Ken Roczen arrived in Las Vegas with a five point lead in the championship point standings. He put in a great practice time early in the day to earn the top spot on the leader board and first gate pick in the main event.
When the gate dropped for the main event Roczen rounded the first corner in fifth position. He quickly moved into the top three by the second lap. At the halfway point he desperately needed to pass the second place ride of Martin Davalos in order to secure the championship while Eli Tomac was up front. On the final lap, Roczen cut inside Davalos and made a pass to take over the position with the KTM 250 SX-F. A few corners later he crossed the checkered flag finishing second in the race, but most importantly, finishing in position to earn his first career 250SX Championship.
A very happy and emotional Roczen stated on the podium, “I am so happy for this championship. It is the biggest championship I have ever won. I am so thankful for everyone on my team that has stood behind me this whole season and believed in me from the beginning. Now I just need to get a good start in the shoot-out and hopefully get another podium finish.”
Moments later Roczen did get his good start as he took his first holeshot of the season leading the riders down the long start straight for lap one of the East/West 250SX Shoot-out. Roczen’s teammate, Marvin Musquin, was on the heels of Roczen and even swapped for the lead position the first half of the race. After the halfway point, Roczen began to pull away and eventually went on to take the shoot-out win to put the perfect end to a great day. Musquin was able to hold on for a podium onboard the KTM 250 SX-F finish with a third place result.
“I finally got a great start and was able to get out front,” stated Roczen. “It felt great to see that number one plate on my bike while I was racing. It feels so great to get this win and my championship in the same night. This is really unforgettable.”
Musquin, who finished second in the East 250SX Supercross main event, took a third place finish in the shoot-out. “I gave it everything I had in the East 250SX main, and just came up a bike length short of the win. I was very tired in the shoot-out race after fighting so hard in the first main event, so unfortunately, I couldn’t battle with my teammate for the win. I am happy that I was still able to get on the podium and I am very happy for Ken and his championship.”
Roczen and Musquin will now have a two week break before returning to racing in the 250 Motocross class at the opening round of the Lucas Oil Pro Motocross Championship Series on May 18, 2013.
- Christy LaCurelle (KTM)
Supercross LIVE interviews Roczen after the race
Supercross LIVE interviews Musquin after the race
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