2022 WSX British GP | Race Report

2022 WSX BRITISH GP | COMPLETE COVERAGE

The FIM World Supercross Championship kicked off its two-race pilot tour with a visit to Wales for the 2022 WSX British GP. A high-energy format put riders on the track for Heat Races, SuperPole (WSX only), and a trio of rapid GPs that determined the overall finishes for the two classes. 

250 Heat One

Derek Drake cut inside on the first turn but was beat to turn two by Dylan Walsh and Carson Brown. Walsh took the early race lead, as Brown and Anstie settled into second and third. Shane McElrath then made a pass on Drake to take over fourth place. As Max Anstie jumped inside of Brown to secure second place, Shane McElrath closed in and ultimately made the pass on Brown a few sections after Anstie.

Chris Blose then made the pass on Carson Brown after Carson got loose in the whoops. Max Anstie made the pass on Dylan Walsh with one lap to go and took over the race lead. Anstie took the heat race victory ahead of Walsh, McElrath, and the rest of the field. 

250 Heat Two

The second heat was off and Justin Bogle was off to the early lead after a great start. Matt Moss sat in second place, but Cole Seely quickly pressured both Moss and Oldenburg for second and third place. Mitchell Oldenburg ultimately made the pass on Moss for second and Seely followed by just moments later. Tanti then made the pass on Moss for fourth place, but made a mistake moments later and dropped to the back of the pack.

Justin Bogle continued to lead, but Oldenburg was closing. Though, Mitchell ran out of time as Bogle just edged him out to the checkered flag and snagged the heat race win. 

450 Heat One

Justin Brayton was off to a great jump, but Ramette edged him out for the early race lead. Joey Savatgy shuffled-in behind Brayton, in third place. Justin Brayton then jumped inside of Ramette to take over the race lead. Nearly a lap later, Savatgy also made the pass on Ramette and took over second place. 

Meanwhile, Dean Wilson was making his way through the pack, as he jumped past Noren and into sixth place. Josh Grant had an unfortunate freak accident after his chain snapped in the rhythm lane, ending his night. Brayton crossed the checkered flag first and took the race win just head of Savatgy. 

450 Heat Two

Ken Roczen was off to the early lead in heat two with Eli Tomac just behind. Vince Friese jumped to third place before the end of the first lap. Eli Tomac made a slight mistake while giving chase to Roczen, as his rear wheel slipped out while exiting a corner. The mistake allowed Friese to go by, giving him second place for the time being. 

Eli Tomac was then pressuring Vince for second place. Chad Reed went down hard towards the end of the heat, ending his night. Ken Roczen crossed the checkered flag first and grabbed the heat race win. 

Superpole

Eli Tomac was the first rider to dip into the 45-second range, but Ken Roczen jumped to the top of the board with a 45.874 and edged out Tomac for the fastest lap time in the 450 class. 

SX2 GP Race 1

Mitchell Oldenburg was off to the early lead with a great start. Kyle Chisholm sat just behind with Chris Blose trailing in third place. Shane McElrath was making some fast passes, as he climbed up to sixth on the second lap after a bad start. Justin Bogle suffered a flat tire on the opening lap after running over some nails. 

Kyle Chisholm made a mistake and dropped to the back of the pack after running in second place early, leaving Chris Blose in second and Matt Moss in third. Cole Seely tipped over after getting into Tanti and dropped to the back of the pack. Mitchell Oldenburg cruised to the first race victory after a perfect start-to-finish race. 

SX2 GP Race 2

The second race was off and Max Anstie was off to the early lead, as Chisholm and others went down in the first turn. Wilson Todd shuffled into second place and began pressuring his teammate, Anstie, for the lead. Mitchell Oldenburg tripled into a rider who was on the inside and went down hard by himself. Desprey and Blose made the pass on Wilson Todd in one lap, shuffling him back to fourth. 

As Anstie continued to lead, Desprey began to close-in and apply pressure. Meanwhile, McElrath entered the picture as he had passed Todd and was pressuring for third place. On the final lap, Anstie laid down a fast lap to hold off Desprey and take the win in race two. 

SX2 GP Race 3

The final SX2 race was off and Mitchell Oldenburg was off to the early lead again after blocking the other riders in the first turn. Cole Seely jumped to the inside of Dylan Walsh on the opening lap and made the pass for second place, but Walsh clipped Seely and went down. While down, Walsh got his hand ran over by Bogle. 

Matt Moss was now in third place, but Justin Bogle trailed. After another mid-pack start, Shane McElrath was making moves and climbing his way up the field. Justin Bogle then made the pass on Moss before the whoops to pick up third place. Moments later, Tanti and Brown also passed Moss. 

Oldenburg continued to lead and started to build a gap between himself and Cole Seely. Mitchell Oldenburg crossed the checkered flag and snagged the third and final SX2 race win. However, Shane McElrath’s consistency paid off as he took the overall SX2 win ahead of Chris Blose in second and then Oldenburg in third. 

GP Race 1

The first GP Race was off and Ken Roczen was off to the early lead after taking Savatgy wide. Eli Tomac then cut inside in the second corner to pick up second place. Justin Brayton sat in fourth place with Vince Friese just behind on the opening lap. On the third lap, Ken Roczen lost his front-end going up a roller and tipped over, handing Eli Tomac the lead. 

Luke Clout went down hard in the rhythm lane, ending his night. Joey Savatgy also went down right before the finish line after getting bucked sideways before it. Eli Tomac continued to lead but now had Vince Friese trailing in second place and Justin Brayton behind him. 

Ken Roczen jumped inside of Brayton to pick up third place and then set his sights on Friese. Though, Ken ran out of time, as Eli Tomac crossed the checkered flag and picked up the first race win. 

GP Race 2

Vince Friese was off to the early race lead with Soubeyras and Brayton trailing. Both Eli and Ken started about mid-pack, but both had already passed into third and fourth place by the second lap. Eli then cut under Soubeyras and scrubbed past him over the finish line to pick up second place. 

Eli cut inside of Vince, but Friese fired right back and retook the lead. However, Eli made the pass stick a few corners later with an inside line. Ken Roczen was now in third place and pressuring Vince for second. Ken jumped inside of Friese to take over second before the finish line. Ken then gave chase to Eli but Tomac had a faster pace and a cushion on the rest of the field. 

Eli Tomac crossed the finish line first and took another GP race win. 

GP Race 3

Justin Brayton was off to the early lead in the final GP race, as Friese and Tomac trailed. On the second lap, Eli Tomac jumped past Vince and into second place. Joey Savatgy sat just behind the top-3 in fourth, while Roczen sat back in 6th place. Eli Tomac jumped to the inside of Brayton before the finish line and took over the race lead. 

Joey Savatgy made the pass on Vince Friese for third place, just as Roczen passed into fifth place. With just three laps to go, Ken made the pass on Friese for fourth place. Just before the white flag waved, Savatgy jumped inside of Brayton to take over second place. 

Eli Tomac snagged the third and final race win to sweep the 2022 WSX British GP.