The champ is back: Jett Lawrence dominates Hangtown Pro Motocross

Honda star takes his first victories since returning from double ankle surgeries involving 11 screws and four pins, storming to a Round 2 clean sweep ahead of brother Hunter

The 57th running of the legendary Coker Pump Hangtown Motocross Classic hosted Round 19 of the 2026 Monster Energy SMX World Championship, with the Pro Motocross Championship rolling into northern California for the sport’s oldest race in America. On a demanding circuit and in near-ideal conditions, Honda HRC Progressive star Jett Lawrence delivered a powerful reminder of his class, sweeping the 450SMX motos as he continues his rapid return from a serious off-season ankle injury.

Lawrence had already shown his intent in qualifying. Premier-class rookie Haiden Deegan set the pace in the opening session on his Monster Energy Yamaha Star Racing bike, but Jett answered in session two with the fastest lap of the day. His 1:49.886 was the only time under 1:50 and put him half a second clear of Deegan’s 1:50.389.

When the first 450SMX moto got underway, Jett grabbed his first holeshot of the season and immediately put himself in control. Deegan slotted into second, with championship leader Hunter Lawrence in third and Jorge Prado fourth for Red Bull KTM Factory Racing. The top three settled into position through the opening stages, with Jett managing an advantage of around four seconds over the riders behind him.

As the race developed, Jett steadily increased his lead until it approached 10 seconds, leaving the battle for second to Deegan and Hunter. In the closing stages Hunter turned up the pressure, made a decisive move on Deegan, and quickly edged away. Out front, though, Jett was untouchable, completing a wire-to-wire win by 7.7 seconds over his brother. Deegan claimed the first moto podium of his premier-class career in third, followed by Dylan Ferrandis in fourth and RJ Hampshire in fifth. Prado had spent most of the moto in fourth and looked capable of challenging Deegan late, but a loss of power on the final lap dropped him all the way to 36th.

The second moto was interrupted early by a red flag for a fallen rider, forcing a restart. At the second gate drop, Cooper Webb emerged with the holeshot for Monster Energy Yamaha Star Racing, ahead of the Lawrence brothers. Jett wasted little time taking over at the front, while Hunter secured second after a brief fight with Webb. The Honda pair soon began to pull away from the field as Chase Sexton moved past Webb into third.

Further back, Deegan had work to do after starting 11th, but the rookie carved through the field with composure and reached the top five inside the first 10 minutes. Up front, the expected duel between the Lawrence brothers took shape as they opened a double-digit gap on Sexton. Their pace ebbed and flowed across different sections of the track, with the gap between them sitting at around a second for much of the race, while Deegan continued his charge and eventually passed Sexton for third.

As the moto neared halfway, Hunter closed in and looked ready to launch a challenge for the lead. Jett responded immediately. In the space of a few laps, the gap stretched from under a second to nearly four seconds, and from there he tightened his grip on the race. He went on to complete the moto sweep, taking the chequered flag 6.8 seconds ahead of Hunter, with Deegan a distant third.

The overall result marked a return to the dominant standard that has defined Jett Lawrence’s career. Still racing while not yet fully recovered, the Australian delivered a 1-1 performance for the 19th time in his career and secured his 25th premier-class victory from just 29 starts. Hunter Lawrence followed up his own 1-1 result from the previous weekend with a strong 2-2 outing, giving Honda its first 1-2 finish of the season.

Deegan’s third-place overall finish was a measured but impressive effort, built on 3-3 moto results in only his second premier-class appearance. While he was largely riding alone, the result still earned the highly rated rookie his first 450SMX podium. In the standings, Hunter Lawrence remains in control of the championship lead, now holding a six-point advantage over Jett, while Deegan has climbed to third and sits 19 points off the top.

1st Place – Jett Lawrence | #1 Team Honda HRC Progressive (1-1)
“I knew if I picked a fast pace early that Hunter would be right there with me and would make it a lot harder. I chose [instead] to get a better flow for about 15 minutes and then decided to push for a quick sprint to try and mess up his rhythm, and it worked. It’s good to be back up here with a 1-1.”

2nd Place – Hunter Lawrence | #96 Team Honda HRC Progressive (2-2)
“It’s harder racing against Jett [Lawrence]. He’s my toughest competitor. It got to a point where I was going to take the time to reset and make a push, but he decided to do a sprint and gapped me. Still a solid result. It was a tough track today, so I’m happy.”

3rd Place – Haiden Deegan | #38 Monster Energy Yamaha Star Racing (3-3)
“That was good today. I just want to get better and better each weekend. That’s the goal, just keep progressing with each moto and just try to be there. We’ll go back, put in the work, and try again next weekend.”

2026 AMA PRO MOTOCROSS ROUND 2 HANGTOWN CLASSIC