Jason Anderson wins Supercross Round 16 in Denver; Eli Tomac takes the title

Jason Anderson won Supercross Round 16 in Denver, Colorado, but Eli Tomac secured the 2022 championship in front of his home state fans with one round remaining in the season.

Round 16 was a day of statements. Tomac needed to finish 14th or better to secure his second Monster Energy Supercross championship, but in order to take the pressure off the main, he needed a strong heat run. He won Heat 1 and guaranteed a great starting position.

Heat 2 went to the Supercross Power Ranking leader Chase Sexton, but the only rider with a mathematical shot at catching Tomac was closing fast before finishing second in his heat. And that set up one of the most dramatic opening laps to a Supercross race of the season.

Sexton won the hole shot with Tomac second. If the Yamaha rider has had an Achilles Heel this season, it has been modest starts, so Tomac’s solid launch was another statement made during the race.

Jason Anderson slotted into third.

At the four-minute mark, Sexton took himself out of the picture by running wide, hooking a ledge on the exit of a turn, and hitting the dirt. Tomac’s home crowd roared as he took the lead, but he couldn’t shake Anderson, who made a clean pass for the top spot a couple of laps later. Anderson never looked back.

Anderson claimed his third consecutive win and sixth of the season. He can still tie Tomac for the most victories in 2022 if he wins next week in the finale at Salt Lake City.

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“It feels really good (to win), but it’s a little bittersweet,” Anderson told NBC Sports’ Will Christien. “I wanted to make it go to the end, but congrats to Eli. I’ve been racing him forever. He’s been a tough guy to battle forever. He’s been really awesome.”

Anderson and Tomac