Why Ken Roczen crashed at San Diego Supercross

Team Honda HRC would argue that Saturday’s San Diego Supercross round was a mixed night for the Factory outfit, after all, Cole Seely did lead the Main Event for half of the race, finishing fourth when the chequered flag dropped.

But what happened to team-mate Ken Roczen washed away any positives. The crash with Cooper Webb and the resulting hand and possibly other injuries was not only a blow to the team’s championship ambitions but also “devastated” Roczen.

Roczen offered some hope to his faithful fans with an injury update yesterday that suggested a chance that he would return to racing sooner than what some had thought likely. “Surgery on Friday on my hand,” he posted on his social media page. “Will give an update as soon as I get a CT scan. Dunlop tires hook up great! Might be able to be back pretty quick. Will know more soon.”

Although Roczen just wants to forget about his weekend in San Diego he has now offered his explanation for the crash with Webb. And I think what’s most positive about the statement is his thoughts for his team. “I’m completely devastated with the outcome of tonight,” he said via a press release. “The first thing I thought about on the ground was my team and all the hard work we’ve put in to get back to this point.”

You could argue it’s pr spin but I think it’s genuinely heartfelt.

Roczen then explained why he crashed: “I came into the corner with good speed, got on the gas, and then caught a ton of traction in the rut, lost my balance, and whiskey-throttled the bike into [Cooper] Webb. My arm went in between his wheel and swingarm. We’ve already made the necessary calls to Dr. Viola and are going to get everything fixed up so I can get back out there as soon as possible.”

It was a tough night for the German right from the very first corner of the Main Event – a first-turn crash left him virtually last on the opening lap. Then on lap three came that attempted pass on Webb. Roczen was evaluated by the Alpinestars Mobile Medical Unit, where it was determined that he has a fracture to the second metacarpal in his right hand.

Team Manager, Erik Kehoe, said: “It was a rough night for Kenny. Looking at the way his arm got sucked into the wheel though, it could’ve been worse, so we’re grateful it wasn’t. We’ll see what the doctor says about his hand this week and find out what the prognosis and recovery time is.”

We are now waiting on what the CT scan showed yesterday. We may need to wait until after the surgery on Friday (February 16) for news, although Ken did say he would offer an update sooner.

There are still plenty of rounds left in the 2018 Monster Energy Supercross Championship but Roczen is now 39 points behind leader Jason Anderson – he needs some great news this week. And after all the hard work to get back to the top following his injury last year, the guy deserves good fortune to smile on him.

Keep it locked to dirtbikerider.com for more news as we get it.

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2018 450SX Class AMA Supercross Championship Standings after San Diego

1. Jason Anderson, Rio Rancho, N.M., Husqvarna (141)
2. Justin Barcia, Greenville, Fla., Yamaha (113)
3. Cole Seely, Newbury Park, Calif., Honda (106)
4. Ken Roczen, Clermont, Fla., Honda (102)
5. Blake Baggett, Grand Terrance, Calif., KTM (99)
6. Justin Brayton, Mint Hill, N.C., Honda (99)
7. Weston Peick, Menifee, Calif., Suzuki (98)
8. Marvin Musquin, Clermont, Fla., KTM (96)
9. Joshua Grant, Wildomar, Calif., Kawasaki (83)
10. Broc Tickle, Holly, Mich., KTM (82)