BREAKTHROUGH VICTORY FOR MALCOLM STEWART

Florida’s Malcolm Stewart earned his career-first 450SX class victory with a brilliant charge from a mid-pack start at round five of the 2025 Monster Energy AMA Supercross Championships.

Earlier in the evening, inside the Raymond James Stadium in Tampa, Florida, Monster Energy Yamaha Star Racing’s Cooper Webb kicked off the night in winning fashion, taking the opening 450cc heat ahead of Red Bull KTM’s Aaron Plessinger and Monster Energy Kawasaki’s Jason Anderson.

The race proved more challenging for Australian Hunter Lawrence (Honda), who crashed heavily early in the heat while sitting in second position. The impact put Lawrence out of the rest of the night’s proceedings.

Meanwhile, Yamaha’s Eli Tomac, who sustained a lower leg injury during qualifying, made it to the main event with a 7th-place finish in the heat race.

In the second 450cc heat race, Red Bull KTM’s Chase Sexton rode a flawless race to take the win ahead of Husqvarna’s Stewart and Monster Energy Yamaha Star Racing’s Justin Cooper.

When the gates dropped for the night’s main event, it looked like it would be another wire-to-wire win for Sexton as he rounded the first turn with the lead and quickly built a gap over Cooper and Anderson, who were in second and third positions.

Anderson quickly moved into second position until lap six, when Progressive Insurance ECSTAR Suzuki’s German rider Ken Roczen took second spot from Anderson. On the same lap, Stewart, who had started the race in 8th, worked his way past Anderson for third before blitzing into second, relegating Roczen to third.

Things then worsened for Roczen, when he collided with a lapped rider in the sand, crashing heavily. Although Roczen could get to his feet quickly, his night was over. The impact with the lapped rider’s bike dislodged his chain and ended his race.

Stewart was on a mission and worked through lapped traffic while closing in on Sexton. With superior whoop speed, Stewart made his move for the lead.

As the Husqvarna racer made the move for the lead, he watched Sexton crash on his own accord, instantly giving Stewart an unassailable lead.

Crossing the finish line, the 32-year-old Tampa native was overjoyed after reaching the podium’s top step in his 109th race start.

“This has been an emotional rollercoaster to get here,” reflected Stewart. “I injured my knee in ’23 and from that point, I wasn’t sure… especially after last year, just not being able to figure it out.

“I was so down on myself, feeling like I was fighting everything, until my dad sat me down and said, ‘Look, either quit racing or go out there and make sure you have fun because that’s why we do this in the first place.’

“Fast forward to 2025, I had a great off-season, and I felt like I was in a position to do this.

“At my home race, I couldn’t hear my motorcycle sometimes because the crowd was so loud!

“Between my Rockstar Energy Husqvarna Factory Racing Team and my family, it’s been a real effort together – this one is special!”

Finishing in second position was Webb, who, like Stewart, rebounded from a mid-pack start to find himself on the podium.

Anderson rounded out the podium, with Cooper in fourth position, while Sexton had to settle for a fifth-place finish after his crash.

Despite the 5th place finish, Sexton retained his championship lead ahead of Webb, while Anderson’s podium result lifted him to third in the series standings.

Roczen slipped to 4th in the standings, one point behind Anderson, after earning just a single point from his DNF. Tomac now sits in 5th position after finishing two laps down in 17th for the night.

EAST COAST 250SX

In the opening East Coast 250SX regional main event, a trio of Monster Energy Yamaha Star Racing riders led the field in the early laps.

Pierce Brown led his team-mates Max Anstie and Daxton Bennick from the opening lap, until lap six, when Brown crashed heavily in the whoops, bringing out the red flag.

After the restart, Anstie raced an intelligent, calculated race to seal the win ahead of Bennick, with Monster Energy Pro Circuit Kawasaki’s Cameron Macadoo, recovering from a torn ACL, rounding out the podium.

Macadoo’s Kawasaki team-mate, Seth Hammaker, finished in 4th, ahead of 2024 champion Tom Vialle, from France, aboard his Red Bull KTM machine.

2024 West Coast champion Rockstar Husqvarna’s RJ Hampshire had to settle for an 18th-place finish after jumping off-track and getting hooked up in a corner marker, putting him a lap down early in the race.

Round six of the 2025 Monster Energy AMA Supercross Championship heads to Ford Field in Detroit, Michigan, this coming Saturday, February 15.

Photo courtesy Husqvarna

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