Smartop | MotoConcepts | Honda continued its two-rider run of the 2023 Monster Energy Supercross Championship at the San Diego Supercross. A capacity crowd filled Snapdragon Stadium and watched Mitchell Oldenburg and Anthony Rodriguez pilot their Honda CRF250R motorcycles through the Timed Qualifying, Heat Races, and the 250 Main Event, with Oldenburg ending the night in seventh place and Rodriguez in fifteenth.
Oldenburg made the most of the time off caused by the postponed and rescheduled Oakland race, as he headed to his home in Texas for a few days of training on drier tracks, then traveled back to Southern California for the second round of 250 West Coast Region. Gradually improvements through the afternoon led to a 52.198 lap, which ranked the rider eleventh overall in the Timed Qualifying results, and he continued to build momentum with a fourth-place finish in 250 Heat Race Two. A decent start in the 250 Main Event put Oldenburg in the thick of the pack on the opening lap and led to an intense race-long battle with other competitors that ended with another top-ten result. “It was an okay day because I could have been better but could have been worse,” reflected Oldenburg. “I feel like I lacked some intensity and struggled with how tight the track was, which wasn’t helped by the lines that I took, but I’ll take leaving here healthy and with good points. Next week is a Triple Crown, which has been my stronger type of race in the last few years, and I’m excited to get to Anaheim.” Oldenburg is ranked fifth in the championship standings.
Rodriguez continues to impress on the small-bore bike, and the progression showed in his second race with the team. The rider made significant steps during the three practice sessions on the soft, technical track, and a 53.493 sprint at the end of the day put him eighteenth overall in the Timed Qualifying results. Rodriguez rocketed out of the gate in 250 Heat Race One and held third place from the start to the finish of the short moto, then held his own against the pack in the 250 Main Event for his second consecutive top-fifteen finish. “The weekend had its ups and downs. The result is not what I’m looking for, and I’m not happy to finish where I did, but the Heat Race showed that I have the speed to run with the leaders in the class,” said Rodriguez. “Now I’ll focus on my fitness and the things I need to polish up so that I can finish in the top eight, which will happen soon as long as I keep working.” Rodriguez is now ranked fifteenth in the championship standings.
The 2023 Monster Energy Supercross Championship continues next weekend with its return to Angels Stadium of Anaheim for the 2023 Anaheim Two Supercross, the first Triple Crown event of the season.