2023 DETROIT SUPERCROSS HIGHLIGHTS! CHASE SEXTON WINS AND LOSES

Aaron Plessinger was on his way to his first-ever AMA 450 Supercross victory when he caught his foot in the rutted face of a small jump and was ejected. He hit hard, while his bike was twisted and Chase Sexton went on to get the win. But, Sexton had jumped the Red Cross flags, which is a major safety no-no. After the race, Sexton was penalized 7 points for doubling in the Red Cross zone. So, instead of 26 points for winning, he only got 19 points. However, the AMA let him keep the win because they don’t feel like the fans in the stadium and at home should see a rider win only to find that that the win was taken away later. Now you might ask, why they just don’t fine the guilty rider $15,000. The reason is that the win can be worth as much as $150,00 to the rider in bonuses and purse money. So, who wouldn’t jump the Red Flags if the upside was a small fine compared to winning a lot of money (plus, in many of these cases in the past, the teams paid the fine, not the rider). Points are the only penalty that hits home with riders and teams (and the penalty is assessed as a learning experience for the riders so that he doesn’t do it again).

Plus, this is a safety rule, and the riders cannot bend the rule to match their on-the-fly assessment of the situation.  

\