Editor’s Note: From Wednesday, April 29 to Friday, May 1, FOX Sports will count down the top 10 moments of the 2015 Monster Energy Supercross season.
7. Musquin and Webb rise to dominance
It’s been some time since each respective regional 250SX Class championship featured dominant runs to the title. In 2015, Marvin Musquin and Cooper Webb were a step ahead of their fellow competitors virtually every week and resulted in breakout seasons for the pair. Both titles were the first of each rider’s career, Musquin’s first on US soil. They had similar paths to their respective titles, both winning six of eight races, and it’s become a major talking point heading into the annual East/West Shootout in Las Vegas this weekend. It’s also a glimpse into the bright future of the sport.
6. Roczen wins in Anaheim and gives RCH Racing first win
The biggest move of the offseason heading into 2015 paid dividends immediately. After making the surprising move from Red Bull KTM to RCH Racing’s Factory Suzuki effort, Roczen solidified the offseason hype surrounding his position as a lead the title favorite. His second straight Anaheim 1 win was about as perfect as he could have asked for and it was a major statement that put the field on alert and proved that RCH Racing had its missing piece of the puzzle. It kicked off a very strong early part of the season for Roczen in which he won two of the first three races before experiencing misfortune and eventual retirement from the championship.
5. The black flag
It had the feeling it might become the biggest story of the season with a major impact on the championship. While battling hard at Anaheim 2, Trey Canard made an error in judgment while in pursuit of Chad Reed and ultimately landed on him, taking both riders to the ground. When they remounted, Canard was ahead of Reed and when he approached Canard, Reed made contact with him in retaliation, forcing Canard off the track and onto the ground again. Race officials did not take Reed’s response lightly and Reed was given the black flag, resulting in disqualification. The black flag is very rarely used in supercross, which sent shockwaves through the industry for the assertive and surprising discipline. Both riders fumed following the race, but the following week tempers had calmed and racing took priority. Canard and Reed showed no signs of conflict as they battled for the win in Oakland.
