Jo Shimoda led all 18 laps at Empower Field at Mile High in Denver, Colorado, to score his first Monster Energy Supercross 250 race on the same day his 450 teammates, Jett Lawrence and Hunter Lawrence, finished first and second in their division. It was a perfect day for Team Honda HRC.
Shimoda has progressively improved throughout the season, finishing fourth in three of the first four races, third in back-to-back events, and second in consecutive rounds in St. Louis and Nashville. A win in Denver was seemingly inevitable. With one round remaining, Shimoda has the opportunity to make up the three points needed to move into third in the 250 West division.
Click here for in-race updates and a recap from Denver
Levi Kitchen and RJ Hampshire are vying for the 250 West title, which was made tighter with a crash by Kitchen in the first East / West Showdown in Nashville. Bruised and still sore, Kitchen gained an advantage over Hampshire early in Denver and kept his rival at bay.
As Kitchen and Hampshire tested one another, they slowly cut into Shimoda’s lead, and at the end of the race, a mere 2.163 seconds separated the podium contenders. Kitchen and Hampshire will share the red plate next week in Salt Lake City, the second and final East / West Showdown of the season, which makes that a winner-take-all event.
Nate Thrasher has had an up-and-down season. After finishing outside the top 15 in the first two rounds, he stood on the podium in his subsequent two appearances. He has not been on the box since and alternated top-fives with results outside that mark. He was fourth in Denver.
Jordon Smith rounded out the top five. In nine rounds this season, Smith has finished that well or better in eight races, and if not for trouble at Seattle when he was 14th, the title fight would be a three-rider affair. He is not mathematically eliminated, but he needs Kitchen and Hampshire to have trouble in next week’s Feature.
In his penultimate race on a 250 in Supercross, Phil Nicoletti narrowly missed the top five in sixth.
Here are the 250 West Supercross results and points standings after Denver:
Results
Click here for complete 250 West results from Denver.
Lap Chart
Individual Lap Times
Fastest Segment Times
250 West Rider Points
250 East / West Combined Points
Manufacturer Points
Here is the finishing order of Round 16 in Denver:
1. Jo Shimoda
2. Levi Kitchen
3. RJ Hampshire
4. Nate Thrasher
5. Jordon Smith
6. Phillip Nicoletti
7. Cole Thompson
8. Robbie Wageman
9. Talon Hawkins
10. Julien Beaumer
11. Ryder DiFrancesco
12. Lux Turner
13. Joshua Varize
14. Hunter Yoder
15. Geran Stapleton
16. Anthony Bourdon
17. TJ Albright
18. Max Sanford
19. Preston Taylor
20. Carter Stephenson
21. Brad West
22. Max Miller
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