Eli Tomac falls to third in overall points in Nashville Supercross

Eli Tomac placed 12th at the recent Supercross races in Nashville. He now sits in third for overall points with four rounds remaining. (Photo courtesy of Red Bull KTM)

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Eli Tomac placed 12th at the recent Supercross races in Nashville. He now sits in third for overall points with four rounds remaining. (Photo courtesy of Red Bull KTM)

Hunter Lawrence and Ken Roczen have moved into first and second place, respectively, while Cortez’s Eli Tomac fell to third in overall points after the 450SX Supercross race in Nashville.

Tomac placed first in Heat 2, a promising start to the day, but a rocky start in the Main Event kept him from reaching the podium. Shane McElrath claimed the holeshot, but was quickly passed by Justin Hill, followed by Roczen and Jorge Prado. Tomac started eighth after getting boxed in, while Lawrence rode in fifth.

Roczen passed Hill around a corner to take the lead on the first lap. Despite the quick move, commentators noted the “stiff” way Roczen was riding and suggested it could cause issues later in the race.

Tomac fell to 13th early, while Lawrence passed McElrath to move into fourth behind Prado. Tomac responded by passing three riders in one lap to climb back to 10th, right behind ninth-place Chase Sexton.

Meanwhile, Lawrence passed Prado and then Hill while clocking the fastest lap of the race. After moving past Hill, Lawrence’s pace allowed him to close on Roczen. The two battled as Lawrence switched lines multiple times in search of an opening, with commentators calling it a “battle of the minds.”

Tomac advanced to eighth before crashing, dropping him back to 11th.

Roczen later made a mistake in a corner, allowing Lawrence to pass him on the inside for the lead. Soon after, Roczen’s bike stalled, opening the door for Hill and Cooper Webb to move past him. Webb and Hill battled briefly before Webb took over second place.

Hill settled into third, just ahead of Roczen. Dylan Ferrandis passed Roczen but rode off the track, allowing Sexton to move through. Tomac slipped back to 12th, where he finished.

With two minutes remaining, Lawrence held a nearly 16-second lead over Webb. Roczen moved back into third.

Lawrence won, followed by Webb in second and Roczen third.

With the victory, Lawrence moved back into first place in the overall standings with 270 points, 15 points ahead of now-third-place Tomac (255). Roczen sits second with 260 points.

Tomac said he felt strong and comfortable with his setup throughout the day but was frustrated by his gate choice, poor start and a crash in the Main Event.

“That bad start really put me in a tough spot from the get-go and I had my work cut out for me trying to make passes on such a slick, tight track. I lost a bunch of points today, but all I can do at this point is ride my best at the remaining rounds and let the chips fall where they may.”

In Heat 1, Justin Cooper won, followed by Lawrence and Webb. Heat 2 was won by Tomac, with Malcolm Stewart second and Prado third. Roczen finished fourth.

Four races remain. The next race, a Triple Crown, will be held Saturday, April 18, at Huntington Bank Field in Cleveland.