Gear Check | 450 Supercross Brand Breakdown

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With racing still on hold, I decided to take a look at 450 Clas of the 2020 Monster Energy Supercross Series and tally up the brands used by the top-20 riders in the points standings. This is an article we’ve done a few times over the years, often at the opening round of the season and the start of the East Coast, but this is the first time I’ve done it with a focus on the championship. We’re going to do the same for both divisions of the 250 Class next week.

Motorcycle manufacturers, apparel companies, and hard part producers all spend considerable portions of their budgets on sponsorships for the top riders, so this breakdown gives an idea of how important brand recognition is at the highest level of our sport. For this summary, I focused on the motorcycle make plus handlebars, exhaust, and suspension, as well as gear, helmets, goggles, boots, and neck braces. You’ll note that tires are absent here, but there’s a good reason for that: Dunlop has everyone in top-20 on their rubber. 

In the 450 class, riders are able to work out deals from different companies for a look that’s all their own (Barcia-Wilson-Anderson-Webb-Tomac-etc) while others will score a massive paycheck from one company that puts them in the brand from head to toe (Roczen, Cianciarulo). Although team-wide apparel deals aren’t as common in the 450 Class as they are the 250 Class, there are still a few like Rocky Mountain ATV-MC/WPS/KTM and SmarTop/Bullfrog Spas/MotoConcepts/Honda that have exclusive deals for gear, helmets, and goggles.

Is your favorite brand as popular as you might think? Take a look at the figures below and let us know. 

450 CLASS BRAND BREAKDOWN

1. Eli Tomac
Motorcycle – Kawasaki | Handlebars – Renthal | Exhaust – Pro Circuit | Suspension – KYB
Gear – Alpinestars | Helmet – Bell | Goggles – Oakley | Boots – Alpinestars

2. Ken Roczen
Motorcycle – Honda | Handlebars – Renthal | Exhaust – Yoshimura | Suspension – Showa
Gear – Fox Racing | Helmet – Fox Racing | Goggles – Fox Racing | Boots – Fox Racing

3. Cooper Webb
Motorcycle – KTM | Handlebars – Renthal | Exhaust – Akrapovic | Suspension – WP
Gear – THOR MX | Helmet – Bell | Goggles – 100% | Boots – Alpinestars

4. Justin Barcia
Motorcycle – Yamaha | Handlebars – Renthal | Exhaust – Pro Circuit | Suspension – KYB
Gear – Alpinestars | Helmet – Arai | Goggles – SCOTT | Boots – Alpinestars | Neck Brace – Alpinestars

5. Jason Anderson
Motorcycle – Husqvarna | Handlebars – ProTaper | Exhaust – FMF Racing | Suspension – WP
Gear – Alpinestars | Helmet – Airoh | Goggles – Oakley | Boots – Alpinestars | Neck Brace – Alpinestars

6. Malcolm Stewart
Motorcycle – Honda | Handlebars – Renthal | Exhaust – Akrapovic | Suspension – Showa
Gear – Seven | Helmet – Shoei | Goggles – SCOTT | Boots – Gaerne

7. Justin Hill
Motorcycle – Honda | Handlebars – Renthal | Exhaust – Akrapovic | Suspension – Showa
Gear – Leatt | Helmet – Leatt | Goggles – Leatt | Boots – Leatt

8. Justin Brayton
Motorcycle – Honda | Handlebar – Renthal | Exhaust – Yoshimura | Suspension – Showa
Gear – FLY Racing | Helmet – Shoei | Goggles – SCOTT | Boots – Gaerne

9. Dean Wilson
Motorcycle – Husqvarna | Handlebar – ProTaper | Exhaust – FMF Racing | Suspension – WP
Gear – O’Neal Racing | Helmet – Alpinestars | Goggles – 100% | Boots – Alpinestars

10. Adam Cianciarulo
Motorcycle – Kawasaki | Handlebar – Renthal | Exhaust – Pro Circuit | Suspension – Showa
Gear – Fox Racing | Helmet – Fox Racing | Goggles – Fox Racing | Boots – Fox Racing

11. Aaron Plessinger
Motorcycle – Yamaha | Handlebar – Renthal | Exhaust – Pro Circuit | Suspension – KYB
Gear – THOR MX | Helmet – Alpinestars | Goggles – 100% | Boots – Alpinestars

12. Blake Baggett
Motorcycle – KTM | Handlebar – ODI | Exhaust – FMF Racing | Suspension – WP
Gear – FLY Racing | Helmet – FLY Racing | Goggles – 100% | Boots – Alpinestars

13. Vince Friese
Motorcycle – Honda | Handlebar – Renthal | Exhaust – Akrapovic | Suspension – Showa
Gear – Leatt | Helmet – Shoei | Goggles – Leatt | Boots – Leatt

14. Zach Osborne
Motorcycle – Husqvarna | Handlebar – ProTaper | Exhaust – FMF Racing | Suspension – WP
Gear – FLY Racing | Helmet – FLY Racing | Goggles – Oakley | Boots – Gaerne

15. Martin Davalos
Motorcycle – KTM | | Handlebar – Renthal | Exhaust – Akrapovic | Suspension – WP
Gear – THOR MX | Helmet – Arai | Goggles – Oakley | Boots – Alpinestars | Neck Brace – Leatt

16. Tyler Bowers
Motorcycle – Kawasaki | Handlebar – Renthal | Exhaust – Pro Circuit | Suspension – Showa
Gear – Answer Racing | Helmet – Arai | Goggles – 100% | Boots – Forma

17. Chad Reed
Motorcycle – Honda | Handlebar – ProTaper | Exhaust – Pro Circuit | Suspension – Showa
Gear – Fox Racing | Helmet – Fox Racing | Goggles – Oakley | Boots – Fox Racing

18. Kyle Chisholm
Motorcycle – Yamaha | Handlebar – ODI | Exhaust  – FMF Racing | Suspension – KYB
Gear – FXR | Helmet – LS2 | Goggles – EKS Brand | Boots – SiDi | Neck Brace – Atlas

19. Benny Bloss
Motorcycle – KTM | Handlebar – ODI | Exhaust – FMF Racing | Suspension – WP
Gear – FLY Racing | Helmet – FLY Racing | Goggles – 100% | Boots – Alpinestars

20. Ryan Breece
Motorcycle – Suzuki | Handlebar – Mika Metals | Exhaust – Yoshimura | Suspension – Ohlins
Gear – THOR MX | Helmet – THOR MX | Goggles – 100% | Boots – Forma

450 CLASS TOTAL RESULTS

MOTORCYCLE
Honda – 6
KTM – 4
Yamaha – 3
Kawasaki – 3
Husqvarna – 3
Suzuki – 1

HANDLEBAR
Renthal – 12
ProTaper – 4
ODI – 3
Mika Metals – 1

EXHAUST
Pro Circuit – 6
FMF Racing – 6
Akrapovic – 5
Yoshimura – 3

SUSPENSION
Showa – 7
WP – 7
KYB – 5
Ohlins – 1

GEAR
THOR MX – 4
FLY Racing – 4
Fox Racing – 3
Alpinestars – 3
Leatt – 2
FXR – 1
O’Neal Racing – 1
Answer Racing – 1
Seven – 1

HELMET
Shoei – 3
Fox Racing – 3
Arai – 3
FLY Racing – 3
Bell – 2
Alpinestars – 2
THOR MX – 1
Leatt – 1
Airoh – 1
LS2 – 1

GOGGLES
100% – 7
Oakley – 5
SCOTT – 3
Fox Racing – 2
Leatt – 2
EKS Brand – 1

BOOTS
Alpinestars – 9
Gaerne – 3
Fox Racing – 3
Forma – 2
Leatt – 2
SiDi – 1

NECK BRACES
Alpinestars – 2
Leatt – 1
Atlas – 1

A few takeaways from the final tally…

– Any surprise that Honda is the brand of choice in the 450 Class? The Red Riders have two factory-backed bikes on the track in Ken Roczen and Justin Brayton, plus the MCR trio of Malcolm Stewart-Justin Hill-Vince Friese and privateer Chad Reed (it’s worth noting that Reed received no support from Honda through the first part of 2020 in his Mountain Motorsports-backed effort and will switch to KTM when SX resumes).

– It’s impossible to miss the presence of KTM-Husqvarna. Pierer Mobility AG, the parent company of the brands, is able to boost its numbers with two makes of bikes on the track, as well as the ownership of WP suspension. 

– Showa has become the suspension of choice for a lot of riders. Yes, WP has an even number of riders on their components due to the KTM-Husqvarna tie, but more riders have opted to use Showa sticks and shocks in recent years, including Ken Roczen’s big switch after years on KYB. 

– Leatt is the only brand to be included in every apparel category, thanks to the helmet/gear/boot/goggles that are worn by Justin Hill. Hill does not use the company’s signature neck brace; the only person to use that in the 450 Class is Martin Davalos.

– On the neck brace note, only four riders in the 450 Class use one: Davalos, Chisholm, Barcia, and Anderson. 

– Alpinestars is the boot brand of choice, an honor that they’ve held for years, but their decision to clad Tomac-Barcia-Anderson in their threads, Wilson and Plessinger in their helmets, and Barcia and Anderson in their neck brace shows how serious they are to become a leader in other categories.

– The goggle wars are something we’ve watched for years. SCOTT and 100% have long dueled for the most riders in pro ranks, something that 100% now has in the 450 Class, but Oakley has made a push of their own in recent years by getting Osborne and Anderson.

– Renthal has a hold on the handlebar category, as their parts are used by 12 of the 20.

 – HEP Motorsports Suzuki’s Ryan Breece was the only rider to represent brands in certain categories Suzuki for bikes, Ohlins for suspension, THOR MX for helmets, and Mika Metals for handlebars. 

– FMF Racing and Pro Circuit are even for most pipes on the track, with six each.

– THOR MX and FLY Racing are tied in gear at four each. THOR MX has defending champion Cooper Webb, Aaron Plessinger, Martin Davalos, and Ryan Breece. FLY Racing has Justin Brayton Zach Osborne, Blake Bagget, Benny Bloss. That’s a good mix of talent for both brands.

 – The four-way tie in the helmet category surprised us. Shoei has Brayton/Stewart/Friese, Fox Racing has Roczen/Cianciarulo/Reed, FLY Racing has Baggett/Bloss/Osborne, and Arai has Barcia/Davalos/Bowers.