2023 SuperMotocross Power Rankings after Tampa: Chase Sexton and Cooper Webb close in

It’s impossible to win every week in the Monster Energy Supercross Series, and knowing how not to ride to his limit is a big part of Eli Tomac’s success in the sport and why he tops the SuperMotocross Power Rankings once more following Tampa.

By Tomac’s standards, last week was disappointing. He failed to win the main for only the second time this season and was more than 30 seconds off the pace at the end of 25 laps. But bad by Tomac’s standards is a decent day for most other riders and he finished fifth in the feature after standing on the podium in his heat behind two riders who went on to score top-threes in the main. Tomac knew the conditions weren’t right for him and instead of risking injury, he protected his points’ lead.

Aggressive riding has gotten Jason Anderson where he is, but an ongoing feud with Justin Barcia threatens to put his season at risk. Anderson is currently on probation following an incident in Tampa that sent Barcia to the ground. Anderson finished sixth, but considering that he was coming off back-to-back podiums, more was expected at Tampa.

MORE: Cooper Webb wins Tampa, closes points gap

Chase Sexton has some lessons that still need to be learned. Riders can’t discount the need for experience, which showed last week as Sexton waited too long to find a better line through the whoops. He got crossed up while skimming the tops of the bumps and caught an edge that sent him down. Finishing second in Tampa, He remains one of only two riders with a perfect sweep of the top five through five rounds.

Cooper Webb is the other rider with a perfect record of top-fives, but despite his four previous strong runs, he told NBC Sports last week that the only way to make up ground on Tomac was to win. He