This week, the TPJ Racing team returned to Angel Stadium of Anaheim to compete at A2, the third round of Monster Energy Supercross.
Our time in California has continued to be plagued with rain and cloudy skies. A stroke of good fortune brought clear skies on game day, and the TPJ Crew was excited for the day ahead.
Thanks to the good weather, the pit party was packed with thousands of fans. With all of our riders here this week, the TPJ Crew put on a meet and greet with the fans. Fans got the chance to meet TPJ Racing riders and see their bikes up close and personal.
This week, we welcomed Broc Shoemaker to the TPJ Racing team. He will be competing in the 250 West coast class. He charged through qualifying and made it directly into the night show. He got caught up in the chaos of the first heat, and found himself in the LCQ. Shoemaker was on the cusp of qualifying for the main event when he was cleaned out by another rider. Team owner Ted Parks commented on the vast improvement and dedication that Shoemaker has shown in the past few weeks. The TPJ Racing team is excited to see what Shoemaker does with the rest of the west coast season.
The TPJ Racing team had several riders fighting to qualify for the 450 main event at Angel Stadium. Chad Cook is still recovering from an ankle injury at round one and narrowly missed the night event in qualifying. Dustin Pipes, Nick Schmidt and Tyler and Adam Enticknap all qualified for the night show.
In the first semi, Nick Schmidt finished in seventh place. He couldn’t quite make a pass on Vince Friese, but managed to keep Cade Clason behind him until the finish. Although the seventh place finish was commendable, Schmidt was headed to the LCQ. In the second semi, Adam Enticknap held steady in seventh and fought to catch up to Dean Wilson and Jimmy Albertson. Dustin Pipes finished in ninth place, not far behind Adam, and Tyler finished in 15th, after a spill caught him off guard.
The LCQ was the highlight of the night – TPJ Racing rider Adam Enticknap slipped quickly into second position and battled to catch Vince Friese while holding off Ronnie Stewart and TPJ teammate Nick Schmidt. Supercross fans went crazy as Adam qualified for his first main event of the season, and as Schmidt made a last minute pass on Stewart before the finish line. Both Schmidt and Enticknap qualified for the night show.
After an intense day of racing, the gate finally dropped on the night show. Adam and Nick were quick out of the gate but a pile up in the first turn slowed the field down. Enticknap came out of the first turn in 12th and he and Schmidt kept their paces for nearly the entire race.
After this weekend the riders have been able to analyze and adapt their strategies to make progress on their main event game. Based on the performance of all of our athletes, it is very clear that they all have the potential to make the main event despite the incredibly stacked field of factory riders and veterans. We are looking forward to seeing their progress in between now and the next stop at Glendale, AZ for the fourth round of Monster Energy Supercross.
The TPJ Racing team wants to extend a thank you to all of the sponsors who have supported us and continue to do so. You all give us the ability to help these riders be competitive week after week.
TPJ RACING 