Steve Cox | January 3, 2019

2019 Monster Energy AMA Supercross Preview: Your Christmas presents have been opened, you’ve celebrated the start of a new year, and now it’s time for supercross. There are some schedule changes, team changes, and broadcast changes, but don’t worry, we’ll get you dialed in right away.

2019 AMA Supercross Preview

2019 Schedule:

As is usually the case, the 2019 series starts off out west with five rounds in California and Arizona, then heads east. There’s not a single weekend off for the 450cc class until after round 15. That’s 15 straight weeks of racing, so staying healthy is going to mean everything to some of the top racers in the 450cc class.
New for 2019 are Nissan Stadium in Nashville and Broncos Stadium in Denver. The Denver round should be interesting since it’s at altitude, and it’s not impossible for there to be snow even in April.
If you can’t make it to any of these rounds in person, all of the rounds will air live (while also being available to watch replays on-demand) on the NBC Sports Gold streaming channel online, while NBC (Detroit and Las Vegas) and NBC Sports (all of the other rounds) will be airing the events live on television.

2019 Monster Energy AMA Series, an FIM World Championship Schedule:


Round 1	5-Jan	Angel Stadium	Anaheim, CA
Round 2	12-Jan	State Farm Stadium	Glendale, AZ
Round 3	19-Jan	Angel Stadium	Anaheim, CA
Round 4	26-Jan	Oakland-Alameda Coliseum	Oakland, CA
Round 5	2-Feb	Petco Park	San Diego, CA
Round 6	9-Feb	US Bank Stadium	Minneapolis, MN
Round 7	16-Feb	AT&T Stadium	Arlington, TX
Round 8	23-Feb	Ford Field	Detroit, MI
Round 9	2-Mar	Mercedes-Benz Stadium	Atlanta, GA
Round 10	9-Mar	Daytona Int’l Speedway	Daytona Beach, FL
Round 11	16-Mar	Lucas Oil Stadium	Indianapolis, IN
Round 12	23-Mar	Centurylink Field	Seattle, WA
Round 13	30-Mar	NRG Stadium	Houston, TX
Round 14	6-Apr	Nissan Stadium	Nashville, TN
Round 15	13-Apr	Broncos Stadium at Mile High	Denver, CO
Round 16	27-Apr	MetLife Stadium	East Rutherford, NJ
Round 17	4-May	Sam Boyd Stadium	Las Vegas, NV

2019 Rider Numbers:

* denotes permanent number


1	Jason Anderson
2*	Cooper Webb
3*	Eli Tomac
4*	Blake Baggett
6*	Jeremy Martin
7*	Aaron Plessinger
10*	Justin Brayton
11*	Kyle Chisholm
12*	Shane McElrath
14*	Cole Seely
15*	Dean Wilson
16*	Zach Osborne
17*	Joey Savatgy
18*	Weston Peick
19*	Justin Bogle
20*	Broc Tickle
21*	Jason Anderson (outdoors)
22*	Chad Reed
23*	Chase Sexton
24	Austin Forkner
25*	Marvin Musquin
26*	Alex Martin
27*	Malcolm Stewart
28	Jordon Smith
29	Benny Bloss
30	Phil Nicoletti
31	RJ Hampshire
32	Justin Cooper
33*	Josh Grant
34	Dylan Ferrandis
35	Mitchell Harrison
36	Michael Mosiman
37	Kyle Cunningham
38	Christian Craig
39	Colt Nichols
40	Sean Cantrell
41	Ben Lamay
42	Vince Friese
43	Tyler Bowers
44	Cameron McAdoo
45	Brandon Hartranft
46*	Justin Hill
47	Hayden Mellross
48	Cody Cooper
49	Henry Miller
50	Luke Renzland
51*	Justin Barcia
52	Jordan Bailey
53	Dakota Alix
54	Dylan Merriam
55	Kyle Peters
56	Lorenzo Locurcio
57	Bradley Taft
58	Brandon Scharer
59	Nick Gaines
60	Justin Starling
61	Garrett Marchbanks
62	Alex Ray
63	John Short
64	Jimmy Decotis
66	Mitchell Oldenburg
67	Enzo Lopes
68	Brandan Leith
69	Jake Masterpool
70	Joshua Osby
71	Cole Martinez
72	Martin Castelo
73	Martin Davalos
74	Cade Autenrieth
75	Cody Vanbuskirk
76	Jacob Williamson
77	Challen Tennant
78	Ramyller Alves
79	Jean Carlo Ramos
80	Heath Harrison
81	Joshua Cartright
82	Justin Hoeft
83	Killian Auberson
84	Tyler Medaglia
85	Dare DeMartile
86	Ryan Breece
87	Dakota Tedder
88	Chris Canning
89	Joey Crown
90	Jeremy Hand
91	Zack Williams
92*	Adam Cianciarulo
93	Blake Wharton
94*	Ken Roczen
95	Jake Nicholls
96	Chase Marquier
97	Adam Enticknap
98	Wilson Fleming
99	Austin Politelli
112	Thomas Covington
121	Matt Bisceglia
123	Mitchell Falk
156	Jacob Hayes
196	Hunter Lawrence
243	Jace Owen

2019 Teams/Riders

450

Team Honda
Sometimes it’s smart to just not mess with good chemistry. Even though multi-time outdoor champ Ken Roczen has been almost perpetually on the mend following his broken hands/wrists over the last couple of years, he’s expected to be in the mix come Saturday night at Anaheim. He has the speed, and he definitely has the toughness and tenacity, but the question is whether he has it for 20 minutes plus one lap just yet. We’ll find out soon enough. And his teammate and friend Cole Seely suffered a heavy crash during the 2018 series, breaking his pelvis in multiple places. He considered retiring, but decided he had some unfinished business, and Honda ponied up to give him a new contract (as his previous contract ended last year) to join Roczen for another tour.
14 Cole Seely
94 Ken Roczen

MotoConcepts/Smartop Racing Honda
Newly crowned three-time Australian Supercross Champ Justin Brayton returns with factory Honda equipment this year on the MotoConcepts team after winning the Daytona Supercross in 2018. He’s joined by Malcolm Stewart and Vince Friese.
10            Justin Brayton
27            Malcolm Stewart
42            Vince Friese

Rockstar Energy Husqvarna
Defending AMA Supercross champ Jason Anderson is all fired up and ready to take on his first-ever title defense after leading almost the entire 2018 championship, and he will eventually be joined by two-time 250cc East SX champ Zach Osborne, once Osborne’s collarbone heals up. Anderson still feels like an underdog even though he’s the defending champ, and maybe he is, but he was also the underdog in 2018…
1 Jason Anderson
16 Zach Osborne

Dean Wilson Husqvarna
One of the greatest personalities in the pits, Dean Wilson is without a factory ride yet again after an injury-riddled 2018 season, but he’s got top-flight equipment in his Rockstar Energy-backed Husqvarna and he’ll be in the mix with the Big Boys somewhere as long as he’s healthy.
15 Dean Wilson

Monster Energy Kawasaki
For the last two years, and into this one, Eli Tomac has been the favorite to win the 450cc SX crown. Last year, that hope was dashed when he crashed out of the lead at round one and scored a DNF. Eventually, Tomac has to win a supercross title, but as it sits, he’s won more supercross races than any other racer who hasn’t won a supercross championship. That’s a record he wouldn’t like to keep. He’s joined in 2019 by 250cc SX race winner and championship contender Joey Savatgy.
3 Eli Tomac
17 Joey Savatgy

Red Bull KTM
The Red Bull KTM team used to have Ryan Dungey, Marvin Musquin, and then a third racer who changed from year to year as the team gave chances to proven talents who came from other teams to try their hand at riding what is often considered to be the best factory motorcycles in the pits. The third spot went to Dean Wilson once upon a time, and after Dungey retired, the second spot on the team was filled by Trey Canard, then Broc Tickle, and now Cooper Webb. Musquin should be in the middle of it every week, battling for wins and the championship, but it’s Webb we’ll have to see about. He definitely has the talent, but the last couple years have been pretty tough on him. We’ll know more by Saturday night.
2 Cooper Webb
25 Marvin Musquin

Rocky Mountain ATV/MC KTM
The RMATVMC team was set to not have much in the way of changes for 2019, with Blake Baggett and Benny Bloss holding down the fort, but Bloss suffered a torn ACL in the off-season, and with him out, the team tapped Justin Bogle, who was scheduled to race for a privateer Honda team prior to being called up to the factory KTM equipment. Baggett should still be the man to watch on the team, but Bogle has a 250cc SX championship and a couple 450cc National moto wins, so he could surprise some people.
4           Blake Baggett
19            Justin Bogle
29            Benny Bloss

JGR/Yoshimura/Suzuki Factory Racing
Aussie legend Chad Reed joins the JGRMX outfit for the 2019 AMA SX series, and he’ll be joined by 450cc rookie Justin Hill while team stalwart Weston Peick heals up from facial fractures suffered at the Paris Supercross about a month ago. Peick will return when he’s healthy, but until then it’ll be Reed and Hill in the JGR truck.
18            Weston Peick
22            Chad Reed
46            Justin Hill

Monster Energy/Yamaha Factory Racing
Sometimes it’s crazy how fast things change in this sport. Coming into the 2018 season, the Monster Energy Yamaha team was supposed to be built around their young talent Cooper Webb (in his second 450cc season) with veteran Davi Millsaps joining on. Millsaps never got to race with the team, as he retired following head injury incurred during testing. The team hired Justin Barcia, who quickly became the team’s star, and now a year later Barcia is the established contender and he’s joined by 2018 250cc West SX and 250cc MX champ Aaron Plessinger.
7 Aaron Plessinger
51 Justin Barcia

CycleTrader/Rock River Yamaha
Matt Bisceglia has persevered through a lot of ups and downs in this sport, but he’s always been considered a racer with a big upside. That’s still true. Now, he gets a new shot on a proven team to see how far he can take it.
121 Matt Bisceglia

250

GEICO Honda
GEICO Honda team star Jeremy Martin will be forced to miss the entire racing year after having to get his back surgery re-done. He had broken his back just after he took control of the 2018 250cc National MX title at the Tennessee round. Still, Chase Sexton, RJ Hampshire and Christian Craig are all proven supercross racers, and they’re joined by Cameron McAdoo, who is returning to the team to fill in for Martin in 2019. The new guy on the team is Australian racer Hunter Lawrence, who spent the last couple years racing in the Motocross World Championship in Europe. Coming from Australia, he definitely has some supercross skill, so he’ll be someone to keep an eye on.
6              Jeremy Martin (Out for 2019)
23            Chase Sexton
31            RJ Hampshire
38           Christian Craig
44           Cameron McAdoo
196          Hunter Lawrence

Rockstar Energy Husqvarna
This team has won two consecutive 250cc East titles with Zach Osborne, and although Osborne has moved up, they still have a couple very talented young racers in Michael Mosiman and Jordan Bailey to hold things down. This year, they’re joined by Thomas Covington, who has spent the last few years racing in the GPs. Covington worked his way up to be a race winner and week-in, week-out contender in the GPs, and he’s returning to his native country to try and do the same in supercross.
36            Michael Mosiman
50            Jordan Bailey
112            Thomas Covington

Monster Energy/Pro Circuit Kawasaki
On paper, this is an incredible team. Austin Forkner should contend for the championship regardless of the coast he races on, and the same thing goes for Martin Davalos and Adam Cianciarulo. They’re joined by young Garrett Marchbanks, who will be experiencing his rookie year of supercross competition.
24            Austin Forkner
61            Garrett Marchbanks
73            Martin Davalos
92            Adam Cianciarulo

TLD/Red Bull KTM
Shane McElrath is due for a title after a couple years of winning races but coming up short. For that matter, Jordon Smith has also been a title contender in the past couple years. They’re joined by Sean Cantrell, who is expected to perform like a veteran from here on out, and rookie Mitchell Falk.
12            Shane McElrath
28            Jordon Smith
40            Sean Cantrell
123            Mitchell Falk

JGR/Yoshimura/Suzuki Factory Racing
The Suzuki RM-Z250 is all-new for 2019, and veteran Alex Martin was brought over to the JGR squad not only to win races, but to help sort out the new machine. He’s joined by Kyle Peters, longtime veteran Jimmy Decotis, and young Brazilian Enzo Lopes, who will be making his supercross debut this year.
26            Alex Martin
55            Kyle Peters
64            Jimmy Decotis
67            Enzo Lopes

Monster Energy/Yamalube/Star Racing Yamaha
Justin Cooper surprised a lot of people with his speed right out of the gate during the 2018 250cc Nationals and he’s making his supercross debut this year. He’s joined by Dylan Ferrandis, who expects to challenge for championships indoors and out, and Colt Nichols, who has similar expectations. Then there’s Mitchell Oldenburg who has already shown potential.
32            Justin Cooper
34            Dylan Ferrandis
39            Colt Nichols
66            Mitchell Oldenburg

CycleTrader/Rock River Yamaha
Brandon Hartranft is headed into his second supercross series, returning to the east coast for 2019, while 2018 Arenacross champ Jacob Hayes joins the team to take on the 250cc West as well.
45 Brandon Hartranft
156 Jacob Hayes

Rockwell Yamaha
This two-rider squad is scheduled to take on the 250cc West, but it’s down to one racer, as Jon Ames broke his arm and suffered compartment syndrome a couple weeks ago. His return is yet to be determined. But that leaves Harrison, who started out his pro career on Yamahas with the factory-backed Star Racing squad. He spent two years there with mostly lackluster results before moving over to the Rockstar Energy Husqvarna team in 2018. He had some good results outdoors, but the team didn’t re-sign him. Harrison is a very talented rider, though, so keep an eye on him.
35 Mitchell Harrison
179 Jon Ames

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