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 3, 2018 OAKLAND COLISEUM / OAKLAND, CALIFORNIA P62 MONSTER ENERGY AMA SUPERCROSS 450SX 1. Jason Anderson (Hus) 2. Ken Roczen (Hon) 3. Blake Baggett (KTM) 4. Marvin Musquin (KTM) 5. Justin Barcia (Yam) 6. Cole Seely (Hon) 7. Cooper Webb (Yam) 8. Broc Tickle (KTM) 9. Justin Brayton (Hon) 10. Josh Grant (Kaw) 250SX WEST 1. Aaron Plessinger (Yam) 2. Joey Savatgy (Kaw) 3. Justin Hill (Suz) 4. Christian Craig (Hon) 5. Alex Martin (KTM) 6. Chase Sexton (Hon) 7. Adam Cianciarulo (Kaw) 8. Kyle Chisholm (Yam) 9. Mitchell Harrison (Hus) 10. Hayden Mellross (Yam) Weimer struggled in his second race back from injury. Weimer's never been known for being a strong rider in rutted conditions, and despite a holeshot in the 450SX LCQ, he struggled and was relegated to sixth place, missing the main event. SUPERCROSS DEBUT Canadian MX and AX contender Jess Pettis made his supercross debut in Oakland, and it was a memorable, if not successful, premiere. Pettis was the fastest in Group C qualifying, and qualified 19th overall. He made it up to sixth place in his heat race before a fall knocked him out of qualifying position, and then he was work- ing his way up to the top-four in the LCQ when another fall hampered his progress and left him out of the main event. LAPPERS According to Ken Roczen, lapped riders played a role in the outcome of the race. "There were definitely a couple of lappers that played a pretty big role," he said. "One of them that probably frustrated me the most was Josh Grant. Unfortunately, he just didn't get out of the way and that cost me pretty good. But that's just a part of racing and doesn't just hap- pen to me, it happens to everybody. Sometimes it plays more into this person's favor; sometimes it hurts the other one. You move out of your comfort line and you don't know how much it kicks or how deep it is or what's going on there, so that was really the tough part; do you thread the needle and just send it and jump it or do you cruise and double it that costs so much time? It's difficult because you have to make that deci- sion in a split second." EXHAUSTED Aaron Plessinger, who was feeling the effects of the flu, gave it his all to get the win in the 250SX main and that was obvious right after the race when he climbed off his bike and promptly collapsed. He gathered up enough energy to participate in the podium ceremony but did not attend the post-race press conference. RETRO ROCZEN In the evening program, Roczen wore a unique set of black-and-white riding gear that represents a collabo- ration between Fox Racing and See See Motorcycles, a Portland coffee- house and apparel shop. See See promotes the popular One Motorcy- cle Show that kicks off February 9, when the gear will become available to the public. "We're trying to tie our- selves in with brands that expand on the culture of riding, being passion- ate about the sport, and having fun, which fits Ken," explained Clayton Williams, Fox's Pro MX Team Man- ager. "Our designer really got into that idea of making something retro that was onboard with See See's flat track ideas and their gear. What he wore was just a take on that, with the vintage leather-pants look with the different color jersey and ribbed neckline and cuffs." Briefly... Plessinger also battled the flu and could barely stand after the race.