That's all for me, folks. A recap will be posted to the Racing section in a short while. Thanks so much for following along tonight!
Ryan Dungey is a two-time champ, folks! A proud moment for KTM USA this must be; this brand new machine took them all the way this year.
450 main event, CHECKERS: Cole Seely wins his first ever Monster Energy Supercross - on the same night that Ryan Dungey wins his second 450 Supercross class title!
450 main event, 2 to go: Cole Seely is now ten seconds ahead of second place as he takes the white flag. One lap away from his first 450 Supercross class win.
450 main event, 3 to go: Andrew Short loses third place to Tomac but is still in position to score his best finish of the season.
450 main event, 5 to go: Short and Tomac are beginning to battle for the final podium position.
450 main event, 6 to go: Dungey is attacking the track. He is five and a half laps from winning his second title (he also won in his rookie year in the premier class in 2010).
450 main event, 8 to go: Seely, Short, Dungey occupy the top three as the race enters its final stages. It's looking like Dungey will win the championship tonight.
450 main event, 9 to go: Dungey into third - and into a position that wil win him the title!
450 main event, lap 10 of 20: Anderson by Barcia who is riding fantastically in his return to racing.
450 main event, lap 9 of 20: Chad Reed and Jason Anderson go down together - this puts Dungey into fourth. This is becoming a wild race!
450 main event, lap 8 of 20: Cole Seely now leads by over seven seconds. Chad Reed follows in second, then Anderson, Short, and Grant. Dungey is still outside the top five.
450 main event, lap 5 of 20: Weston Peick down hard on the front straight after Andrew Short goes under him. He hit the ground hard but is back up.
450 main event, lap 3 of 20: Short and Reed battle for second position. Weston Peick and Jason Anderson follow in fourth and fifth, rounding out the top five. Cole Seely continues to lead.
450 main event, lap 1 of 20: Andrew Short gets the holeshot but Seely jumps by him into the lead! A clear track for Cole Seely is ahead - this would be the first 450 win of his career.
GATE DROP!
It's time for the final race of the night! Will Ryan Dungey win the 450 Supercross championship?
Coming up next is the final race of the night: the 450 Supercross main event. Ryan Dungey is in a fantastic position to wrap up the second championship tonight, adding his name to the list of multi-time Supercross champions.
Tyler Bowers was in third on the first lap but finished 21st. You could tell he was off pace.
The number one plate is being presented to Yamalube Yamaha's Cooper Webb.
Cooper Webb celebrates his victory and the clinching of the 2015 250 West championship. It has been fantastic to watch him and the rest of the West regional class do battle this year.
250 main event, CHECKERS: Cooper Webb wins the Houston Supercross and becomes the 2015 250 West regional champion!
250 main event, FINAL LAP: Webb embarks on the final lap before he is champion. A fantastic run for him this season.
250 main event, 2 to go: Cooper Webb has a lap and a half to go before he is crowned the 250 West champion.
250 main event, 4 to go: Malcolm Stewart was 11th on the first lap, but he runs 3rd now - in podium position.
250 main event, lap 10 of 15: Cooper Webb has taken over the lead of this race, getting by Shane McElrath.
250 main event, lap 8 of 15: The race has entered its final half. Cooper Webb is 1.4 seconds behind McElrath who continues to lead.
250 main event, lap 7 of 15: Malcolm Stewart of Geico Honda gets by Alex Martin of Yamaha for fourth position.
250 main event, lap 5 of 15: Bowers has dropped out of the top five. Webb is into second position after being fourth on the first lap, and he is closing in on McElrath for the lead of the race. As they run, Webb would clinch the championship by a long shot.
250 main event, lap 3 of 15: McElrath continues to lead early. Webb as gotten by Bowers and runs third - good enough to wrap up the championship.
250 main event, lap 1 of 15: Cooper Webb is fourth behind Bowers in third off the start. McElrath leads!
GATE DROP!
Cooper Webb is relaxed as the 250 main event lines up at the gate; he has the opportunity to win the championship right here, right now! 15 laps are ahead.
It's main event time in Houston! The 250 West main event will be first. Remember: Cooper Webb has a very big opportunity to clinch the 250 West regional championship tonight.
450 LCQ, CHECKERS: Pipes remains in the final transfer spot and rounds out the top four headed to the main event.
450 LCQ, FINAL LAP: Enticknap is behind Pipes and looking for the final transfer spot.
450 LCQ, lap 2 of 4: Tapia, Rusk, Oldenburg, Pipes are the top four in the transfer spots. Enticknap is in fifth just out of the final spot.
450 LCQ, lap 1 of 4: Rusk to the lead with the holeshot. Only the top four advance to the final four spots of the 450 Supercross main event.
The bikes are started up for the final race of the night before both of the main events.
The final race before the main events is lining up at the gates: the last chance qualifer for the 450 Supercross riders.
450 semi 2, CHECKERS: Anderson remains in the lead and takes the checkered flag and wins the semi. The main events are near!
450 semi 2, lap 4 of 5: Blake Baggett nearly jumps into the back of the Husqvarna of Jason Anderson who continues to lead the race. Tomac is now second with Baggett behind them - a great battle is brewing here.
450 semi 2, lap 3 of 5: Eli Tomac is running third after a bad start. He was the fastest qualifier earlier today.
450 semi 2, lap 2 of 5: Anderson applies the pressure through the first few rhythm sections and takes the lead. This would be his first heat race win as well.
450 semi 2, lap 1 of 5: Gate drop for the final semi race! The holeshot goes to Blake Baggett with a great start. Anderson is behind him and Chisholm rounds out the top three.
Notable riders in this semi race: Eli Tomac, Blake Baggett, Jason Anderson. Engines are fired!
Semi 2 is coming up next!
450 semi 1, CHECKERS: Brayton holds on to win the first semi race although Broc Tickle almost made a photo-finish out of it.
450 semi 1, FINAL LAP: Brayton dominates the entire race and is about to win his first semi race of the year.
450 semi 1, lap 2 of 5: Brayton leads from Partridge, Tickle, Lamay, and Schmidt. These are the top five that are currently in transfer positions to the main event.
450 semi 1, lap 1 of 5: Brayton grabs the holeshot and jumps into the early lead! A great start for him. Partridge is behind him in second.
The first of two semi races for the 450s is lined up at the gate. Justin Brayton, Matt Lamay, Broc Tickle, AJ Catanzarro, and others are in this one.
250 LCQ, CHECKERS: Malcolm Stewart takes the lead in the final corner and wins the last chance qualifier!
250 LCQ, lap 2 of 4: Zach Osborne jumps out to the early lead; Malcolm Stewart who also went down in the main event (after contact with Osborne) is running 3rd.
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Now that the heat races are over, it's time for the final few races before the main events. The semis for the 450s and two LCQ's, one for each class, are coming up.
450 heat 2, CHECKERS: Seely wins the heat race. Millsaps finishes 4th and will take the final transfer position ahead of the fastest qualifier, Eli Tomac.
450 heat 2, FINAL LAP: Seely continues to lead the heat as Tomac and millsaps battle in 4th and 5th.
450 heat 2, lap 2 of 6: Cole Seely quads into a corner and passes Short for the lead. Brayton, Peick, and Millsaps are behind these two to round out the top five.
450 heat 2, lap 1 of 6: Andrew Short with the holeshot! He's been great on the starts this year.
Heat 2 for the 450s is coming up next.
450 heat 1, CHECKERS: Dungey wins the first 450 race of the night.
450 heat 1, lap 3 of 6: Dungey goes under Grant in a 90 degree corner and he now leads this heat race.
450 heat 1, lap 2 of 6: Gate drop for heat 1 for the 450s. Grant is leading early.
Chad Reed was the second fastest qualifier today behind Tomac who is consistently fastest in practice.
Justin Barcia is back for racing tonight. He is lined up at the gates for heat 1.
Time for the 450s to hit the track for their first race of the night.
450 Supercross Heat 1 (above)
250 West Heat 2 (below)
Zach Osborne finished 18th after jumping out to the early lead. He was hit from behind on the opening lap by Malcolm Stewart, then Stewart's bike flew into the next lane of the track. Osborne then landed on Stewart's bike while jumping through the next lane and found himself on the ground hard.
CHECKERS: Cooper Webb wins his third heat race of the year.
FINAL LAP: Webb leads Bisceglia, Bowers, Plessinger, and Aldredge on the final lap.
Gate drop for the second race of the night! Malcolm Stewart was at the front early but went down hard with Zach Osborne. Some wild action already tonight from NRG Stadium!
250 West Heat 2 (above)
250 West Heat 1 (below)
CHECKERS: Politelli wins his first heat race of the year. Hill, T. Hahn, Howell, Champion are the rest of the top five.
Lap 6 of 6: Politelli leads the final lap and is about to win his first ever heat race.
Lap 3 of 6: Interesting track and fantastic dirt. Suddenly lots of crashes around the track! Hansen went down with the rider he was battling with before two riders crashed at the beginning of a triple jump and then the leader McElrath crashed while he was alone at the front of the pack.
Gate drop for the 250 West heat 1! Hansen leads.
250 West Heat 1 (above)
The track tonight is very interesting. For the first time in history, a lane of the track will be run in both directions. After the start straight, the first turn is a left turn into a rhythm section. After the first lap, the rest of the race will be run in the opposite direction on that opening rhythm section. It will be interesting to see how this plays out.
I'm so excited to bring you full coverage of tonight's racing. It has the potential to be a very big night - especially for two riders: Cooper Webb and Ryan Dungey. Both can clinch their respective titles tonight. Scroll down for major headlines and the points standings before gate drop tonight.
It's time for round 14 of 17! Thank you for joining me here on VAVEL for live coverage of Supercross. Tonight's racing will be fantastic - stay tuned for minute-to-minute coverage of each race of the night!
Practice is concluding inside NRG Stadium in Houston, Texas.
Now that major headlines entering tonight's race at Houston are below and the 250 West and 450 Supercross points standings are further down, you will now find more notes above as race time draws near tonight.
Dungey Can Clinch Too
Both titles are up for grabs tonight in Houston. Webb is in a great position to clinch the 250 West championship, but Ryan Dungey is perhaps in an even greater spot with better chances of leaving Houston as a two-time champ of the 450 Supercross class. To clinch the title this weekend, Dungey needs to leave Houston with 75 points between himself and Eli Tomac who is second in points. To accomplish this, Dungey has to finish third or better if Tomac were to win. If he were to finish 4th or worse and Tomac wins, the championship would be extended - but still truly in nobody else's hands but Dungey's. His lead is currently 80 points over Tomac entering Houston, so the odds are very much in his favor.
Roczen Out Again
Ken Roczen hasn't raced since Daytona, and he'll be out once again at Houston. After a rough night of two massive crashes in qualifying/practice and the main event at Atlanta, Roczen was planned to get back on track at Houston, but apparently the ankle injury is not healed enough just yet. It has been quite the up-and-down season for the young Californian, but a stronger 2016 season should be expected from the RCH Suzuki rider.
Webb Can Win It All
Cooper Webb is in a good enough spot in the championship points that he can clinch the 250 West championship tonight in Houston. He was red hot before the break began and the East riders' season got started, winning four of five races. This allowed his points lead to increase to 30 over Troy Lee Designs/Lucas Oil/KTM's Jessy Nelson. To clinch the championship, Cooper Webb must simply maintain a 25 point lead over the field leaving Houston. If Nelson were to win, Webb would need to finish third or better to claim the championship one round before the 250 West finale - but Nelson is done for the year, remember. Tyler Bowers and Zach Osborne are both also mathematically eligible, but the odds are very high that Webb wraps it up in Houston.
Nelson Done For 2015
It has been announced that Nelson will not be racing in the final few 250 West races this year. Apparently he had a massive crash weeks ago training for the outdoors and although he didn't break any bones, he feels it's necessary to heal up completely for outdoor motocross. This opens the championship up way wider; Webb's chances to win his first professional championship are better than ever.
Back To 250 West
The West regional group of the 250 riders of course was full of great racing at the very beginning of the year before it was time for the East class to take over for a few weeks of racing, beginning with their season-opening race in Atlanta. It's back to 250 West for Houston as the East has also already had their round in Texas (Arlington). This means that Cooper Webb, Tyler Bowers, Malcolm Stewart, and others are set to bang bars once again. The West 250 class showcased some of the greatest racing of the season thus far, and it's no doubt Cooper Webb will come out swinging after some of the incredibly impressive races we've seen him throw down this season - including coming from the back of the pack to take the lead on the final half a lap and win a main event. Expect great action from the 250 West riders tonight.
Now that the points standings for both classes entering tonight's race in Houston are below, let's look at the major headlines entering round 14 of 17. Beginning with the 250 West class (above, in reverse order; read from here up!)
- Ryan Dungey - KTM - 196
- Eli Tomac - Honda - 216
- Trey Canard - Honda - 204
- Cole Seely - Honda - 198
- Chad Reed - Kawasaki - 183
- Jason Anderson - Husqvarna - 165
- Blake Baggett - Suzuki - 165
- Ken Roczen - Suzuki - 156
- Broc Ticke - Suzuki - 146
- Andrew Short - KTM - 137
- Cooper Webb - Yamaha - 136
- Jessy Nelson - KTM - 106
- Tyler Bowers - Kawasaki - 104
- Zach Osborne - Husqvarna - 101
- Shane McElrath - KTM - 86
- Aaron Plessinger - Yamaha - 81
- Justin Hill - KTM - 79
- Josh Hansen - Kawasaki - 75
- Alex Martin - Yamaha - 75
- Malcolm Stewart - Honda - 69
Beginning with the points standings entering rounf 14 of 17 (above).
Welcome to live coverage of round 14 of 17 from NRG Stadium in Houston, Texas on VAVEL USA! The 450 Supercross and 250 West classes are set to take to the track tonight in Houston, and live coverage of every lap of the night will be right here. From now until race time at 7:30 pm ET, enjoy pre-race notes, the points standings entering tonight's race, and more.