CHAMPIONSHIP
VOL. 55 ISSUE 5 FEBRUARY 6, 2018 P65
iii My Own Race:
21 JASON ANDERSON 1ST 450SX
Jason Anderson talked about the wild last few laps of the main
event. "That battle at the end of the race was crazy," Anderson
said. "We [Anderson and Roczen] were both making mistakes,
the track was so hard to make your marks and the lappers played
a factor because you were used to one line the whole main and
when you get behind them, you had to switch it up and you didn't
know how deep the holes are—it was insane. The last couple of
laps were kind of a blur to me; we were side by side so many
times those last three laps; anytime you got out in front, we both
made a mistake. But it felt great to get the win."
94 KEN ROCZEN 2ND 450SX
Ken Roczen continues to astonish fans with his desire to win, and
in Oakland, he nearly landed his first win since his now-legendary
crash at Anaheim II last year that left everyone wondering if he'd
ever be able to race again, much less win. He led until the final
lap and just made one too many mistakes on the demanding track
which enabled Jason Anderson to pass him for the win. "We had
a good battle, but I'm just really bummed because we worked so
hard on a difficult track like that to pretty much give it away on the
last quarter of a lap. I got a good start and tucked in right behind
Cole; he was going really good then did a mistake in front of me.
I was trying not to get too amped up and not push even more
because I knew the track was going to get worse and worse; in
those tight rhythm sections, it's easy to rush and clip something or
jump a little bit too far and land in the ruts and miss the next one
or possibly go down. There were definitely a few close calls out
there—lappers." Roczen now finds himself second in the champi-
onship with 12 rounds left to run.
4 BLAKE BAGGETT 3RD 450SX
Rocky Mountain ATV-MC KTM's Blake Baggett hasn't been living
up to his own expectations so far in 2018, but Oakland was a defi-
nite step in the right direction. Baggett landed his first supercross
podium of the year. "It's been a long time," Baggett said. "All day
in practice, I struggled. I felt one of the most uncomfortable days
that I've had in a long time, so I'll take that if it brings nights like
this, because there's been times where you're comfortable during
the day and then don't have a good night. The start and track posi-
tion right away are key nowadays. The racing is getting tight and
so close so if you're not there right off the bat and not within that,
first five or six guys, you can't make it happen. I got off to a good
start and was able to hang the front wheel with the lead pack and
get into a groove. I want to be battling with Kenny [Roczen] and
Jason [Anderson], but I was on the end of the train and I just lost it
at the end there."
17 JOEY SAVATGY 2ND 250SX WEST
Joey Savatgy struggled in the early part of the main event, but
once he got into the flow, he chased down former teammate Justin
Hill and beat him in a great battle over second place. "It's another
podium, which is exactly what we're shooting for," Savatgy said.
"The track is brutal. Every lap's deteriorating and getting worse and
worse, and it keeps you on your toes. We've been struggling all day.
