Ken Roczen won again in Philadelphia on Saturday night, and the race turned the Supercross championship with it. Hunter Lawrence entered Round 15 at Lincoln Financial Field with a one-point advantage, but Roczen passed him on Lap 2, weathered pressure from Lawrence in the first half of the race and left with the red plate and the points lead with two rounds remaining.
Roczen’s move for the lead came early, after Lawrence charged to the front on the opening lap while trying to stretch his slim cushion in the standings. Cooper Webb settled into third behind them, and Lawrence kept coming, forcing Roczen to defend a lead that at one point was separated by less than two seconds by Lap 4.
The race never stayed settled for long. Lawrence survived contact from Roczen in the first half, then crashed midway through the muddy conditions, a mistake that handed Roczen the opening he needed. Webb clipped through to second when Lawrence went down, and the fight for the win shifted to the rider who was already controlling the pace. The 450 main was shortened by three minutes, adding another layer of urgency to a race that was already unfolding at full speed.
Roczen’s win last week in the Cleveland Triple Crown had already made the championship picture nearly even, and Philadelphia pushed it over the edge. Lawrence came in with the lead by a single point and left with the red plate in Roczen’s hands. Webb kept the pressure on to the end, trimming the gap to one second on the final lap, but he could not make the pass for the win. Joey Savatgy and Justin Hill rounded out the top five.
Roczen, who has been direct about his approach to the title fight, said last week that others might try to change his mindset, but he is not changing it. With two rounds left, the championship lead has changed hands in Round 15 at Lincoln Financial Field, and the rider who took it did so by racing the way he said he would.
