The 2026 Pro Motocross Championship came to a dramatic close at Ironman Raceway in Crawfordsville, Indiana, as Hunter Lawrence secured his first premier class title and Cole Davies captured the 250SMX championship on his 19th birthday.
The U.S. Army Ironman National Finals Presented by Tucker Freight Lines served as Round 28 and the final stop of the 2026 Monster Energy SMX World Championship regular season. With perfect weather and the largest crowd in the event’s 13-year history, Ironman delivered a finale that carried championship pressure across multiple classes.
In the 450SMX Class, the spotlight centered on Honda HRC Progressive teammates and brothers Hunter Lawrence and Jett Lawrence, who entered the finale separated by just one point. After an unpredictable afternoon of racing, Hunter endured enough chaos to come away with the Edison Dye Cup and his first premier class championship.
The day also belonged to Red Bull KTM Factory Racing’s Jorge Prado, who broke through for his first win on U.S. soil with a dominant 1-1 performance. Prado set the tone early by topping qualifying with a 2:07.134, edging Hunter Lawrence and Jett Lawrence before carrying that speed into both motos.
Moto 1 turned the championship fight sideways almost immediately. Hunter Lawrence grabbed the holeshot, but Haiden Deegan surged into the lead and then went down in front of him. With nowhere to go, Lawrence ran into Deegan, the bikes locked together, and both riders were forced to restart from the back of the field.
Jett Lawrence also found himself buried outside the top 20 after a poor start, creating a tense first moto as both championship contenders worked their way through traffic. While Prado controlled the race out front, Hunter charged from 39th to eighth, while Jett finished 11th.
Prado was never seriously challenged in the opening moto and took the win by 11.5 seconds over RJ Hampshire. Cooper Webb capitalized on a final-turn mistake by Mikkel Haarup to finish third, with Aaron Plessinger rounding out the top five.
Entering the final 450SMX moto of the season, four points separated the Lawrence brothers. Prado again launched to the front, with Hunter and Jett near the lead pack early. Hunter briefly lost traction while running second but kept the bike upright, then later went down and remounted quickly as the title fight continued behind Prado.
In the closing stages, Hunter pressured Jett for third but did not need the pass to secure the championship. He managed the position, allowed the points to play out, and finished fourth while Jett crossed third. Prado completed the sweep with another moto win, while Hunter secured the championship by two points over his younger brother.
The result made Hunter Lawrence the 29th different premier class champion in Pro Motocross history. The Lawrence brothers also became the first siblings in history to win premier class championships.
“I can’t even [put it into words],” Hunter Lawrence said. “I just knew I had to finish behind Jett [in Moto 2]. Most of my work was done in the first moto. It was a tough day for the Lawrences, as you can see, a pretty uncharacteristic day. Thank you to the team, my brother, my family, everyone that supports us. We’re living the American dream and couldn’t do this anywhere else.”
Prado’s sweep gave him his first overall victory in the United States in his 22nd start. Hampshire finished second overall with 2-6 moto scores, while Webb returned to the overall podium in third in what was his final full-time Pro Motocross start.
“This is a dream ending to a racing career at my last ever National,” Webb said. “I got called up to Team USA earlier this week and ended a Cinderella weekend on the podium. I couldn’t have asked for anything better. This feels like a win.”
450SMX Overall Results
- Jorge Prado, KTM (1-1 // 50)
- RJ Hampshire, Husqvarna (2-6 // 38)
- Cooper Webb, Yamaha (3-8 // 34)
- Hunter Lawrence, Honda (8-4 // 32)
- Eli Tomac, KTM (7-5 // 32)
- Jett Lawrence, Honda (11-3 // 31)
- Garrett Marchbanks, Kawasaki (6-7 // 31)
- Aaron Plessinger, KTM (5-9 // 30)
- Haiden Deegan, Yamaha (16-2 // 28)
- Mikkel Haarup, Triumph (4-14 // 26)
450SMX Final Championship Standings
- Hunter Lawrence, Honda – 474
- Jett Lawrence, Honda – 472
- Haiden Deegan, Yamaha – 404
- Jorge Prado, KTM – 401
- RJ Hampshire, Husqvarna – 346
- Garrett Marchbanks, Kawasaki – 296
- Dylan Ferrandis, Ducati – 269
- Cooper Webb, Yamaha – 264
- Mikkel Haarup, Triumph – 246
- Justin Barcia, Ducati – 226
In the 250SMX Class, the season-long championship fight between Monster Energy Yamaha Star Racing’s Cole Davies and Monster Energy Pro Circuit Kawasaki’s Levi Kitchen ended in heartbreak for Kitchen and celebration for Davies.
Davies started the day by setting the fastest time in the opening qualifying session with a 2:10.092, just ahead of Chance Hymas. The title fight took a major turn in Moto 1 when Kitchen went down before the completion of the opening lap and dropped to the back of the field. He eventually pulled out of the moto with a 40th-place finish, which allowed Davies to clinch the championship before the final gate drop.
Up front, Julien Beaumer grabbed the early lead before Hymas recovered from a crash, closed a gap of more than seven seconds, and retook the lead late. Hymas pulled away to win the moto by 26.2 seconds over Beaumer, with Davies finishing third and securing the title.
Kawasaki later announced that Kitchen would sit out the final moto after the Moto 1 incident and undergo further evaluation. With the championship decided, Moto 2 became a fight for the overall win.
Davies led early in the second moto, but Beaumer charged forward and took control with just over 12 minutes remaining. He went on to win by 7.2 seconds over Hymas, with Ryder DiFrancesco third. Beaumer’s 2-1 scores gave him the overall victory, edging Hymas on the second-moto tiebreaker after both riders finished with 47 points.
Davies finished seventh overall, but the title was already his. The New Zealander became the first rider from New Zealand to win an AMA National Championship and the first Kiwi to capture the Gary Jones Cup in 55 years. He also became the third-youngest rider to win a 250SMX Class title across Supercross and Pro Motocross in the same season.
“I expected nothing less than holding this [#1] plate at the end of the year,” Davies said. “Man, what a journey it’s been. I worked my whole life to be where I am now. It was an up and down season, but it was all worth it, and to do it on my birthday is unreal.”
250SMX Overall Results
- Julien Beaumer, KTM (2-1 // 47)
- Chance Hymas, Honda (1-2 // 47)
- Ryder DiFrancesco, Husqvarna (7-3 // 35)
- Landen Gordon, Yamaha (5-6 // 33)
- Pierce Brown, Yamaha (6-7 // 31)
- Drew Adams, Kawasaki (9-5 // 30)
- Cole Davies, Yamaha (3-13 // 29)
- Kayden Minear, Yamaha (8-8 // 28)
- Nate Thrasher, Yamaha (15-4 // 25)
- Michael Mosiman, Yamaha (10-9 // 25)
250SMX Final Championship Standings
- Cole Davies, Yamaha – 407
- Julien Beaumer, KTM – 369
- Levi Kitchen, Kawasaki – 364
- Chance Hymas, Honda – 364
- Ryder DiFrancesco, Husqvarna – 326
- Kayden Minear, Yamaha – 297
- Carson Mumford, KTM – 244
- Jo Shimoda, Honda – 194
- Michael Mosiman, Yamaha – 187
- Drew Adams, Kawasaki – 181
The Ironman National also hosted the final round of the Women’s Motocross Championship Powered by Synchrony, where Lachlan Turner secured her third straight WMX title after a championship-deciding battle with Charli Cannon. Cannon swept the day with 1-1 moto finishes, but Turner overcame adversity in the second moto to finish the job and claim the championship.
The SMX Next – Motocross Scouting Moto Combine also wrapped its summer run at Ironman. Monster Energy Yamaha Star Racing’s Carson Wood and Rockstar Energy Husqvarna’s Landon Gibson split the moto wins, with Wood’s 1-2 effort giving him the overall and a sweep of the summer Combine events.
With the 2026 Monster Energy SMX World Championship regular season complete, the series now turns to the postseason Playoffs and Final, where a combined $1.5 million championship bonus will be on the line across the 450SMX and 250SMX Classes.
2026 SMX Playoffs and Final
- Playoff 1 – September 11-12 – Historic Crew Stadium – Columbus, OH
- Playoff 2 – September 18-19 – Dignity Health Sports Park – Los Angeles, CA
- Final – September 25-26 – Thunder Ridge Nature Arena – Ridgedale, MO
For more information, visit SuperMotocross.com and ProMotocross.com.
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