Restart Can’t Rattle Red-Plate: Eli Tomac led all 23 laps, even after his competition lined up right behind him due to a red-flag restart. His victory marked #47 in his 450SX Class career, #91 in his AMA career, and his 87th 450SX Class podium. This moves him one victory behind Ricky Carmichael in 450SX Class wins and ties Carmichael in 450SX Class podiums for fourth on the all-time list. Tomac also ties Andrew Short for 10th on the all-time 450SX Class starts list with 151.

Second for Sexton, Seven Back of Tomac: Chase Sexton secured his sixth 450SX Class runner-up finish in 31 starts when he crossed the line behind Tomac in Houston. Sexton now has 14 450SX Class podiums, good for 37th all-time. He only trails Tomac by seven points as the series heads to Tampa Bay.

Jason O’Anderson: Jason Anderson snagged his second podium of the season and 46th of his 450SX Class career with a third in Houston. His 123rd 450SX Class start ties him with Johnny O’Mara for 21st on the all-time list. His 110th top-10 finish makes him one of just 13 riders to ever complete this feat, with rival Ken Roczen one top-10 finish away from joining the group. Note: O’Mara finished his career with 98 top-10 finishes.

Notes: Cooper Webb (5th) nabbed his 60th top-five & 85th top-10 450SX Class finish; Justin Barcia (6th) ties Ricky Carmichael for 15th all-time with his 105th 450SX Class top-10 finish; Justin Cooper (7th) turned heads in his debut and becomes the 700th listed rider to make a premier class start; Kevin Moranz (14th) earns his career best 450SX Class finish and ties his career best 450SMX finish (14th, 2021 Hangtown).

History Lesson: The first 450SX Class race held in Tampa Bay was on April 25th, 1987 in Tampa Stadium. Jeff Ward won the race on a Kawasaki for the fourth win of his second title run. He had pulled away in the point standings two weeks before in Pontiac, where Rick Johnson missed the whole weekend of racing.

Rich Supercross History: Tampa Stadium hosted Supercross events in all but three seasons from 1987-1998. In 1991 the series instead went 20 minutes south of Tampa Bay to the Florida SunCoast Dome in St. Petersburg. There were no Supercross races held in the area in 1995 and 1997 before returning one final time to Tampa Stadium in 1998.

Raymond James: Tampa Stadium was demolished in 1999 after hosting nine Supercross races and Raymond James Stadium was built. Raymond James Stadium hosted a Supercross that same year, but did not host again until the 2018 and 2020 seasons. 2023 will mark the fourth time the series has visited Raymond James Stadium and 14th time in the Tampa Bay area.

Title %: The winner of the Tampa Bay/St. Petersburg 450SX Class race has gone onto win the championship in only 6/13 seasons (46%). Jeremy McGrath pulled it off twice and Eli Tomac could join him with a win in Tampa Bay plus a title after winning the title and Tampa Bay in 2020. Tomac would also be the first rider to win Tampa Bay on multiple brands (Kawasaki and Yamaha).

Manufacturer Wins in Tampa Bay (Including St. Petersburg)

• Honda: 7 (‘99)
• Kawasaki: 4 (‘20)
• Suzuki: 1 (‘98)
• Yamaha: 1 (‘94)

Top Winners in Tampa Bay (Including St. Petersburg)

• 1) Jean-Michel Bayle: 3 (’90-92)
• 2) Jeremy McGrath: 2 (’93, ’96)
• 2) Jeff Ward: 2 (’87, ’89)
• 2) Eli Tomac: 2 (’18, ‘20)

450 Class: First Time Winners in Tampa Bay (Including St. Petersburg)

• Michael Craig: 1994

H-Law Hammers H-Town: Hunter Lawrence moves into 37th all-time with his sixth career 250SX Class victory. He now has 14 podiums in 22 250SX Class starts. The Lawrence brothers both hold the red-plate in their regions, which could give Honda their third 250SX Class title sweep (’91 Jeremy McGrath & Brian Swink; ’12 Justin Barcia & Eli Tomac).

Mad Max: Max Anstie nabbed his first career American podium in his 72nd try between 450 and 250SMX races. His previous best American finish was San Diego 2010 in the 250SX Class Main Event when he finished fourth. He was making his 17th career 250SX Class start and 34th combined 250SX/450SX Class start.

Yamaha Finishes Off Top-Five: Veteran Yamaha riders Jordon Smith and Jeremy Martin sandwiched rookie sensation Haiden Deegan for third-fifth in Houston. Smith and Martin were making their 50th 250SX Class starts and Smith earned his 15th podium while Martin snagged his 36th top-five.

Notes: Rookies Tom Vialle (7th) Chance Hymas (8th) and Tallon Hawkins (11th) debuted alongside Deegan with positive results; Chris Blose (10th) made his 60th 250SX Class start and nabbed his 28th top-10 finish filling in at Pro-Circuit Kawasaki; Michael Mosiman (6th) made his 51st 250SX Class start which places him behind only Blose in Eastern Regional 250SX Class Main Event experience.

History Lesson: The first 250SX Class race held in Tampa Bay was on April 25th, 1987 in Tampa Stadium. Keith Turpin won the race on a Suzuki to pull within four points of Eastern Regional points leader Ron Tichenor. Turpin won the finale in East Rutherford, but Tichenor’s runner-up finish secured a one-point Eastern Regional title for him in one of the closest Supercross title contests in the sport’s history.

Same Venue History: This will be the 14th time the gate will drop for a 250SX Class race in the Tampa Bay area. The Tampa Bay 250SX Class has the same exact venue history as the Tampa Bay 450SX Class history.

Changing of Guards: Ricky Carmichael won the last 250SX Class race in Tampa Stadium in 1998 on a Kawasaki in the midst of his dominant title run. Yamaha’s Ernesto Fonseca opened his first of two title runs with a win at Raymond James Stadium in 1999 which was the Eastern Regional opener that season.

Title %: The winner of the 250SX Class race in Tampa Bay has gone onto win the championship in 6/13 races just like the 450SX Class. In four consecutive Tampa Bay 250SX Class races from 1994-1999 each winner also won the title (Ezra Lusk, ’94; Mickael Pichon, ’96; Carmichael, ’98; Fonseca, ’99).

Manufacturer Wins in Tampa Bay (Including St. Petersburg)

• Suzuki: 4 (’94)
• Kawasaki: 4 (’18)
• Yamaha: 3 (’20)
• Honda: 2 (’91)

Top Winners in Tampa Bay (Including St. Petersburg)

• 13 with one win

250 Class: First Time Winners in Tampa Bay (Including St. Petersburg)

• 1989: Mike Kiedrowski, Honda
• 1990: Tallon Vohland, Kawasaki
• 1991: Jeromy Buehl, Honda
• 1993: Chad Pederson, Yamaha
• 1999: Ernesto Fonseca, Yamaha
• 2018: Austin Forkner, Kawasaki

450:

Tampa Stadium

• 1987: Jeff Ward, Kawasaki
• 1988: Rick Johnson, Honda
• 1989: Jeff Ward, Kawasaki
• 1990: Jean Michel-Bayle, Honda

Florida SunCoast Dome

• 1991: Jean Michel-Bayle, Honda

Tampa Stadium

• 1992: Jean Michel-Bayle, Honda
• 1993: Jeremy McGrath, Honda
• 1994: Michael Craig, Yamaha
• 1996: Jeremy McGrath, Honda
• 1998: Larry Ward, Suzuki

Raymond James Stadium

• 1999: Kevin Windham, Honda
• 2018: Eli Tomac, Kawasaki
• 2020: Eli Tomac, Kawasaki

250:

Tampa Stadium

• 1987: Keith Turpin, Suzuki
• 1988: Todd DeHoop, Suzuki
• 1989: Mike Kiedrowski, Honda
• 1990: Tallon Vohland, Kawasaki

Florida SunCoast Dome

• 1991: Jeromy Buehl, Honda

Tampa Stadium

• 1992: Brian Swink, Suzuki
• 1993: Chad Pederson, Yamaha
• 1994: Ezra Lusk, Suzuki
• 1996: Mickael Pichon, Kawasaki
• 1998: Ricky Carmichael, Kawasaki

Raymond James Stadium

• 1999: Ernesto Fonseca, Yamaha
• 2018: Austin Forkner, Kawasaki
• 2020: Shane McElrath, Yamaha