Roczen delivers a masterful performance at the legendary speedway, securing a statement victory aboard his Suzuki RM-Z450
The Daytona International Speedway delivered great racing for the Monster Energy AMA Supercross Championship, a season that has seen six different winners in just eight rounds. The Florida track held true to legend by presenting a rough and challenging track laid out inside the speedway’s Trioval. Varying dirt types, deep ruts, and high-speed sections showed why the Daytona Supercross stands alone as the toughest Supercross race on the schedule.
Race Highlights:
Progressive Insurance ECSTAR Suzuki
450 Class
Ken Roczen fought his way into the lead and brought home the Daytona Supercross victory.
Twisted Tea Suzuki Presented by Progressive Insurance
450 Class
Colt Nichols delivered his season-best heat race performance.
Kyle Chisholm also earned his season-best heat race result, in same heat as both of his teammates.
Ken Roczen (94) put in an inspiring mid-race charge to grab the lead then hold on for the win at the legendary Daytona Supercross.
Ken Roczen (94) crossed the heat race holeshot stripe in second place and quickly took over the lead down the front straight. Roczen led every lap and earned the heat race win. Roczen grabbed a fourth-place start in the main event. Roczen’s aggressive, early pace usually results in a quick advance through the pack, but instead Roczen held his spot in the early laps at Daytona. Then, before the mid-point, Roczen put on an intense charge that lit up the stadium. In the span of four laps, Ken Roczen powered his Suzuki RM-Z450 past the top three racers and took over the lead. As the rutted track got more challenging and technical, Roczen held a steady pace. Roczen defended a late-race attack and never relinquished the top spot. When the checkered flag flew Roczen had become a Daytona Supercross winner for his first time in eleven attempts. The win also marked Roczen’s 75th 450SX Class podium.
“I honestly can’t believe it,” Roczen said. “I really put my head down, and I had some really good lines. When you make those passes, you have to put your head down or they will retaliate and come back. This is definitely up there as one of my best main event wins ever. It’s pretty surreal, because I’ve actually been pretty far away from it [in the past]. This is round eight and I’ve never really done that good at Daytona, but I really have nothing to lose. I just keep doing my thing and I trust in my decisions and for now it’s paying off.”
Colt Nichols (45) continued his steady progress; in Daytona it produced his season-best heat race result.
Colt Nichols (45) crossed the holeshot stripe in his heat race in a qualifying position. Nichols attacked the track and made passes to secure a better gate pick in the main. When the gate dropped for the Daytona Supercross main event, Nichols put his RM-Z450 into the battle. He held a strong pace as the track broke down and the ruts deepened and was able to deliver a top-15 result.
“I really struggled in the main event,” admitted Nichols. “I rode not even close to my ability, so I was very disappointed in that. But I’ve never actually raced this race before, so it’s a small win for me to make it this this far into the season. But I’ve got be a lot better than I was tonight. We’ll try again next weekend.”
Kyle Chisholm (11) followed his Suzuki teammate forward through the pack to capture his best heat race result of 2025.
Kyle Chisholm (11) had a strong pace early in the day, delivering his season-best qualifying spot from the first A-group qualifying session. Chisholm was on the move in his heat race; he recovered brilliantly from a poor start to claw his way all the way up to his season-best heat race result.
“I’ve been riding really well during the week and feeling really good on the bike, but then just not bringing it to race day,” said Chisholm. “In my heat race I didn’t get off to the best start, but I rode really well. I was happy with the riding. I made a lot of passes and made it right out of the heat race and into the main, which was good. Then unfortunately when it was main event time, I didn’t get off to a good start. I just could not get going, couldn’t get into a rhythm, couldn’t get into a flow, and just wasn’t gelling with the tack. It was a bit frustrating, but overall, the day was still definitely a step in the right direction.”
“Ken Roczen won the main event, which was huge. Winning Daytona is a huge feat no matter who you are or what year it is, and Ken won,” said Larry Brooks, Team Manager for the Twisted Tea/H.E.P. Motorsports/Suzuki presented by Progressive Insurance team. “Colt Nichols was 15th and Kyle Chisholm was 19th. So, all three Suzuki riders were in the main event; it was a good night. We were pretty happy about Ken winning, and we are going to try to stay in this championship hunt until the end. We are 16 points out of the lead right now, so we have a few points to make up after the Tampa mishap, but we will just keep hammering down. I think Colt and Kyle will improve over the next couple weeks, too. The team’s staying in Florida this week and we’ll do some testing. Hopefully Indianapolis next weekend will be just as good.”
The Suzuki riders and team members will take the momentum from the Daytona Supercross victory into Indianapolis for Round 9 inside Lucas Oil Stadium. Ken Roczen has performed well in Indiana with the Suzuki team; Roczen won the Indy Supercross in 2023 and followed that up with a strong second-place result in 2024.
Please visit SuzukiCycles.com/Racing/Motocross and HEPMotorsports.com for more team news.
