2025 SuperMotocross 450 Countdown, No. 8: Ken Roczen

Ken Roczen is one of dirt bike racing’s proof that age is truly just a number. In a brutal sport where many riders retire in their 20s, Roczen will turn 32 halfway through the 2026 Monster Energy Supercross season.

Roczen was third in the points standings following Round 15 in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, when he decided to take the final two rounds off to allow a lingering ankle injury to heal. At the time, he was 54 points behind the leader, Cooper Webb, and mathematically eliminated from the championship.

Advertisement

Roczen returned for one Pro Motocross race at Unadilla to knock some rust off, but there was never a question of his top-20 seeding in the SuperMotocross World Championship once the playoffs began.

2025 SuperMotocross 450 Countdown, No. 9: Aaron Plessinger

Aaron Plessinger was on target for a career-best season until health issues sidelined him late in 2025.

After falling two positions and finishing fifth in Supercross points and earning points in only one outdoor round, Roczen was seeded 11th for the playoffs and had some ground to make up.

If he felt he had anything to prove, he did so with ease.

Advertisement

He hovered around the fifth-place mark in all three playoff rounds, finishing sixth in the weather-shortened opener at zMax Dragway in Concord, North Carolina, and fourth in St. Louis, Missouri, and Las Vegas, Nevada.

Supercross 2025 results: 450 highlights, finishing order, reaction at Daytona, Ken Roczen is sixth winner

Ken Roczen became the sixth winner of 2025, which tied the record for the most in a Supercross season.

That consistency was enough to rank him fourth in the SMX Playoffs on the heels of a second-place finish in 2023 and a sixth-place finish in 2024. Making this all the more impressive, he finished that well on a bike that lacked full factory support.

Advertisement

Roczen’s tenure with Pipes Motorsports Group has placed them front-of-mind among fans and experts, and Roczen re-signed with the group for 2026. The combination of his age and several injuries over the past few seasons has the rider and team looking year to year.

The highlight of the 2025 season was Roczen’s Daytona Supercross victory. In a field devoid of Eli Tomac and Jett Lawrence, it was clear that a new winner would be crowned, but that does not diminish the accomplishment.

SuperMotocross 450 countdown: No. 10, Justin Barcia and the journey to find balance

Justin Barcia sought a better balance between his natural aggression and a smoother riding style until injury derailed his 2024 journey.

Advertisement

Additionally, Roczen has already amassed four second-place finishes and a fifth podium leading up to the hybrid race. The only time he failed to stand on the box in those first eight rounds was when he finished fourth in San Diego, California, and crashed in Tampa, Florida.

Unfortunately, the ankle slowed Roczen at the end of his Supercross season, and he scored only one more podium in the next five rounds.

Roczen competed in the World Supercross Championship (WSX) to confirm that he was ready for the 2026 SMX schedule. He won the season opener in Argentina and Round 3 in Australia, and had a legitimate shot at the title before he retired and handed his bike over to Colt Nichols.

Roczen’s performance in the SMX Playoffs and in the WSX indicates he will come out of the gates fast in the season opener at Angel Stadium in Anaheim, California.

Advertisement

Ken Roczen 2025 Statistics

SuperMotocross League standings: Fourth
Seeding for SMX Round 1: 11th
Starts: 19
Best finish: Win (Daytona SX)
Wins: 1
Podiums: 7
Top-fives: 14
Top-10s: 18

Supercross average finish: 4.87
Motocross average finish: 13.00
SMX Playoffs average: 4.67
Overall average: 5.26

450 SuperMotocross Countdown

9. Aaron Plessinger
10. Justin Barcia
11. Malcolm Stewart
12. Dylan Ferrandis
13. Justin Hill
14. Joey Savatgy
15. Jason Anderson

250 SuperMotocross Countdown

8. Jordon Smith
9. Michael Mosiman
10. Chance Hymas
11. Drew Adams
12. Levi Kitchen