Image: Simon Cudby.

The first race of the 2015 Monster Energy AMA Supercross, an FIM World Championship, took place on Saturday with RCH Soaring Eagle/Jimmy John’s Suzuki’s Ken Roczen and Troy Lee Designs/Lucas Oil KTM’s Jessy Nelson taking the victories.

The 450SX Class main event ultimately proved to be a showcase of dominance for Roczen, who led every lap en route to his second straight win at the Anaheim opener.

Smartop Motoconcepts Racing’s Mike Alessi grabbed the early advantage in the final by racing to the SupercrossLive.com Holeshot Award with BTO Sports KTM’s Andrew Short and Roczen in tow.

Both riders wasted little time in moving past Alessi, with Short holding the top spot briefly before Roczen made what would be the winning pass on the opening lap.

While Roczen pulled away out front, some of his biggest contenders endured misfortune, most notably Monster Energy Kawasaki’s Davi Millsaps and GEICO Honda’s Eli Tomac, each of who fell twice in the main.

Short’s hold on second was also short lived as rookie Jason Anderson moved into second aboard his Rockstar Energy Husqvarna Factory Racing machine on lap two in his very first 450SX Class start. Eventually Team Honda’s Trey Canard took third away from Short on lap nine and the top three remained the same for the final 11 laps.

The win was the third of Roczen’s career, but it signified the first for his Ricky Carmichael and Carey Hart-owned team. It was Roczen’s first start for the squad after moving away from Red Bull KTM in the off-season.

“Everything has been awesome with the team and it’s good to get first win out of the way, both for myself and for them,” said Roczen. “There are a lot of good guys out there so I’ll need to stay consistent. It’s good to come out of here healthy and we’ll just keep the ball rolling.”

Other championship contenders finished solidly inside the top 10, including Red Bull KTM’s Ryan Dungey in fourth and Autotrader.com/Toyota/Yamaha’s Justin Barcia in sixth. Two-time champion Chad Reed finished 10th aboard his Discount Tire Racing/TwoTwo Motorsports Kawasaki.

Of the remaining Australians, Brett Metcalfe rode his Suzuki into the main event with an eventual 17th place finish, while Australian champion Matt Moss exited the evening via a 10th in the LCQ. Both Adam Monea and Jake Moss were non-starters after sustaining injuries in the lead-up.

With the win, Roczen holds a three-point lead over Anderson in the early 450SX Class standings, while Canard sits five points behind.

Troy Lee Designs/Lucas Oil KTM’s Jessy Nelson broke through for his first victory in the first Western Regional 250SX Class main event of the season.

Nelson captured the SupercrossLive.com Holeshot Award ahead of GEICO Honda’s Matt Bisceglia and Rockstar Energy Husqvarna Factory Racing’s Zach Osborne. The advantage Nelson garnered with the holeshot proved to be all he needed as he went on to lead all 15 laps of the Main Event and secure the first victory of his career in his 16th career start.

“This is a great way to start season and hopefully there’s more to come,” said Nelson. “It was a great night and I can’t complain. I think the team’s switch to KTM has been huge and I think it’s a big part of this. This is just a big shock.”

Behind Nelson, Osborne asserted himself into second and ultimately maintained the runner-up spot throughout the entirety of the final. The battle for third however became a three-rider showdown in the early stages between Motosport.com Kawasaki’s Josh Hansen, Red Bull KTM’s Justin Hill and Monster Energy/Pro Circuit/Kawasaki’s Tyler Bowers.

Hill was able to make the move past Hansen for the position on lap four and Bowers followed suit a short time later. Hill appeared to have a comfortable margin over Bowers, but the reigning four-time AMSOIL Arenacross Champion closed the gap and eventually made the pass on lap 10, carrying it through to the finish to claim the final spot on the podium.

North Queenslander Jackson Richardson was the lone Australian in the 250SX ranks at A1, missing out on a main event berth after finishing ninth in the LCQ.

Nelson sits three points ahead of Osborne in the Western Regional 250SX Class standings and five points ahead of Bowers.

Monster Energy Supercross continues this weekend with its second stop of the 17-race season from Phoenix at Chase Field.

2015 Monster Energy Supercross, an FIM World Championship
Round one – Anaheim 1, CA

450SX Class results:
1. Ken Roczen
2. Jason Anderson
3. Trey Canard
4. Ryan Dungey
5. Andrew Short
6. Justin Barcia
7. Weston Peick
8. Broc Tickle
9. Mike Alessi
10. Chad Reed (AUS)
17. Brett Metcalfe (AUS)

450SX Class championship standings:
1. Ken Roczen 25
2. Jason Anderson 22
3. Trey Canard 20
4. Ryan Dungey 18
5. Andrew Short 16
6. Justin Barcia 15
7. Weston Peick 14
8. Broc Tickle 13
9. Mike Alessi 12
10. Chad Reed (AUS) 11
17. Brett Metcalfe (AUS) 4

Western Regional 250SX Class results:
1. Jessy Nelson
2. Zach Osborne
3. Tyler Bowers
4. Justin Hill
5. Aaron Plessinger
6. Shane McElrath
7. Cooper Webb
8. Alex Martin
9. Josh Hansen
10. Michael Leib

Western Regional 250SX Class championship standings:
1. Justin Nelson 25
2. Zach Osborne 22
3. Tyler Bowers 20
4. Justin Hill 18
5. Aaron Plessinger 16
6. Shane McElrath 15
7. Cooper Webb 14
8. Alex Martin 13
9. Josh Hansen 12
10. Michael Leib 11

Click here for detailed results