Eli Tomac defiant after his history-making win at Daytona, and what it means to his title tilt
By Team TMX on 8th Mar 21
AMA Supercross Eli Tomac Daytona
Round 9 of the Monster Energy AMA Supercross, an FIM World Championship arrived at Daytona International Speedway where Kawasaki showed its championship character sweeping both classes for the third year in a row.
Monster Energy Kawasaki rider Eli Tomac captured his record-tying fifth victory at Daytona Supercross, while Monster Energy/Pro Circuit/Kawasaki rider Cameron McAdoo captured his first career 250SX win with team-mates Jordon Smith and Seth Hammaker finishing 10th and 11th respectively.
Despite rain and lightning causing a delay in the schedule early in the day, Tomac didnt let that stop him from laying down an electric lap time of 1:09.2 and qualifying first in the first timed session. Tomac went on to qualify third overall for the day.
450SX Heat 2 saw Tomac in third out of the gate, where he battled both for the lead and the challenging track eventually finishing in third.
As the gate dropped on the 450SX Main Event, the #1 KX450 charged out of the starting gate aggressively and took the lead by the second turn of the first lap. Tomac continued showing great speed as he led the race for all 18 laps from start to chequers, earning his second win of the season.
Fun
Saturdays win marks the third consecutive year Kawasaki has won Daytona Supercross and Tomacs fifth time to claim the top spot, tying Ricky Carmichael for the most wins of all-time at the legendary Daytona International Speedway.
Eli Tomac
"That was fun," declared Tomac. "I always enjoy riding at Daytona and its always been good to me.
"I was pretty strategic when picking my gate in the Main because I was watching the other class and heat races and realised the inside might be my best shot at getting up front, which is exactly what I did. I fought for it too. Once I got out front, I wasnt looking back.
Has the champ found his groove?
To say it was make-or-break time for Tomac is hyperbole especially when you consider we have a tripleheader at Arlington coming up as a refresher, Tomac has won two of the last three rounds held at AT&T Stadium (2018 and 2020). But a turnaround of results was needed. Daytona is his house so it's not surprising he found joy on the track.
Interestingly though, he strongly hinted that something else may have been found between the previous round and Daytona. "Were still in this championship, so Im not going down without a fight. I think weve found a good groove and Im looking forward to our next stop in Dallas. Im grateful for all the hard work and support from my entire Monster Energy Kawasaki team, I couldnt have done this without them, especially five times!"
Tomac posts his celebration number five!
"Oh ya! No place like Daytona! We somehow dodged a muddy track the whole day and it turned into its usual beast. Still hard to believe this was number 5!"
Tomac's stunning Daytona lid
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