2023 Fox Raceway Motocross | Qualifying Report & Results

2023 FOX RACEWAY MOTOCROSS | COMPLETE COVERAGE

The Pro Motocross Championship is officially underway, as riders spent Saturday morning clicking off laps during Timed Qualifying at the 2023 Fox Raceway Motocross. Sections of the circuit have been reworked since last season’s finale here, including minor re-routing to multiple lanes and new rhythms for the infield’s centerpiece obstacles, but much of the overall configuration remains the same.

Eight practice sessions under cloudy conditions, the first run on a fresh and heavily prepped track, the second in considerably rougher and somewhat drier conditions, cut lines into the San Diego County dirt-sand mix and saw a difference in pace for the front runners (3.2 seconds from first to tenth in the 250 Class and a 6.115-second between the top-ten in the 450 Class).

250 CLASS

Justin Cooper did just one time attack in Session One, a 2:21.308 on lap four, but it ended up being the best of the morning for the entire 250 Class. How well did he link the track together? The Monster Energy/Star Racing/Yamaha rider was the fastest through sectors two/three/four, second best in sector one, and third in sector five.

Maximus Vohland did impressively consistent laps in the two practices, with a personal best of 2:22.200 in Session One and a 2:22.279 in Session Two. The Red Bull KTM rider scored second on all of the timesheets, including the final combined results.

Six of the top-ten riders did their best laps in Session Two: Hunter Lawrence, Levi Kitchen, Jo Shimoda, Haiden Deegan, Guillem Farres, and Ryder DiFrancesco. Lawrence made the biggest improvement of the group, a 2:22.225 that was more than two and a half seconds faster than his earlier attempt, and it moved the Team Honda HRC rider to third place.

450 CLASS

Jett Lawrence’s first laps in the 450 Class justified the pre-season hype around the Team Honda HRC rider and added more excitement to the race weekend. The rookie set the pace in Session One with a pair of quick times (a 2:22.709 on lap four and a 2:22.582 on lap six), did two more at about the same pace in Session Two (a 2:22.638 on lap two and a 2:22.415 on lap four), and ended with a stunning run to the checkered flag (a 2:20.539 on lap six).

Chase Sexton endured an eventful morning to end up second overall. The Team Honda HRC rider’s pace in the early laps of Session One was overshadowed by the body-jarring slam he suffered a few minutes later, but he regrouped for Session Two and put in a 2:23.053.

Adam Cianciarulo hovered around the top three for all of Timed Qualifying, and a 2:23.251 in Session Two cemented the Monster Energy Kawasaki rider’s spot in the final results.