The 2018 Monster Energy AMA Supercross an FIM World Championship comes down to the final round in Las Vegas, Nevada this Saturday night with 14 points separating Jason Anderson and Marvin Musquin.
This is an interesting matchup for a variety of reasons. Primarily, the two title hopefuls are riding and training partners under the Baker’s Factory umbrella. In addition, the two established an early season rivalry after Anderson made an aggressive block pass on Musquin, sending the Frenchman to the ground at Round 5 in Oakland. The two didn’t mince words during the post-race press conference and things appeared to be a bit icy.
Anderson went on a mission after picking up the Round 5 victory and pulled out to an eventual lead of over 30 points. However, as the season has begun to wind down, Musquin has gotten hot, winning the last two races heading into the finals in Las Vegas. Meanwhile, Anderson placed 17th last time out and, all of the sudden, that little rivalry back at Round 5 is now a full blown head-to-head matchup for the Supercross Championship.
Let’s take a look at the stats between the two title contenders:
Marvin Musquin:
Laps led: 99
Average Qualifying: 6.4
Holeshots: 2
Average Finish: 3.2
Wins: 4
Jason Anderson:
Laps led: 27
Average Qualifying: 4.1
Holeshots: 0
Average Finish: 3.6
Wins: 4
As you can see, Musquin has led over three times as many laps as Anderson and has two holeshots to accompany his 4 victories. One has to think back to Round 2 in Houston, where Musquin missed the main event with an injured shoulder. If he were able to have somehow started that main event and scored 10 points, like he did at Round 3, well, we would be looking at a much tighter picture.
Meanwhile, Anderson has put together a spectacular season. His 4 wins and only 2 finishes outside the top four have planted him in the driver’s seat for the title. That said, he was only able to score 6 points last weekend, while losing 20 to Musquin. This could create a bit of a panic scenario for Jason and only time will tell.
More Numbers:
There are 441 possible combinations of finishes between Anderson and Musquin (21 x 21). In 403 of them (91.4%), Anderson would be the Champion. Musquin would be the Champion in only 38 scenarios (8.6%). So, if you are a betting person, the odds are certainly in favor of Anderson wrapping the title up Saturday night. But, the 2018 Monster Energy Supercross Championship has been wildly unpredictable.
When it comes to Sam Boyd Stadium, both Anderson and Musquin have stellar recent history with Jason being the defending event winner, and Marvin being the 2017 Monster Energy Cup Million Dollar Champion.
14 points. Two men. 1 Championship trophy. The stage is set for a head-to-head battle to remember.