2026 Anaheim 2 Supercross Photo Gallery

2026 Anaheim 2 Supercross Recap

Chase Sexton stopped the points bleeding and crashing - at least when it counted - rebounding from subpar performances to start the 2026 Monster Energy Supercross season with a resounding Round 3 win on Saturday at Angel Stadium in Anaheim.

Sexton went down in the sand section during his 450 class Heat race but looked like a former champion and title contender throughout the Main Event for Anaheim 2. At the start, Sexton took second behind Jason Anderson, who grabbed the Holeshot, but less than a minute in, Hunter Lawrence made the pass for second.

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Sexton held tight on Lawrence's fender then made a sweeping move around the outside in the sand at the 17 minute mark to retake second and began to pull away from Lawrence, his sights now set on Anderson. It wasn't easy as the two tussled for the front of the pack with about 13 minutes on the clock. First, Sexton made a pass taking the lead ever so briefly before Anderson took it back, then just as fast, Sexton reclaimed the lead pulling away as Anderson, Lawrence and Eli Tomac jockeyed for podium spots.

With Anderson holding tight to the runner-up spot, Tomac and Lawrence engaged for third trading spots once until Tomac rolled the throttle off a jump and made the pass with 12 minutes remaining. Tomac attempted a pass on Anderson, briefly successful by a wheel, until Anderson found another gear. The cat-and-mouse allowed Lawrence to find a way around Tomac and with about seven minutes on the clock, and perhaps gassed from his battle with Tomac, Anderson let Lawrence by for second.

Lawrence looked ripe for a last lap push to catch Sexton, just as he tried a week earlier against Tomac, but with lappers - and Sexton zoned out - the 2023 Supercross champ got his first win of the season.

"It's been a long three months just starting with (the crash at) Vegas SMX," said Sexton who switched from KTM to Kawasaki this year. "It's hard to get back here, even after the Heat race I'm like 'what am I doing wrong?' I strapped-up for the Main Event just rode solid didn't do anything dumb rode around within myself. It's good to have Kawasaki back on top winning and I plan to keep it this way."

After taking the first two rounds, Tomac settled for third holding off a charging Cooper Webb, the defending champion, for the final podium spot. Webb ultimately went down with about a minute left erasing a sizable lead on Anderson, who took fourth. When it all settled out for the 450 class standings, Lawrence cut Tomac's points lead to eight and Sexton squares up in third, now just 13 points back, after finishes in eighth and fourth to start the series.

Elsewhere, Ken Roczen fell early in the race and raced back from near last to eighth. Jorge Prado who finished third at Anaheim 1 then 13th last week in San Diego grabbed a respectable seventh.

250 West Class

After narrowly retiring in 2024 because of neck fractures incurred during a practice crash, Michael Mosiman officially entered the 250 West class Championship fray, while two others bowed out.

Mosiman grabbed the Holeshot and led much of the race until the defending champion took him close in a berm with just under three minutes left. The pass failed to knock Mosiman to the ground, unlike last week when the defending champion knocked Max Anstie, at the time leading in points, to the ground with a questionably aggressive move. Mosiman even swiped his boot forward during the pass almost to say "go on, get out" and held on for second which puts him into second, nine points out from first.

"It feels great. Every time I get on the line I look up to the fans and just appreciate the moment. To be able to go and perform, we do so much work," said Mosiman who finished fifth to start the year and third in San Diego. "To be solid, stoked on the race, stoked in my start. That was one of differences, round 1 and 2, really bad starts. It makes a world of difference. It's great to put my God-given talents on display."

Cameron McAdoo was close to following up his second-place the week before with another spot on the podium but Ryder DiFrencesco, who finished third to start the season, battled hard and took advantage of a McAdoo mistake in the rhythm section with less than a minute remaining to take another third, his second podium in three races.

Levi Kitchen crashed on the first lap for the third straight race, this time just past the Holeshot when he slid out, cross the track and get hit by another rider. He pulled off shortly after with an arm injury but is expected back for Saturday's race in Houston. Kitchen survived a gnarly front flip crash in his Heat race as well. Chance Hymas, who finished second at Anaheim 1 and won his Heat race for Anaheim 2, was hurt in a first turn crash that led him to the pits and calling it a night. He suffered a left shoulder dislocation and likely out for the next three rounds.

Elsewhere, Max Vohland showed some fight after finishes of seventh- and eighth, respectively, to start the season, and hung out in third for a while and settled for fifth.

Anstie was ninth on the first lap, drop a spot but salvaged points by slipping into sixth with less than a minute. He drops to third in the standings, a point behind Mosiman.

Houston hosts Round 4 of Supercross on Saturday at NRG Stadium.