2021 Supercross Preview and Fantasy SX Picks (7 Fast Facts)

It’s time for the 17-round 2021 Monster Energy Supercross Championship Series to get underway, and with it, predictions for the season. With 16 factory-backed racers, it’s going to be very difficult to get into the top-ten, let alone the top-five—with three notable exceptions. Let’s break it down:

1. Eli Tomac, Cooper Webb, and Ken Roczen dominated 2020. The trio took 35 of 51 possible podium finishes last year—that is a staggering collective performance. This happened with Webb dogged by injury and Roczen by illness. Webb is recovered, and Roczen has gotten rest. Tomac will be eager to repeat. Another rider might crack the dominance of these three top dogs, but it’s not going to be easy. They will be your opening round podium picks, if you’re playing it safe. Next, we can look at the contenders.

2. Jason Anderson, Justin Barcia, and Zach Osborne represent the next tier. They grabbed 12 podiums between them, which means just six riders were responsible for 47 of 51 podiums. That’s a virtual shutout of everyone else. 2020 looks promising for all three riders. Osborne is coming off a 450 National Motocross Championship, and he won the final 2020 Supercross round at Salt Lake City. Barcia has moved from Yamaha to GasGas, and he starts the year strong—he has won the opening round two years running. Anderson is always fast and a threat, as he had 13 top-five finishes in 17 rounds. Now, we can start thinking about the could-be crowd.

3. Adam Cianciarulo should be ready to go. Cianciarulo’s rookie year was a mixed bag. He had three podiums and finished outside of the top-five four times in the seven rounds before an injury ended his campaign. Cianciarulo is coming off a runner-up finish in the 450 Nationals, so he has found consistency on a big bike. Now, he has to carry that over into the stadiums. He could be a title contender this year—no doubt about that.

4. Two serious 450SX rookies are lining up for 2021—Dylan Ferrandis and Chase Sexton. Rookies are always a tough call. Both are on factory teams and coming in with 250SX regional titles from last year. While I will be surprised if either can crack the Tomac/Webb/Roczen podium stranglehold, everyone else below that is likely to have their hands full.

5. There are a few dark-horse picks out there for the adventuresome fantasy supercross fan. Malcolm Stewart had three top-five finishes in 2020, and Dean Wilson made the podium at the final round. Joey Savatagy will finally get his rookie supercross season underway–a pre-season injury kept him out of 2020. Max Anstie is a possible breakout rider, as he was strong in the 450 Nationals last year. Marvin Musquin is a big question mark—has his moment passed?

6. Here are my 2021 Houston 1 picks for the RMFantasySX.com:

1. Eli Tomac
2. Cooper Webb
3. Ken Roczen
4. Justin Barcia
5. Jason Anderson

The Wild Card is P10 for the opening round. Based on past performances, Justin Brayton and Aaron Plessinger are likely candidates. Martin Davalos, Vince Friese, and Dean Wilson should also be on your radar. I’d throw in Blake Baggett and Justin Hill, but they aren’t on the entry list. Really, this is an exceedingly difficult call; I’m going to go with Plessinger for P10.

7. We also have a rundown of the 450SX teams you’ll be seeing in the 2021 Monster Energy Supercross Championship Series:

Factory Teams

Monster Energy Kawasaki

#1 – Eli Tomac

#9 – Adam Cianciarulo

Monster Energy Star Yamaha Racing

#7 – Aaron Plessinger

#14 – Dylan Ferrandis

#27 – Malcolm Stewart

Red Bull KTM

#2 – Cooper Webb

#25 – Marvin Musquin

Rockstar Energy Husqvarna Factory Racing

#15 – Dean Wilson

#16 – Zach Osborne

#20 – Jason Anderson

Team Honda HRC

#23 – Chase Sexton

#94 – Ken Roczen

Troy Lee Designs/Red Bull/GasGas Factory Racing

#51 – Justin Barcia

Twisted Tea/H.E.P. Motorsports Suzuki Racing Team

#28 – Brandon Hartranft

#34 – Max Anstie

#722 – Adam Enticknap

Satellite Teams 

MCR Smartop Bullfrog Honda

#12 – Shane McElrath

#20 – Broc Tickle

#37 – Benny Bloss

#40 – Vince Friese

Muc-Off Honda

#10 – Justin Brayton

PRMX Wossner Deep South Kawasaki

#280 – Cade Clason

#TBA – Josh Cartwright

#952 – Ludovic Macler (fill-in for injured Cartwright)

Rocky Mountain ATV-MC/WPS/KTM

#17 – Joey Savatgy

#19 – Justin Bogle

Team SGB Racing/Maxxis/Babbitt’s Online Kawasaki

#57 – Justin Rodbell

#83 – Alex Ray

#309 – Jeremy Smith

#330 – AJ Catanzaro

Team Tedder

#36 – Martin Dávalos

#151 – Dakota Tedder

2021 Monster Energy Supercross Championship Series Schedule

1.  Jan. 16, Sat., NRG Stadium, Houston
2. Jan. 19, Tue., NRG Stadium, Houston
3. Jan. 23, Sat., NRG Stadium, Houston
4. Jan. 30, Sat., Lucas Oil Stadium, Indianapolis
5. Feb. 2, Tue., Lucas Oil Stadium, Indianapolis
6. Feb. 6. Sat., Lucas Oil Stadium, Indianapolis
7. Feb. 13, Sat., Camping World Stadium, Orlando
8. Feb. 20, Sat. Camping World Stadium, Orlando
9. March 6, Sat., Daytona International Speedway
10. March 13, Sat., AT&T Stadium, Arlington
11. March 17, Tue., AT&T Stadium, Arlington
12. March 20, Sat., AT&T Stadium, Arlington
13. April 10, Sat., Atlanta Motor Speedway, Atlanta
14. April 13, Tue, Atlanta Motor Speedway, Atlanta
15. April 17, Sat., Atlanta Motor Speedway, Atlanta
16. April 24, Saturday, Rice-Eccles Stadium, Salt Lake City
17. May 1, Rice-Eccles Stadium, Salt Lake City

2020 Monster Energy AMA Supercross Championship Series Final Standings

1. Eli Tomac (Kawasaki), 384 points (7 wins; 12 podiums)
2. Cooper Webb (KTM), 359 (4 wins; 13 podiums)
3. Ken Roczen (Honda), 354 (4 wins; 10 podiums)
4. Jason Anderson (Husqvarna), 287 (5 podiums)
5. Justin Barcia (Yamaha), 272 (1 win; 3 podiums)
6. Zach Osborne (Husqvarna), 252 (1 win; 4 podiums)
7. Malcolm Stewart (Honda), 252
8. Dean Wilson (Husqvarna), 239 (1 podium)
9. Justin Brayton (Honda), 227
10. Justin Hill (Honda), 213
11. Aaron Plessinger (Yamaha), 207
12. Blake Baggett (KTM), 200 (1 podium)
13. Martín Dávalos (KTM), 178
14. Vince Friese (Honda), 155
15. Adam Cianciarulo (Kawasaki), 129 (2 podiums)
16. Chad Reed (Honda/KTM), 113
17. Benny Bloss (Yamaha/KTM), 108
18. Tyler Bowers (Kawasaki), 97
19. Kyle Chisholm (Yamaha), 85
20. Broc Tickle (Suzuki), 59
21. Kyle Cunningham (Suzuki), 53
22. Ryan Breece (Suzuki), 37
23. Alex Ray (Kawasaki), 33
24. Justin Bogle (KTM), 24
25. Adam Enticknap (Suzuki), 21
26. Chris Blose (Honda), 18
27. Freddie Norén (Suzuki), 11
28. Daniel Herrlein (KTM), 8
29. Ryan Sipes (KTM), 7
30. James Weeks (Yamaha), 7
31. Carlen Gardner (Honda), 7
32. Henry Miller (KTM), 6
33. Jimmy Decotis (Suzuki), 4
34. Ronnie Stewart (Husqvarna), 3
35. Jason Clermont (Kawasaki), 3
36. Cade Autenrieth (Honda), 3
37. Mason Kerr (Kawasaki), 2
38. Jerry Robin (Honda), 1
39. Josh Cartwright (Kawasaki), 1
40. Logan Karnow (Kawasaki), 1