Another Lawrence Victory
The Pro Motocross Championship, sanctioned by AMA Pro Racing, traveled to the “Land of 10,000 Lakes” to begin the second half of the summer campaign, with Round 24 of the 2026 Monster Energy SMX World Championship from the dynamic landscape of Spring Creek MX Park.
The FXR Spring Creek National Presented by Frescados Tortillas produced one of the most unpredictable races of the season, as Honda HRC Progressive’s Hunter Lawrence [#96] prevailed in the 450SMX Class with his fourth win of the season following a 1-1 sweep of the motos that put him in the points lead for the third time in seven races.
In the 250SMX Class, Red Bull KTM Factory Racing’s Julien Beaumer [#13] broke through for his first career victory amidst an afternoon that saw a dramatic shakeup in the championship standings.
450SMX Class
Qualifying
Hunter Lawrence began the day atop the charts in morning qualifying with a time of 1:54.746 in the final session. It was just over a half-second faster than Monster Energy Yamaha Star Racing’s Haiden Deegan [#38], who led the way initially in the first session and bettered his time in the final session to place second overall at 1:55.364. Championship leader and Honda HRC Progressive rider Jett Lawrence [#1] rounded out the top three at 1:56.591.
Moto 1 [30 Minutes + 2 Laps]
The first moto for the premier class got underway with Jett Lawrence, Deegan, and Red Bull KTM Factory Racing’s Jorge Prado [#26] alongside one another entering the first turn. As the trio pushed wide with Lawrence on the inside, Deegan lost traction with his front tire and went down, which pushed Prado off track. That allowed Hunter Lawrence to slip past everyone on the inside to grab the holeshot and early lead over Jett, with Troy Lee Designs Red Bull Ducati Factory Racing’s Justin Barcia [#51] in third. Deegan reentered at the tail end of the field.
Hunter Lawrence opened up a four-second lead over Jett through the first 10 minutes of the moto as the pair pulled away from Barcia and the rest of the field by nearly 20 seconds. Barcia, meanwhile, was engaged in a spirited battle for third with Rockstar Energy Husqvarna Factory Racing’s RJ Hampshire [#24]. After a brief fight, Hampshire took control of the position.
The top three remained unchanged through the remainder of the moto, as Hunter Lawrence eventually moved out more than 10 seconds clear of Jett, with Hampshire settling in more than 30 seconds back in third. Deegan, meanwhile, was on a torrid charge through the field following his opening lap crash. The rookie impressed as he carved through the star-studded field. As the moto reached its final laps, he was able to break into the top five.
Hunter Lawrence rode to a dominant wire-to-wire win, his seventh moto triumph of the season, by a margin of 16.8 seconds over Jett. Hampshire finished well back in third, with Deegan fourth and Barcia fifth.
Moto 2 [30 Minutes + 2 Laps]
The final moto of the day began with another tremendous start for Hunter Lawrence, who slotted ahead of Jett to sweep the holeshots. Monster Energy Yamaha Star Racing’s Cooper Webb [#2] started third.
Jett applied heavy pressure on the opening lap to try and take the lead from Hunter, which allowed the siblings to pull away from the field. Behind them, Prado made the move around Webb for third, as Hampshire followed through into fourth. Deegan then made the move on his teammate for fifth. It wasn’t long before Deegan stormed past Hampshire for fourth.
Back out front, Hunter Lawrence weathered the pressure of Jett to assert his hold of the lead and establish a two-second gap within the first five minutes. However, Jett regrouped and proceeded to mount another attack just a couple minutes later.
A sibling battle for the lead unfolded as the moto neared the end of its opening 10 minutes. Jett looked for alternate lines and attempted to create passing opportunities at several areas of the track, only for Hunter to fend him off. Jett’s patience and persistence eventually paid off as he made the pass stick. At this point, they sat more than 10 seconds ahead of the rest of the field.
With the Lawrences well out front, a battle for third took shape between Prado and Deegan. The Yamaha rider waited for his opportunity and made quick work of a pass to take control of third. He faced a deficit of nearly 16 seconds to the Lawrences.
Jett Lawrence appeared to have the race well in hand with a lead of more than seven seconds inside the final 10 minutes, but lost traction on the face of a jump and went down. As he fell, the handlebar of his Honda appeared to get stuck in his boot, which hindered his ability to get up. As Hunter reclaimed hold of the lead, Jett eventually got back on his bike, but dropped to fifth place, more than 40 seconds behind the lead. That moved Deegan into second while a battle for third unfolded between Prado and Hampshire.
With the lead in hand, Hunter Lawrence cruised to his eighth moto win of the season by 15.4 seconds over Deegan to complete the sweep. The battle for third between Prado and Hampshire continued down to the final turn, with the Spaniard securing the final podium spot. Jett Lawrence followed in fifth.
Overall
While it wasn’t without pressure, Hunter Lawrence completed his third 1-1 performance of the season for his class-leading fourth win of the summer and the fifth win of his career. He’s in the midst of a 10-race podium streak dating back to last season.
Deegan secured a career-best runner-up finish following an impressive 4-2 effort, for his fourth podium of the season and his third in the past four races.
Despite his misfortune in the final moto, Jett Lawrence rounded out the overall podium in third with 2-5 finishes. While it equals his worst result of the season, it’s the ninth consecutive podium for the defending champion dating back to last season.
Hunter’s win, combined with Jett’s adversity in the second moto, has moved the elder Lawrence back atop the championship standings for the third time this season. He holds a 10-point lead over Jett, for Hunter’s largest advantage of the season thus far. Deegan sits third, 62 points out of the lead.
The victory also allowed Hunter to clinch the top seed for the SMX Playoffs with four rounds remaining in the regular season.
Results & Standings
450SMX Class Overall Results (Moto Finishes // Points)
Hunter Lawrence, Landsborough, Qld., Australia, Honda (1-1 // 50)
Haiden Deegan, Temecula, Calif., Yamaha (4-2 // 40)
Jett Lawrence, Landsborough, Qld., Australia, Honda (2-5 // 39)
RJ Hampshire, Hudson, Fla., Husqvarna (3-4 // 38)
Justin Barcia, Monroe, N.Y., Ducati (5-8 // 31)
Jorge Prado, Lugo, Galicia, Spain, KTM (13-3 // 29)
Dylan Ferrandis, Avignon, France, Ducati (7-9 // 28)
Benny Bloss, Oak Grove, Mo., Beta (10-10 // 24)
Garrett Marchbanks, Coalville, Utah, Kawasaki (15-6 // 23)
Jordon Smith, Belmont, N.C., Triumph (14-7 // 23)
450SMX Class Championship Standings (Race 7 of 11)
Hunter Lawrence, Landsborough, Qld., Australia, Honda - 320
Jett Lawrence, Landsborough, Qld., Australia, Honda - 310
Haiden Deegan, Temecula, Calif., Yamaha - 258
Jorge Prado, Lugo, Galicia, Spain, KTM - 231
RJ Hampshire, Hudson, Fla., Husqvarna - 221
Garrett Marchbanks, Coalville, Utah, Kawasaki - 206
Dylan Ferrandis, Avignon, France, Ducati - 180
Cooper Webb, Newport, N.C., Yamaha - 153
Mikkel Haarup, Silkeborg, Denmark, Triumph - 149
Jordon Smith, Belmont, N.C., Triumph - 126
SMX World Championship Regular Season Standings (Round 24 of 28)
Hunter Lawrence, Landsborough, Qld., Australia, Honda - 666
Cooper Webb, Newport, N.C., Yamaha - 468
Jorge Prado, Lugo, Galicia, Spain, KTM - 423
Dylan Ferrandis, Avignon, France, Ducati - 356
Garrett Marchbanks, Coalville, Utah, Kawasaki - 353
Ken Roczen, Mattstedt, Germany, Suzuki - 349
Justin Cooper, Cold Spring Harbor, N.Y., Yamaha - 323
Jett Lawrence, Landsborough, Qld., Australia, Honda - 310
Eli Tomac, Cortez, Colo., KTM - 298
Chase Sexton, La Moille, Ill., Kawasaki - 298
450SMX Class Championship Standings
Combined 450SMX Class Regular Season Standings
Quotes
1st Place – Hunter Lawrence | #96 Team Honda HRC Progressive (1-1)
“I got my doors blown off in the second moto. I honestly had no idea Jett crashed. He was flying. I’m happy it worked out, but it’s time to go chill now.”
2nd Place – Haiden Deegan | #38 Monster Energy Yamaha Star Racing (4-2)
“The track was gnarly. I screwed myself in the first moto, but it’s all good. Another completed round, P2 overall. It’s good to keep putting strong finishes on the board. I’m not going to quit trying to get better. Bring it on.”
3rd Place – Jett Lawrence | #1 Team Honda HRC Progressive (2-5)
“I was feeling so good. I had my lines picked out and felt comfortable. A lapper took my focus off for a moment and my bike grabbed going up the jump and that was it. It’s such a bummer. We lost some points to Hunter, but we’ll come back to try and be just a little bit better.”
250SMX Class
Qualifying
The Monster Energy Pro Circuit Kawasaki duo of Drew Adams [#35] and Levi Kitchen [#47] led the way in each respective timed session, with Adams’ lap of 1:57.950 ultimately resulting in his first pole position of the season and the second of his career. He edged out Kitchen’s 1:58.148 by a mere tenth of a second, with points leader and Monster Energy Yamaha Star Racing rider Cole Davies [#37] in third with a time of 1:59.479.
Moto 1 [30 Minutes + 2 Laps]
The first moto of the afternoon started with a frightening multi-rider pileup that collected both Kitchen and Davies, the top two riders in the championship. Fortunately, both were able to remount and get back into the race, albeit outside the top 30. Out front, Monster Energy Yamaha Star Racing’s Kayden Minear [#99] earned the holeshot and moved into the lead ahead of Toyota Redlands BarX Yamaha’s Parker Ross [#40].
As Minear looked to take advantage of his opportunity to pace the field the attention shifted to Davies and Kitchen as they followed one another in a run through the field. They easily charged up the running order, breaking into the top 15 just 10 minutes into the moto.
Back up front, Monster Energy Yamaha Star Racing’s Michael Mosiman [#23] fought his way into the lead with a little more than 20 minutes left on the race clock after passes around Ross and Minear. Not long after, Monster Energy Yamaha Star Racing’s Nate Thrasher [#25] moved into the top three.
As the moto reached its halfway point, Davies lost power on his Yamaha and came to a stop on the racetrack, ending his moto. It was later confirmed he ran out of fuel due to a hole in his gas tank caused by the crash in the first turn. Kitchen, meanwhile, made his way into the top 10 and looked to continue moving forward.
The battle for the podium took another turn when Beaumer, who started seventh, fought his way into the top three with a pass on Thrasher. Beaumer continued his push and made quick work on a pass around Minear for second. With about seven minutes left in the moto, Beaumer faced a 6.3 second deficit to Mosiman.
As time ran out on the race clock and the 2 Lap board showing, Beaumer closed within 2.5 seconds of Mosiman. He charged to the rear fender of the Yamaha to initiate a battle for the lead. Mosiman responded to try and keep the KTM at bay. They ran side-by-side on the final lap as Beaumer was able to wrestle his way into the lead.
Beaumer carried on to take the first moto win of career by eight tenths of a second over Mosiman, with Minear in third. Thrasher finished fourth, while Rockstar Energy Husqvarna Factory Racing’s Daxton Bennick [#58] rounded out the top five. Kitchen put in a resilient effort to finish eighth, while Davies’ DNF placed him 38th.
Moto 2 [30 Minutes + 2 Laps]
The second and deciding moto kicked off with Minear out front for a sweep of the holeshots over Mosiman and Beaumer. Davies started fifth while Kitchen started in 15th.
Minear inched away with a lead of just over a second over Mosiman, while Beaumer applied heavy pressure from third. Davies moved up to fourth and looked to make his way into the top three.
As the first five minutes passed, Mosiman made a push forward to challenge Minear for the lead. Behind him, Davies went down while running fourth and remounted in eighth. Moments later, Mosiman crashed out of the race from second while Davies went down again and dropped outside the top 10, ending his hopes of contending in the moto.
The wild turn of events put Minear more than 2.5 seconds ahead of Beaumer, while Honda HRC Progressive’s Chance Hymas [#29] moved into third. Behind them, Kitchen fought his way up to fourth.
As the moto surpassed its first 10 minutes Hymas put on a charge that carried him past Beaumer for second and then onto the rear fender of Minear. Kitchen followed through into third with a pass on Beaumer. Not long after, Hymas took control of the lead. Kitchen then made the pass for second at the halfway point of the moto.
The parity of the class didn’t relent as AEO Powersports KTM’s Carson Mumford joined the fray as well and fought his way up to third. He then pressured Kitchen for second. After a couple laps of close competition, Kitchen asserted his hold of the spot.
With the 2 Lap board out, Beaumer closed in on Mumford for third and looked to make the pass but lost his balance and tipped over. He remounted quickly to maintain his hold of fourth place.
Hymas dominated the second half to take his first moto win of the season by 11 seconds over Kitchen, as Mumford earned a career best in third. Beaumer finished fourth.
Overall
By virtue of his 1-4 finishes, Beaumer broke through for the first outdoor victory of his career. He’s the fourth different rider this summer to capture his maiden victory and is the 97th different rider in series history to win an overall. It’s the culmination of one of the sport’s most incredible comeback stories after Beaumer’s career was put in jeopardy following a burst fracture in his spine suffered last September during the SMX Playoffs.
For Hymas, his first podium result of the season came via a runner-up effort following 9-1 finishes. It’s the sixth podium of his career and puts a bright spot on Hymas’ own extended recovery from a torn ACL suffered last June as well as a torn labrum suffered in January during Supercross.
A resilient afternoon for Kitchen proved to be rewarding in all facets, as he finished third overall with 8-2 finishes and regained control of the lead in the championship standings with his fourth podium of the season and 18th of his career.
Kitchen came into the race two points behind Davies in the championship, but following the New Zealander’s 16th-place finish (38-13) and a 27-point swing for Kitchen, the Kawasaki rider now sits atop the standings for the second time this summer, with the largest advantage of the season. Kitchen holds a 24-point lead over Beaumer, who moved into second following his victory, while Davies sits 25 points out of the lead in third.
Kitchen will now carry the red plate into his native Washougal next weekend, adding even more significance to his annual homecoming to the Pacific Northwest.
Results & Standings
250SMX Class Overall Results (Moto Finishes // Points)
Julien Beaumer, Lake Havasu City, Ariz., KTM (1-4 // 43)
Chance Hymas, Pocatello, Idaho, Honda (9-1 // 38)
Levi Kitchen, Washougal, Wash., Kawasaki (8-2 // 36)
Kayden Minear, Perth, Western Australia, Yamaha (3-6 // 36)
Carson Mumford, Simi Valley, Calif., KTM (11-3 // 31)
Drew Adams, Chattanooga, Tenn., Kawasaki (7-7 // 30)
Daxton Bennick, Morganton, N.C., Husqvarna (5-10 // 29)
Ryder DiFrancesco, Bakersfield, Calif., Husqvarna (6-11 // 27)
Dilan Schwartz, Alpine, Calif., Yamaha (10-8 // 26)
Lux Turner, Gardnerville, Nev., Yamaha (15-5 // 24)
250SMX Class Championship Standings (Race 7 of 11)
Levi Kitchen, Washougal, Wash., Kawasaki - 261
Julien Beaumer, Lake Havasu City, Ariz., KTM - 237
Cole Davies, Waitoki, New Zealand, Yamaha - 236
Kayden Minear, Perth, Western Australia, Yamaha - 199
Jo Shimoda, Suzuka, Japan, Honda - 194
Ryder DiFrancesco, Bakersfield, Calif., Husqvarna - 194
Chance Hymas, Pocatello, Idaho, Honda - 190
Carson Mumford, Simi Valley, Calif., KTM - 153
Seth Hammaker, Bainbridge, Pa., Kawasaki - 134
Casey Cochran, Portsmouth, Va., Husqvarna - 122
SMX World Championship Regular Season Standings (Round 24 of 28)
Cole Davies, Waitoki, New Zealand, Yamaha - 467
Levi Kitchen, Washougal, Wash., Kawasaki - 438
Ryder DiFrancesco, Bakersfield, Calif., Husqvarna - 358
Seth Hammaker, Bainbridge, Pa., Kawasaki - 314
Jo Shimoda, Suzuka, Japan, Honda - 294
Julien Beaumer, Lake Havasu City, Ariz., KTM - 237
Haiden Deegan, Temecula, Calif., Yamaha - 233
Nate Thrasher, Livingston, Tenn., Yamaha - 232
Daxton Bennick, Morganton, N.C., Husqvarna - 232
Chance Hymas, Pocatello, Idaho, Honda - 228
250SMX Class Championship Standings
Combined 250SMX Class Regular Season Standings
Quotes
1st Place – Julien Beaumer | #13 Red Bull KTM Factory Racing (1-4)
“Laying in that hospital bed [with the back injury] I thought maybe [my career] was over. I told myself I was going to die trying to come back. Now, I’m here. I didn't make it easy on myself and didn’t ride great in that second moto, but we made it happen. All the odds were against me coming into the season. I worked my ass off for six months coming into the summer and when I got back on the bike I knew I could be one of those guys.”
2nd Place – Chance Hymas | #29 Honda HRC Progressive (9-1)
“It’s been way too long of a summer and has taken too long to get a [moto] win. We’ve been struggling, but the team has stayed behind me every step of the way. This is a perfect example of never giving up on yourself. Now I can see a light at the end of the tunnel.”
3rd Place – Levi Kitchen | #47 Monster Energy Pro Circuit Kawasaki (8-2)
“It was a tough day, for sure. I’m glad to be somewhat okay after the first moto crash. It was nasty. I’m glad to be alright and big thank you to the fans for keeping me going. I’m proud of my fight today.”
