A humble dude from La Moille, Illinois, has locked down a premier-class AMA Supercross title for Honda, landing the experience of a lifetime and winning back Honda’s reputation as a heavyweight contender in the AMA Supercross Premier class.
This year marks Honda’s first success on the top podium since Ricky Carmichael swung a leg over for the team 20 years ago; those glory days might be in the past, but it’s thanks to Chase Sexton that Big Red gets another bite of that SX medal – an event that the young rider has purportedly been training for since he was two-and-a-half years old.
“Wow, 2023 450 Supercross Champion – it doesn’t even feel real yet… It’s what I’ve worked for since I was two-and-a-half years old, when I first got on a dirt bike; since then, this has been the goal,” says an emotional Sexton.
“This year was definitely not easy; I was up-and-down in the middle of the season, but I got four of the last six wins – really came on strong at the end, when I needed to. It means so much to me. I couldn’t ask for a better group of people around me – our team, everybody.”
“I’m super, super thankful and happy.”
Naturally, the laurels aren’t lost on Brandon Wilson (Manager of Sports and Experiential at American Honda), who is well aware that Sexton now joins other icons like Donnie Hansen, David Bailey, Johnny O’Mara, Rick Johnson, Jeff Stanton, Jean-Michel Bayle, and Jeremy McGrath, making this year the 16th time Honda has been champ, ever.
“This has truly been an incredible AMA Supercross season, and Chase’s premier-class title is the cherry on top,” admits Wilson.
“It has been a pleasure to witness Chase develop into the complete package over the past few months, adding consistency and race craft to the outright speed that he has exhibited for some time. As much as anyone, we at Honda know that the level of competition is as high as it gets in this series, so this is truly an impressive accomplishment.”
“On behalf of everyone at American Honda and HRC, as well as Honda dealers, customers and fans, thank you to Chase and the entire team for putting us back on top.”
Stay tuned for more action on May 27th, where the AMA Pro Motocross series will get underway in Pala, California.