If on Saturday evening in\u00a0Angel Stadium\u00a0When the starting gate drops, it’s about much more than just another tick on the race calendar.\u00a0Anaheim 2\u00a0This has repeatedly been a turning point in the past \u2013 sometimes the starting signal for title dreams, sometimes the first real warning sign. The numbers speak for themselves: Whoever performs well here usually plays a major role at the end of the season.<\/p>\n
450SX: Tomac and the pursuit of history<\/p>\n
With two wins in the first two rounds of the AMA Supercross season,\u00a0So Tomac\u00a0He made his mark early. His 55th victory in the 450SX class brings him further towards legendary status: only seven more podium finishes to match Jeremy McGrath’s record, 17 wins to break the all-time record. What’s striking is that in his previous title-winning years, Tomac never started the season so dominantly. 2026 is different. Two races, two wins \u2013 a clear statement. Anaheim 2 could now make him the first KTM rider to achieve a complete Anaheim sweep.<\/p>\n
But the competition isn’t sleeping.<\/p>\n
Hunter Lawrence: constant, calm, dangerous<\/p>\n
Hunter Lawrence\u00a0He established himself as a factor early on. Second place in San Diego was not only his best result to date in the 450SX class, but also brought him to within ten points of the lead. Lawrence rides unspectacularly, but extremely efficiently \u2013 exactly this kind of performance often pays off in Anaheim.<\/p>\n
Ken Roczen: Stability instead of question marks<\/p>\n
For\u00a0Ken Roczen\u00a0This season start feels unusually familiar. He last achieved two podium finishes at the opening round in 2019. At the same time, he continues to climb the all-time rankings. That Suzuki is on the podium for the first time in over ten years in the first two rounds is no coincidence \u2013 Roczen seems to have arrived and remains firmly in the title race.<\/p>\n
The chasing pack<\/p>\n
Chase Sexton continues to rack up solid top-five finishes and is statistically climbing the ranks. Joey Savatgy, Justin Cooper, and others are consistently scoring. Nothing is decided yet \u2013 but experience shows that Anaheim 2 can quickly separate ambition from reality.<\/p>\n
250SX: Deegan, print and the familiar pattern<\/p>\n
In the 250SX class, Anaheim 2 is traditionally considered a key race. In almost two-thirds of all seasons, the A2 winner later went on to win the title \u2013 a pattern that was recently confirmed again.<\/p>\n
Haiden Deegan: Numbers that generate attention<\/p>\n
Haiden Deegan\u00a0He arrives with the red plate \u2013 and with impressive statistics. His latest victory also marked his 75th start in the SMX League, remarkably early in his career. Add to that his eighth 250SX win, which already puts him in the top 25 of the all-time standings. Across all leagues, he boasts 26 wins and 50 podium finishes \u2013 a record achieved by only 52 riders in the history of the 250SX class. Adding to the intrigue: Deegan leads the championship by just one point over teammate Max Anstie, whom he in San Diego from the moped<\/a>, on. This very constellation gives Anaheim 2 additional tension. <\/p>\n In 62 percent of all seasons, the A2 winner also went on to win the West Coast title \u2013 a scenario Deegan already capitalized on in 2025. Anaheim 2 could once again be the pivotal moment of his season.<\/p>\n The hunters in position<\/p>\n Cameron McAdoo made an impressive comeback after a disappointing start in San Diego, securing another podium finish. Michael Mosiman is quietly but steadily working his way up the standings. Despite some lackluster results, Levi Kitchen is only a few points behind. And Max Anstie? Just one point back \u2013 that’s all the motivation he needs.<\/p>\n Why Anaheim 2 is different<\/p>\n Anaheim 2 has been more than just round two on the calendar for years. In both the 450SX and 250SX classes, history shows a clear pattern: whoever wins here often ends up holding the championship title. Add to that the rarity of a sweep \u2013 only five riders have ever managed to win all the Anaheim races in a single season. Should Tomac achieve this, it would be more than just a statistical milestone.<\/p>\n And then there’s the mental factor. Mistakes in Anaheim often cost more than points. They cost momentum, confidence \u2013 sometimes even the belief in one’s own title aspirations.<\/p>\n Anaheim 2 is no ordinary race. It’s an early test of form, nerves, and ambitions. Tomac can make history, Lawrence and Roczen are hot on his heels, and the 250SX class could already reveal who will be in control of the championship.<\/p>\n On Saturday night, it will become clear who is ready for the next step \u2013 and who is just participating in the title race.<\/p>\n Heim 2 Supercross Schedule <\/p>\n (Information provided without guarantee)<\/p>\n Qualifying (CET)<\/p>\n 18:30 \u2013 18:42\u00a0250SX Group C Qualifying<\/p>\n 18:47 \u2013 18:59\u00a0250SX Group B Qualifying<\/p>\n 19:04 \u2013 19:16\u00a0250SX Group A Qualifying<\/p>\n 19:21 \u2013 19:33\u00a0450SX Group A Qualifying<\/p>\n 19:38 \u2013 19:50\u00a0450SX Group B Qualifying<\/p>\n 19:55 \u2013 20:07\u00a0450SX Group C Qualifying<\/p>\n 21:15 \u2013 21:27\u00a0250SX Group C Qualifying<\/p>\n 21:32 \u2013 21:44\u00a0250SX Group B Qualifying<\/p>\n 21:49 \u2013 22:01\u00a0250SX Group A Qualifying<\/p>\n 22:06 \u2013 22:18\u00a0450SX Group A Qualifying<\/p>\n 22:23 \u2013 22:35\u00a0450SX Group B Qualifying<\/p>\n 22:40 \u2013 22:52\u00a0450SX Group C Qualifying<\/p>\n Evening show & race (CET)<\/p>\n (Night from Saturday to Sunday)<\/p>\n 01:06 \u2013 01:14\u00a0250SX Heat #1<\/p>\n 01:20 \u2013 01:28\u00a0250SX Heat #2<\/p>\n 01:34 \u2013 01:42\u00a0450SX Heat #1<\/p>\n 01:48 \u2013 01:56\u00a0450SX Heat #2<\/p>\n 02:20 \u2013 02:27\u00a0250SX Last Chance Qualifier<\/p>\n 02:32 \u2013 02:39\u00a0450SX Last Chance Qualifier<\/p>\n 02:53 \u2013 03:10\u00a0250SX Main Event<\/p>\n 03:29 \u2013 03:51\u00a0450SX Main Event<\/p>\n \t\tPost navigation<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"If on Saturday evening in\u00a0Angel Stadium\u00a0When the starting gate drops, it’s about much more than just another tick…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":146371,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[36],"tags":[63647,163,165,164],"class_list":["post-146370","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-anaheim","tag-ama-supercross","tag-anaheim","tag-anaheim-headlines","tag-anaheim-news"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/146370","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=146370"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/146370\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/146371"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=146370"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=146370"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=146370"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}