Jett strikes back at Unadilla to retake 450SMX points lead

Jett Lawrence returned to the top step with his fourth overall win of the Pro Motocross season after a costly crash for Hunter 

After the final summer break, the 11 round Pro Motocross Championship sanctioned by AMA Pro Racing resumed at the famed Unadilla MX for round nine of the series and Round 26 of the 2026 Monster Energy SMX World Championship. Under ideal conditions at the ELF Lubricants Unadilla National, a huge crowd turned out and saw both title fights take a significant turn. Honda HRC Progressive’s Jett Lawrence claimed his fourth victory of the year in the 450SMX division and, in doing so, reclaimed the championship lead. In the 250SMX category, Monster Energy Yamaha Star Racing’s Cole Davies also secured his fourth win and moved to within a single point of the red plate.

Jett set the benchmark from the outset in 450SMX qualifying, leading both sessions and turning the exact same best lap each time with a 2:12.122. That put him 0.4s clear of brother and teammate Hunter Lawrence, who recorded a 2:12.586, while Red Bull KTM Factory Racing’s Jorge Prado completed the top three on a 2:12.842. Monster Energy Yamaha Star Racing’s Haiden Deegan was fourth with a 2:12.973, making it four riders covered by less than a second.

When the gate dropped for Moto 1, Deegan grabbed the holeshot ahead of Hunter Lawrence, Jett Lawrence and Red Bull KTM Factory Racing’s Eli Tomac [#3]. Hunter wasted little time taking control on the opening lap. Deegan initially tried to answer back, but Hunter soon established himself at the front, while Jett began sizing up Deegan for second. Behind them, Prado worked past Tomac for fourth.

The first major twist came when Jett attempted to move by Deegan and the pair nearly touched entering a turn. Jett was forced off his Honda and had to remount, dropping to fifth as Prado inherited third. He quickly recovered one position by passing Tomac and then set about reducing a sizeable gap to the leaders.

Out front, Hunter stretched his advantage to 3.5s, while Deegan and Prado went at it over second. Prado eventually found a way through, and not long after that Jett closed back onto Deegan. Their renewed fight was brief, with Jett making a clean move to return to the top three. Then, as the race entered its closing stages, traffic helped him draw onto Prado’s rear wheel. In the famous uphill and downhill section known as The Wall, Jett made the decisive pass for second.

Hunter was untouchable in the closing laps and took his 10th moto win of the season by 9.4s over Jett. Prado finished third, Deegan was a distant fourth, and Monster Energy Kawasaki’s Garrett Marchbanks [#36] completed the top five.

Moto 2 began with the Lawrences leading the field away, Hunter taking the holeshot from Jett with Prado close behind. Hunter used the clear track to edge away, but Prado soon closed onto Jett and turned the lead group into a three rider battle. The Spaniard briefly slipped by Jett before the Honda rider responded immediately to reclaim second. With Prado’s pace lifting the intensity, Jett then turned his attention to Hunter.

A fierce battle between the brothers followed, with Prado waiting behind for an opening. Jett eventually made his move a little more than 20 minutes from the finish to take over at the front. Soon after, Prado also passed Hunter for second. A short distance behind, Deegan was beginning to close in from fourth.

At halfway, the leading four were separated by only five seconds, with Jett holding just over a one second margin on Prado. Then, with 14 minutes remaining, Prado reeled Jett back in to resume their fight for the lead just as drama struck behind them. Hunter crashed while running third on the steep downhill portion of The Wall. He spent an extended time getting going again and, although he rejoined, he was unable to continue at speed and slipped down the order.

At the front, Jett resisted Prado’s pressure and then pulled back clear, opening nearly two seconds. Deegan moved into third but could not stay with the lead pair, dropping more than 10 seconds adrift. Inside the final five minutes, Jett extended his lead further to more than four seconds, while Hunter’s race ended when he returned his damaged Honda to the pits.

Jett continued to build his advantage late in the moto and eventually took his eighth moto win of the season by 10.7s over Prado. Deegan was almost 30 seconds back in third, while Hunter Lawrence was classified 39th.

The overall belonged to Jett on a 2-1 scorecard, ending a two race winless run, which equals the longest of his premier class career, and delivering the 28th overall victory of his career. Prado’s 3-2 result marked one of his strongest performances yet in the US and gave him the third podium of both the season and his career. Deegan landed his fourth straight podium with fourth and third for third overall, his sixth top three finish of his rookie season.

For Hunter Lawrence, the day unravelled from the brink of another standout result into his most difficult outing of the year. He was classified eighth overall with 1-39, his worst finish of the season and the first time in the Pro Motocross premier class that he has failed to finish inside the top five. The championship picture changed immediately as a result, with Jett moving back to the top of the standings. With two rounds and four motos left, 10 points now separate the brothers.

1st Place – Jett Lawrence 
“I’m bummed [that Hunter crashed]. I don’t want to [take the points lead] like this. He was right there. It sucks. It is what it is. I know he’s okay so that’s good, but not how I wanted the day to end up.”

2nd Place – Jorge Prado
“We had three weeks to work on the bike, and we knew exactly what we had to do. I was convinced we were on the right path with my decisions and today proved it. This was my best performance of the year and now we’re headed in the right direction. Hopefully a win will come soon.”

3rd Place – Haiden Deegan
“Just keep working hard and it’ll pay off. I’ve kind of struggled with this track in the past, but we came away with a podium today. We’ll keep working and try to come back better next week.”

2026 AMA PRO MOTOCROSS UNADILLA

2026 AMA PRO MOTOCROSS STANDINGS AFTER ROUND 9 OF 11