couldn't do anything that week," Anderson said. "I was able to do more this week, but I think it's still affecting me a little bit, because taking six days off and doing nothing is going to take a toll on you, regardless. I did get a little bit tired out there tonight with how the track was. It was tricky and easy to get tight out there. But I think if I keep training and doing my deal, I'll get back on the podium soon. I need to win. It's my third year in this class, and I guess you can say I need to crap or get off the pot, you know? [Laughs.]" 68 HEATH HARRISON 10TH 250SX CycleTrader.com/Rock River Yamaha's Heath Harrison had his best result of the series so far in Oakland, snatching a top-10 in his first main event of the year. "The track really broke down during the race program, and it got a lot of ruts, kind of like an Indy or St. Louis Supercross, and since I'm an East- Coast guy, that might have worked to my advantage tonight," Harrison said. "It was just about being smart, not making mistakes, and getting through the race. If you pushed too hard, even in the turns, the ruts were so deep that it was hard to lean over the whole way because the dirt could grab your brake pedal or shifter. It was just about riding smart. It wasn't about who was fastest or slow- est. It was more about just who kept it together and kept their momentum going." There was a bit of an anomaly in Oakland in regard to the race- program qualifying that the AMA/FIM is likely going to have to address. By rule, main-event gate picks are determined by qualifying order in the heats, then the semis, then the LCQ. It goes like this: The winner of the fastest heat gets first gate pick, followed by the winner of the slower heat, then second in the fastest heat, then second in the slower heat, etc. Similarly, the semis work that way as well, with the winner of the fastest semi getting pick number nine (behind the eight people who finished in the top-four in their respective heats), and the winner of the slower semi getting pick 10, etc. However, the problem in Oakland was that the heats and the semis are now timed events. The 450 heats are five minutes Briefly... cont. on p.68 Martin Davalos put in a solid performance with second in the 250SX main.