COOPER WEBB | GRIT-216 | 450SX

COOPER WEBB | GRIT-216 | SX 450

The championship contender would do exactly what was necessary in the earliest stages of competition in Atlanta, bombarding his way through practice with tremendous times. Though not necessarily known as an outdoor rider, the athlete who sported the number two would display an excellent skillset amongst the fastest portions of terrain; leading to his heat race, where he and amateur rival, Adam Cianciarulo, would immediately quarrel over the lead. Ken Roczen was involved as well, but Webb would do enough to edge the Suzuki combatant as they neared the opening rhythm section...where tension was spiking between he and the number nine as they crested the preceding wall jump. Once here, it was Webb who chose a pathway on the outside with Cianciarulo blitzing to the right - and the Kawasaki rider would unfortunately attack the mogul pad while being a bit too overzealous, crashing to the ground. This would hand Webb the lead, where he had a clear track in front of him with only Ken Roczen within "striking range," if you will. But Webb wasn't fazed, and proceeded to enact flawless circuits throughout the five-lap contest. He would be calculated until the checkered flag was thrown, hitting the final double with confidence prior to heading to the main event. The gate(s) then crashed into the Georgia clay followed by a swarming of riders into the first corner, where Chase Sexton immediately threw his name into contention for overall victory. Webb was buried in the field, albeit slightly, as he managed to find a rhythm behind Adam Cianciaurlo as the pack began to disperse near the sixth-place residency. Webb was solid, but wasn't showcasing the outburst(s) of speed we'd seen at past rounds; although the agenda wasn't to necessarily "win," as much as it was to keep Eli tomcat at bay who was currently running eighth. The North Carolina native didn't seem to be too worried about how far Chase Sexton was pulling away from the field out front, though his current standing in the championship was still within contention of contesting for an overall title. It was evident that Webb was focused on running away from Tomac, quickly moving around Adam Cianciarulo for fifth. He then pursued Jason Anderson, who was beginning to fade after around five-minutes of action; and after relentless pressure, Cooper's daring move on the outside of the second sand section would force Anderson to relinquish fourth - which Webb overtook rather quickly. Eli was closing in quickly though, and was within bike lengths with around thirteen-minutes left on the clock...which was only the beginning of one of greatest, defensive stands Supercross enthusiasts had seen in the last decade! For the absolute entirety of the main event that followed, Tomac would hound the rear wheel of Webb; truly only "one mistake" away from overtaking the KTM rider, if he were to lapse in focus. But that moment never came to fruition, and would be the narrative for this championship battle as the conclusion of the nearly twenty-three minute contest was actualized. Finalized in fourth, he would do what was necessary to stay relevant in the title chase.

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