Well, the first round of the 2022 AMA Monster Energy Supercross Championship Series is in the books, and it was a wild one. It took a few laps for the insanity to unfold, and unfold it did. I came close to a pretty good RMFantasySX.com scoring night, but a couple of late-lap changes doomed my results—we all know how that goes. Although it’s too soon to be detecting trends, plenty can be learned from A1 and applied to the upcoming round at the RingCentral Coliseum. With that in mind, let’s get some 2022 Oakland Supercross fantasy tips rolling.
- Chase Sexton was the fastest man at A1, and there’s no reason to think he won’t repeat that at Oakland. He won his Heat, got the Main Event holeshot, and had the fastest Main Event lap time. Even after falling twice, and they weren’t tipovers, Sexton still finished in the Top 5. While he doesn’t have a Main Event win yet, I’m picking Sexton to break through in Oakland.
- Roczen looked great at A1, and he is often strong at the start of the season. With Sexton self-destructing, Roczen had the race to himself at Anaheim. On lap 17 of 22, Roczen led by nearly 13 seconds. Certainly, Roczen could repeat, and picking him to do so is a smart move. I think Sexton will want to make his mistakes at A1 right at Oakland, but Roczen could spoil those plans.
- Cooper Webb rode his usual race at A1, and looks good as the defending champion. You don’t want to ever count Webb out, so he’s in the mix for Oakland. Still, he didn’t look nearly as fast as Roczen and Sexton. There weren’t many performances at A1 that would make you think Webb will be knocked off the podium.
- There were fallers galore at A1, which makes picking P4 and P5 difficult. In addition to Sexton, the dust was bitten by Marvin Musquin, Malcolm Stewart, Jason Anderson, and Dylan Ferrandis—all of these riders are Top 5 threats. However, only Musquin remounted and worked his way up to P4, much to the consternation of Stewart, no doubt. With that in mind, I’m picking Musquin to repeat in P4. Although the podium doesn’t seem to be in the mix for him, Musquin proved himself at A1.
- Justin Barcia was a reliable Top 5 finisher last year, and was on the A1 podium. Barcia finished five seconds ahead of fallers Musquin and Sexton. If they keep it on two wheels, that moves Barcia back to P5, which is where I’m putting him.
- There are still plenty of potential Top 5 riders for Oakland, if you don’t like my choices. Stewart, Anderson, and Ferrandis quickly come to mind. If they can avoid crashing, all three are in the mix. The big mysteries are Eli Tomac and Aaron Plessinger. Tomac’s P6 at A1 was not impressive—it could be he needs more time on the new bike. Plessinger did even worse—P9—and it could be the same new-bike issue. Adam Cianciarulo is injured, so leave him out of your Top 5 for the time being. It’s going to be fascinating to watch the early season develop.
- The Wild Card is P15, which is pretty much like pulling a name out of a hat this early in the season. Mitchell Oldenburg took that spot at A1, one slot ahead of Ferrandis. The riders in that vicinity that aren’t likely to move up significantly in finishing positions are Max Anstie, Brandon Hartranft, Justin Brayton, and Shane McElrath. You can pick any of those four or Oldenburg to have as good a shot as any. I’m going to try and play catch up and go with Alex Martin to give me Wild Card points. Martin crashed out of his Heat and the LCQ, so he’ll be hungry. Martin qualified P17 at A1, so he’s right in there speed-wise. Good luck on this one.
- I have lots of room for improvement. My meager 20-point total puts me in the top 50 percent of RMFantasySX players—big deal. My personal goal is to finish in the top one percent, as I did in 2019.
2022 Oakland Fantasy Supercross Tips Quick Start Guide
- Chase Sexton
- Ken Roczen
- Cooper Webb
- Marvin Musquin
- Justin Barcia
P15 Wild Card: Alex Martin
2022 AMA Monster Energy Supercross Championship Series Standings (after 1 of 17 rounds)
- Ken Roczen, Honda, 26 points (1W, 1P, 1 T5)
- Cooper Webb, KTM, 23 (1P, 1 T5)
- Justin Barcia, GasGas, 21 (1P, 1 T5)
- Marvin Musquin, KTM, 19 (1 T5)
- Chase Sexton, Honda, 18 (1 T5)
- Eli Tomac, Yamaha, 17
- Malcolm Stewart, Husqvarna, 16
- Joey Savatgy, KTM, 15
- Aaron Plessinger, KTM, 14
- Jason Anderson, Kawasaki, 13
- Adam Cianciarulo, Kawasaki, 12
- Dean Wilson, Husqvarna, 11
- Justin Brayton, Honda, 10
- Max Anstie, KTM, 9
- Mitchell Oldenburg, Honda, 8
- Dylan Ferrandis, Yamaha, 7
- Brandon Hartranft, Suzuki, 6
- Shane McElrath, KTM, 5
- Cade Clason, Honda, 4
- Fredrik Norén, KTM, 3
- Justin Starling, GasGas, 2
- Ryan Breece, Yamaha, 1
2022 Anaheim 1 Photo Gallery