State Farm Stadium is the site for the 2022 Glendale Supercross, round five of the 2022 Monster Energy Supercross Championship, and the first race to use the Triple Crown format in two years. The opening weeks of Supercross have been close, competitive, and action-packed, things we expect to see more of with today’s gate drops.
Wins at Anaheim Two by Christian Craig and Eli Tomac put the Monster Energy/Star Racing/Yamaha riders even further ahead in the point standings. 6-4-2-1 finishes through the first four rounds are Tomac’s best start to the season ever, and he has a six-point advantage over Chase Sexton and an eight-point lead on Jason Anderson in the 450 Class.
Craig has been dominant in the small-bore division, as he’s posted three wins and one third-place finish. CC’s 99-point total puts him 11 ahead of Hunter Lawrence and 14 up on Michael Mosiman. The 250 West Coast Region only has two more races, tonight and Anaheim Three, before an extended break.
State Farm Stadium is the first football stadium that Supercross has raced in this year, and the Dirt Wurx crew has made excellent use of the massive floor space. Riders will barrel down a long start straight, hop through long rhythm lanes, carve up a deep sand sweeper, and slingshot around six 180-turns. The whoops have been very important this year, and there’s a short pad with very little run-in for riders to build speed, so it’ll be interesting to see how challenging it is today.
The most significant element at Glendale is always the dirt, which is a typical desert hardpack that can be moist and tacky one minute, then dry and slick the next. Riders that can be precise with the throttle will do well today.
Here’s a quick refresher on the Triple Crown format. The afternoon will still have three practices, including two Timed Qualifying sessions, and the 18-fastest riders will be locked into the night’s races. The LCQs races will be in the afternoon, with the top-four finishers earning their places on the gate in the night show.
Things will get serious when the sun goes down. The 250 Class will run 10-minute plus one lap motos, while the 450 Class will go for 12-minute plus one lap. Olympic scoring is used to determine the final results, as the riders with the lowest total number will be the winners, which means consistency will be key. For perspective, Ken Roczen is the only person in Triple Crown history to win all three races in a night, a feat he accomplished here in 2020.
