Smartop | Bullfrog Spas | MotoConcepts | Honda fought hard for top-ten finishes at the 2022 Foxborough Supercross, with Vince Friese and Justin Brayton earning them in the 450 Class and Mitchell Oldenburg in the 250 Class at round fifteen of the Monster Energy Supercross Championship. The continued success has been important late in the season and puts all three MCR riders in excellent championship positions as they enter the final races.
Mitchell Oldenburg completed the 250 East Region’s “regular season” with a fourth-place finish in the Main Event. The rider made improvements throughout the morning practice, and with 51.844 lap time in the final practice session, he was ranked fourth overall in the Timed Qualifying results. Oldenburg charged out of the gate in 250 Heat Race, got caught in a first-turn pile-up, and remounted at the back of the pack. Oldenburg crossed the finish line in fourth place after a flurry of passes in the eight-lap dash. A modest start in the 250 Main Event put the rider in tenth place on the opening lap, but with some quick work, he was able to get into a battle for a spot in the top five. Fast laps in the first part of the feature, well-timed passes, and consistency in the final moments put Oldenburg in fourth place at the finish line. “That wasn’t easy, but it was satisfying. I made improvements all day, which helped me get over the small mistakes that happened early in the races,” shared Oldenburg after the checkered flag. “Going down in the first turn of the Heat Race got my heart rate up and helped me find places to pass on the track, and that was key for the Main Event push that got me another top-five finish.” Oldenburg is currently ranked fourth overall in the 250 East Region championship standings.
Going back-and-forth between two bike sizes has helped Vince Friese improve in new ways, skills he put to the test in the 450 Class for the last time this season. The rider used the morning practice sessions to get comfortable on the CRF450R, found the flow on the technical track, and with a 52.462 lap time, was ranked ninth overall in Timed Qualifying. A good launch in 450 Heat Race Two put Friese in fifth place, which he maintained for all eight laps against the competition. The always-excellent starter aced the gate drop in the 450 Main Event, but his run to the berm allowed others the chance to slip by in the first turn and dropped him down the running order. It didn’t take long for Friese to get into a flow, though, and a big effort in the first half of the 450 Main Event helped him make passes and finish in eighth place. “I struggled a bit with the early schedule, especially with the time difference to California. I didn’t ride too much this week, we’re late in the season, and I’ve been switching between the bikes, so part of my whole morning was re-learning the 450,” explained Friese of the day. “I got a killer start in the Main Event and tried to drive it all the way up to the berm, but another rider took my line, and it dropped me back. I passed my way back up to eighth place and stayed there, which is solid.” Friese is now ranked sixteenth overall in the 450 Class championship standings, which could change as his attention turns to the 250 West Region for the final two races.
Although only a handful of races are left in Justin Brayton’s full-time SX career, the veteran rider is still going to the gate with the same determined mindset. Like many, Brayton’s pace improved through the morning’s practice, and a 52.129 in the final session put him ninth overall in the Timed Qualifying results. Issues in the early moments of 450 Heat Race One put Brayton in the very middle of the pack on the opening lap, but after a few minutes of work, he finished in fourth place. A crash on the opening lap of the 450 Main Event caused by another rider’s error meant that Brayton had to put in another hard charge, complete with multiple passes in the first few minutes, and he worked back up to tenth place, his third top-ten in a row. “It started off good. I really liked the track and everything and got tenth place,” noted Brayton. “I crashed on the first lap, got crossed jumped by another rider after he missed the rut, and went down. I got up in dead last, way behind the next position, and had to come through the pack to get that finish. It looks good on paper, and it is what it is.” Brayton is now tenth overall in the 450 Class championship standings.