During the offseason, Chase Sexton became attached to the red plate and it must have hurt to give it up to his former teammate Jett Lawrence after the season-opener at Angel Stadium in Anaheim, California. He didn’t have to miss it for long.
Sexton used the weather to his benefit while Lawrence had one of the worst results of his 450 career. The NBC SuperMotocross Power Rankings take a look at both the heat races and main events each week, and Sexton topped his rival in both. The most important number for the moment is seven, which is the advantage Sexton has over Lawrence in the points’ standings.
Last week’s rain threw a curveball at the riders and Aaron Plessinger made contact. He is the only rider other than Sexton to post consecutive top-fives and with solid showing in the heat races, he has performed better overall than Lawrence and Eli Tomac, who are credited higher in the points. Plessinger was the fastest qualifier last week in San Francisco.
MORE: Chase Sexton first 450 rider to beat ends Jett Lawrence twice
Dylan Ferrandis narrowly missed joining Sexton and Plessinger with top-five sweeps after finishing sixth in San Francisco. During pre-season media sessions, he talked about needing a change and finding a new home. Early indications are that will add a lot of speed in 2024.
Ferrandis was emboldened to make the change because of the success Ken Roczen had in 2023 when he made the switch to Suzuki, so it’s fitting the two riders sit next to one another in the Power Rankings this week. A 10th-place finish in A1 has Roczen buried in the points, but he proved his toughness last week in the mud and still has plenty of time to climb the ranks.
We may have found Lawrence’s Achilles Heel. He may not yet be conditioned enough to withstand the vigor of racing in the mud and if that is the case, San Diego could be a further challenge with a 60 percent chance of rain on race day.
Just outside the top five, Tomac is as tough as they come - and while mud races don’t teach us much about the remainder of the season, Tomac may be the exception since fans needed to see how well he’s recovered from his ruptured Achilles.
| Rider (points rank) 1. Chase Sexton (1) 2. Aaron Plessinger (4) 3. Dylan Ferrandis (5) 4. Ken Roczen (7) 5. Jett Lawrence (2) 6. Eli Tomac (3) 7. Jason Anderson (6) 8. Cooper Webb (8) 9. Jorge Prado (9) 10. Adam Cianciarulo (10) 11. Shane McElrath (11) 12. Justin Cooper (14) 13. Dean Wilson (16) 14. Malcolm Stewart (17) 15. Justin Barcia (12) 16. Anthony Rodriguez (NR) 17. Hunter Lawrence (15) 18. Justin Hill (19) 19. Christian Craig (18) 20. Derek Drake (13) | Power Avg. 86.25 83.75 81.50 80.25 79.25 78.25 77.00 77.00 66.75 63.50 57.50 54.33 52.67 52.25 52.00 50.00 49.67 45.50 45.25 45.20 | Last Week (gain/loss) * NA NA NA NA NA NA NA NA NA NA NA NA NA NA NA NA NA NA NA NA |
250 Rankings
The departure of the Lawrence brothers opened the door wide open for veteran 250 talent to make itself known and the top of NBC Power Rankings shows as much. Two weeks ago, while sitting on the podium in Anaheim, Jordon Smith described his career as being in two parts and even though he’s been racing professional for a decade, he feels this is a fresh start. Smith’s win last week and back-to-back podiums underscore that.
Like Lawrence in the 450 class, Hampshire got mired in the mud and had a poor showing, but he showed his skill in mud races last year by challenging for a podium in New Jersey. He should rebound in San Diego, but he doesn’t have a lot of time to make up the nine-point deficit he now has to the leader.
Along with Smith, Levi Kitchen is the only other rider to score back-to-back podiums. In only his fourth season as a pro, Kitchen is the young gun in this week’s top five.
Garrett Marchbanks showed why he is so happy to have returned to the 250 class after switching to 450s for the 2023 Pro Motocross season. That move was a successful attempt to qualify for the inaugural SuperMotocross World Championship but his heart remained in the lights class and he was rewarded with a podium finish in San Francisco.
Carson Mumford is fifth in the points standings and Power Rankings based on consistency and some strong heat runs. In fact, five is the operative number because he finished there in both his heat and main in San Francisco.
Rider (SMX points rank) 1. Jordon Smith (1) | Power Avg. 92.75 | Last Week (gain/loss) * NA |
* The NBC Power Rankings assign 100 points to a Main event winner in Supercross and overall winner in Motocross. It awards 90 points for each Moto, Heat and Triple Crown win. The points decrement by a percentage equal to the number of starters in the field until the last place rider in each event receives three points, (five in fields of 22 riders). The Power Ranking is the average of these percentage points over the past 45 days.
2023 Power Rankings
POWER RANKINGS AFTER WEEK 28 IRONMAN: The Lawrence Brothers wind up on top at end of MX
POWER RANKINGS AFTER WEEK 27 BUDDS CREEK: Hunter Lawrence reclaims top of 250s
POWER RANKINGS AFTER WEEK 26 UNADILLA: Jett Lawrence clinches MX title in style
POWER RANKINGS AFTER WEEK 25 WASHOUGAL: Haiden Deegan improves two spots in 250
POWER RANKINGS AFTER WEEK 24 SPRING CREEK: Chase Sexton closes competitive gap
POWER RANKINGS AFTER WEEK 23 SOUTHWICK: Halfway home and Jett Lawrence is still undefeated
POWER RANKINGS AFTER WEEK 21 HIGH POINT: Lawrence brothers still perfect in overall finishes
POWER RANKINGS AFTER WEEK 20 THUNDER VALLEY: Lawrence brothers dominance continues
POWER RANKINGS AFTER WEEK 19 HANGTOWN: Jett Lawrence pulls away from the field
POWER RANKINGS AFTER MX OPENER AT FOX RACEWAY: Jett Lawrence debuts in first place
POWER RANKINGS AFTER SX FINALE AT SALT LAKE CITY: Chase Sexton ends with win
POWER RANKINGS AFTER WEEK 15 AT NASHVILLE: Eli Tomac back on top
POWER RANKINGS AFTER WEEK 14 AT NEW JERSEY: The top 20 settle in
POWER RANKINGS AFTER WEEK 13 AT ATLANTA: Justin Barcia leapfrogs the Big 3
POWER RANKINGS AFTER WEEK 12 AT GLENDALE: Eli Tomac gains momentum
POWER RANKINGS AFTER WEEK 11 AT SEATTLE: Cooper Webb, Eli Tomac overtake Chase Sexton
POWER RANKINGS AFTER WEEK 10 AT DETROIT: Chase Sexton narrowly leads Webb
POWER RANKINGS AFTER WEEK 8 AT DAYTONA: Chase Sexton unseats Eli Tomac
POWER RANKINGS AFTER WEEK 7 AT ARLINGTON: Jason Anderson narrowly trails Eli Tomac
POWER RANKINGS AFTER WEEK 6 AT OAKLAND: Perfect night keeps Eli Tomac first
POWER RANKINGS AFTER WEEK 5 AT TAMPA: Chase Sexton, Cooper Webb close in
POWER RANKINGS AFTER WEEK 4 AT HOUSTON: Eli Tomac rebounds from A2 crash, retakes lead
POWER RANKINGS AFTER WEEK 3 AT ANAHEIM 2: Consistency makes Ken Roczen king
POWER RANKINGS AFTER WEEK 2 AT SAN DIEGO: Ken Roczen moves up, Chase Sexton falls
POWER RANKINGS AFTER WEEK 1 AT ANAHEIM 1: Eli Tomac, Jett Lawrence gain an early advantage