Round 15 of the Monster Energy Supercross Championship brought the Dirt Legal DBDRacing WMR KTM crew to the home of the Philadelphia Eagles. What began as a standard race day under clear skies quickly devolved into a classic East Coast mudder.
Our riders arrived in Philly looking to build on the momentum from Cleveland, where Marcus Phelps secured a direct transfer to the Triple Crown mains and Jace Kessler proved his grit by racing through a heavy qualifying wreck. While the rain creates a massive headache for most, our team met the downpour head-on, looking to turn the slick conditions into an advantage.
Anthony Rodriguez
Returning at full strength, Rodriguez proved he has the pace by clocking his best qualifying times of the year. His night was a masterclass in recovery. After stalling his bike during a first-lap collision in the heat race, he fought from the back of the pack to finish 12th. A similar stall in the LCQ hampered his momentum, though he still managed to claw back to 14th before the checkers flew.
Jace Kessler
Kessler continues to show the kind of grit that defines a garage-built privateer. Still recovering from a hard hit in Cleveland, he put in solid qualifying laps to secure a spot in the night show. During the LCQ, Kessler suffered a poor start that left him in 19th on the first lap. He spent the rest of the race picking off riders, eventually climbing to 9th and narrowly missing the transfer.
- Qualifying: 25th
- Heat: 13th
- LCQ: 9th
Marcus Phelps
Phelps entered Philly with momentum, breaking into the elite Group A qualifying sessions. He launched into Heat 1 with a massive start, holding down 4th place and looking like a lock for the Main Event. However, a few small slips and a final-corner tangle forced him into the LCQ. Excessive wheelspin on the gate in the final race made for a tough uphill battle that ended his night early.
- Qualifying: 30th
- Heat: 11th
- LCQ: 17th
Jaxen Driskell
It was a welcome sight to see the 143 back on the track. Driskell focused on finding his flow after some time away from the gate. He showed consistent improvement with every session, culminating in an 8th-place finish in the LCQ. His ability to navigate the deteriorating track conditions marks a solid step forward as he regains his race pace.
The Final Push
The Philadelphia mud is a great equalizer, but it’s a cruel teacher. While the box scores don’t show the full extent of the speed our riders found, the effort was undeniable. We are leaving the paperwork and the “what-ifs” behind as we focus on the final gate drop. The team now hauls West for the season finale in Salt Lake City to finish the year on a high note.
Dirt Legal is proud to be the title sponsor of The Dirt Legal DBDRacing WMR KTM team. Our grassroots are in the dirt bike world, which is what initially motivated us to start Dirt Legal, as we wanted fellow dirt bikers to have the freedom to enjoy their bikes on the trail and on the roads.
For Dirt Legal, this renewed presence in the dirt bike racing world represents a strategic expansion of the motorsports family. The partnership aligns with Dirt Legal’s audience and provides additional resources within the ecosystem, offering opportunities to expand relationships with other team sponsors and provide resources to the community.
As experts who can make almost anything with a motor street-legal, including a favorite dirt bike, this move reinforces Dirt Legal’s role in fueling the culture of motorsports, building upon the existing support for the Dirt Legal Velocity Offshore Racing Team.
