Eli Tomac sets Daytona Supercross record with dramatic late-race pass in Round 9

With less than one minute remaining on the clock, Eli Tomac took advantage of the first bobble of the night by Cooper Webb in heavy traffic to sweep past the 2021 champion and win a record-setting sixth Daytona Monster Energy Supercross race in Round 9 of the 2022 season. With the win, Tomac broke a tie for the most Daytona wins that was long held by Ricky Carmichael.

Webb grabbed the holeshot at the start and rode flawlessly, but with Tomac getting a strong start in third, one had the sense that he was stalking the leader.  At the start of the race, Chase Sexton slotted into second as Tomac patiently rode behind the pair. He slipped past Sexton on Lap 7 of 18 and rode in Webb’s roost for much of the remainder of the race.

The dirt and sand in Tomac’s face did not slow him any and the differential between first and second equalized at about two seconds until the pair hit traffic. Once Tomac got around Webb, he rapidly stretched his advantage and crossed over the finish line by more than five seconds.

Standing on the top of the podium, Tomac could barely control his enthusiasm.

“The whole night is unbelievable,” Tomac told NBC Sports’ Will Christien. “That was a fight all the way to the end with Cooper. I really charged through the whoops that time. I felt like that is where I was making a little time. Obviously, there was a little gift there from a lapper. But it was a push all the way.”

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The late-race pass denied Webb his first feature win of the season, but it comes at a time that Webb is showing a rapid improvement in his results. He finished second in Minneapolis two weeks ago, won one of the Triple Crown events in Arlington last week and finished third in the overall standings.

“It