Suzuki’s Roczen Rocks High Point Motocross

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Inspired Ride Lands Roczen on Podium

BREA, CA, June 19, 2023 — Progressive Insurance ECSTAR Suzuki's Ken Roczen shook up the AMA Pro Motocross season with an incredible performance at round four of the 11-round summer series. Roczen took a break from his preparation to defend his World Supercross Championship title to land a second-place result at High Point Raceway in Mt. Morris, PA. Heavy rains before the event created deep ruts, thick mud, and hard-slick patches on the natural-terrain track making for difficult conditions. 

Race Highlights:

• Progressive Insurance ECSTAR Suzuki
  • 450 Class
    • Ken Roczen set the fastest qualifying time by over 2.5 seconds. Roczen became only the second rider this season to lead laps and charged to a second-place overall result in a series in which he's not contesting. 
• Twisted Tea Suzuki presented by Progressive Insurance
  • 450 Class
    • Freddie Noren sliced through the pack in the first moto then captured his fifth top-ten moto finish of the season in the second moto. 
• Toyota of Redlands BarX Suzuki
  • 450 Class
    • Derek Drake pulled in another top ten moto finish and another top-ten overall result. 
  • 250 Class
    • Dilan Schwartz earned his season-best results, including a top ten moto finish, to advance in the championship standings. 
    • Chase Yentzer scored his career-best overall result and matched his career-best moto finish. 

Just when the outdoor motocross season was establishing a pattern, Ken Roczen decided to break from his World Supercross Championship preparation to contest a motocross round aboard his Progressive Insurance ECSTAR Suzuki RM-Z450. Roczen upset the series by leading laps in both motos, grabbing a huge holeshot in moto two, and finishing in second place overall. Roczen also gained valuable points toward the seeding order for the all-new SuperMotocross World Championship playoffs and finale taking place in September. 

"High Point was an absolute success, I'm not going to lie," said Roczen after the incredible day. "There's so much to talk about with such little motocross riding that we did this week in testing. But we showed up and it was honestly a super muddy mess. This was probably the most brutal track we could've possibly come back to for a one-off. But we were P-1 in qualifying and also put up a fight in the first moto. We were leading laps and I was battling with the leaders. With a lap and a half to go I tried passing a lapper and to cut out of the rut I was in. I tucked the front and went over the bars. I was on an uphill and in between ruts; it was really difficult to find neutral and took me a while to get going again, but we finished that off in seventh. I was ready to go all-out in the second moto; we ripped a holeshot and I went as long as possible. I led almost all the way to the end, but I was stuck in some bad lines. But once another rider passed me I caught some of his lines and I held on for second. So, I went seventh and second for second overall, which felt amazing. Man, I couldn't have done it without the team, the work that we've put in, and my mechanic Travis who's doing an amazing job. It was a great, great, great weekend putting it on the podium, and winning qualifying, and leading laps. It could not have gone any better." 

Toyota of Redlands BarX Suzuki’s Derek Drake used a surge of speed early in the first moto to slice his way quickly into the top ten. A strong start in the second moto made his racing easier on a track experiencing rapidly changing conditions. Drake earned a top-ten overall result on the day. 

“The day was going in the right direction for me,” told Drake. “I had a solid race coming through the pack in the first moto. Then in the second moto, I had some issues that held me back, which was unfortunate, but on to the next race!” 

Twisted Tea Suzuki's Freddie Noren was the rider on the move in the first moto. He finessed his RM-Z450 through the long ruts to pass 26 racers. In the second moto, Noren raced into the top ten early and held on for another top-ten moto finish. 

"A few corners into the first moto I stalled the bike. So I went from dead last to 14th. So considering that, the moto went well, " said Noren. "I went 14-10 for 12th overall. Anything outside the top ten is not really a good day. 12th overall is my worst finish this year. But we're sitting well in points and we'll keep working. The team's doing awesome, so I'm pumped to be with these guys. I'm looking forward to a weekend off to practice and ride and continue to improve, and then Red Bud is my jelly, as in peanut butter and jelly. I'm excited to go to Red Bud."

Dilan Schwartz used his Suzuki RM-Z250's renowned handling to deliver a top-ten moto result in the second moto. It was Schwartz's best moto result of the year and earned Schwartz his season-best overall result. 

"High Point was a step in the right direction," reported Schwartz. "In the first moto, I didn't have a great start and didn't ride the track well at all, but still managed a 14th. In the second moto, I had a top-ten start and rode much better, ending up ninth. We are getting better each weekend, and we just have to keep the ball rolling and continue improving!"

Chase Yentzer used his RM-Z250 to take his career-best overall result and match his career-best moto result. 

"High Point is my hometown race, and the day was a success," said Yentzer. "In the first moto, I came out of the second corner in the top ten. I had a setback on the first lap so it was a challenge. I fell a few times but overall am proud of finishing 17th. In the second moto, I again had a great start and stayed in the top 15 for the first half of the moto. I ended the second moto in 17th which gave me 17th overall. It was chaotic with the track’s muddy conditions. My mechanic and team did a fantastic job, and I had a great experience for my first High Point National!"

"We welcomed Ken Roczen back to racing and he rode great," said Progressive Insurance ECSTAR Suzuki Team Manager Larry Brooks. "The track was really tough. We had a lot of rain before the event, and it was definitely on the muddy side with a hard base, which makes for really difficult conditions – not necessarily with the bike setup but more from the riders' standpoint. Ken Roczen was the fastest qualifier Saturday morning, so we were excited going into the motos. We had Freddie Noren racing, and Freddie did pretty well. He went 14-10 giving him 12th overall. But Ken Roczen actually stole the day. The fans absolutely love him. Being Father's Day weekend and Ken being a new father, it was really cool to watch from the outside. In the first moto, Ken started in fourth place, went to first place, and rode in first place for a while. He and another rider had a really good battle back and forth and then Ken tucked the front end and fell. He ended up finishing 7th in that first moto. Then in the second moto, Ken holeshotted the race and led it for quite a while. That other rider did come up, and they battled again, as in the first moto, and Ken finished second. 7-2 moto finishes gave him second overall. We had some luck with other riders not being consistent, but hey, that's part of racing. Now we have a weekend off and then we go to England for the first World Supercross event."

"The team had a great day," said Toyota of Redlands BarX Suzuki Team Manager Buddy Antunez. "Derek, Dillon, and Chase really came to Mt. Morris ready to race. I'm happy with the results and it has the team wanting more. The track conditions were tricky, so you would think we would make a lot of changes, but we didn't! We had a great week of testing coming into the race, so as a team, we only had to decide on what Dunlop rear tire to run."

The AMA Pro Motocross series takes one weekend off then returns with the traditional July 4th Holiday weekend race at RedBud MX in Buchanan, Michigan. The Twisted Tea Suzuki and Toyota of Redlands BarX Suzuki teams are eager to get back into the battle. Ken Roczen begins his title defense in the World Supercross Championship with round one in Villa Park in Birmingham, England on July 1 to kick off the six-round World Supercross Championship series. 

For more team news, and the latest from the Motocross season and SMX World Championship series, please visit SuzukiCycles.com/Racing/Motocross and HEPMotorsports.com. 

Photos by BrownDogWilson Photography