After a run of near-misses the Aussie finally turned speed into a hard-earned victory at Arlington and strengthened his hold on the 450SX red plate despite late race drama
Hunter Lawrence has taken his first-ever 450SX main-event win, breaking through in Arlington, Texas after a night that mixed raw speed, racecraft and a late twist involving red-cross procedures.
Lawrence started the day ninth in 450SX overall qualifying, then ramped things up in the night program. He dominated his 450SX heat race with a holeshot and wire-to-wire victory, setting the tone before the main.
In the final, Lawrence recovered from a so-so jump out of the gate, quickly putting himself third exiting turn one. He stayed in touch with the leaders and took advantage of a lap-eight mistake from Cooper Webb to move into second, then closed on Ken Roczen as a three-way fight for the lead developed. The key move came at the five-minute mark, when Lawrence passed Roczen to hit the front and begin building a gap.
That advantage was cut when riders behind him jumped while a red-cross flag was displayed, shrinking the margin and increasing the pressure late. Lawrence held on to the chequered flag to seal the maiden premier-class win of his career. On the way to his way to his first win, Lawrence set the fastest time in the 450SX main event – a first for the Australian. It also came at the same venue where he scored his first 250SX win back in 2022. The result keeps Lawrence atop the 450SX standings, extending his advantage over Eli Tomac from one point to four heading to Daytona.
After the event, the Honda team vigorously disputed the lack of penalties around the red-flag incidents in both classes. On Monday, the AMA released an official statement indicating it “has no plan to apply penalties,” and the team says it intends to escalate the issue and is reviewing all viable avenues.
Hunter Lawrence
“Tonight I got around the first turn, and that’s really important with how good the class is, because it’s hard to get a bad start and expect to battle your way through for a win. It’s tough to replicate racing, but we’ve been working hard on the bike and myself. My first half of the races have been getting better, for sure. Ken [Roczen] would make a little mistake, and I’d try to get him, but then he would have the inside for the next corner; I think the racing was really cool to watch and to be a part of, when the battle goes on for multiple laps. I was playing defense but still playing offense—it’s such a tricky spot to be in, but I really enjoy that and it feels good when you pull it off. On the last lap, I was just thinking, ‘Hit your marks, don’t do anything stupid, and get across the finish line.’ I feel like I’ve been doing the same thing every round this year and it’s been going well, so I keep the same approach. I don’t need to change a lot of stuff—I’ve been getting good starts and riding well in the main events, so just keep doing that.”
Round 7 Arlington 450SX Results
- Hunter Lawrence (Hon)
- Eli Tomac (KTM)
- Cooper Webb (Yam)
- Ken Roczen (Suz)
- Justin Cooper (Yam)
- Chase Sexton (Kaw)
- Joey Savatgy (Hon)
- Aaron Plessinger (KTM)
- Christian Craig (Hon)
- Dylan Ferrandis (Duc)
450SX Championship Points (after 7 of 17 rounds)
- Hunter Lawrence: 149
- Eli Tomac: 145
- Cooper Webb: 133
- Ken Roczen: 131
- Chase Sexton: 122
- Justin Cooper: 112
- Joey Savatgy: 95
- Dylan Ferrandis: 87
- Jason Anderson: 84
- Aaron Plessinger: 79
