Hunter Lawrence Retakes the Pro Motocross Championship Lead at Budds Creek

Budds Creek National, Mechanicsville, MD — August 22, 2026

One of the most unpredictable seasons in the 55-year history of the Pro Motocross Championship, sanctioned by AMA Pro Racing, is set to move one step closer to its dramatic conclusion today, August 22, in the shadow of the nation’s capital of Washington, D.C. The trademark hillsides of Southern Maryland’s Budds Creek Motocross Park will host the penultimate race of the summer campaign, with Round 27 of the 2026 Monster Energy SMX World Championship poised to add even more complexity in the journey to crown a 450SMX Class and 250SMX Class champion. For the fourth consecutive season, Yamaha Motor Corp. USA will provide title support of the Yamaha Racing Budds Creek National Presented by Carter CAT, establishing a partnership that has become synonymous with this late summer tradition.

While Budds Creek is best known for the iconic descent known as Henry Hill, the track boasts numerous sharp elevation changes, traction-rich soil, and a bevy of off-camber corners that combine to continuously challenge riders, lending itself to great racing. It’s a layout racers enjoy and often reach higher levels of performance. Because of that, the track provides ample opportunity for parity. It’s one of the reasons why Budds Creek has seen a larger variety of winners over the past decade than any other venue. In the 450SMX Class, eight different riders have sat atop the podium over the last 10 seasons, while nine different riders have claimed the 250SMX Class victory. In a season that’s been filled with unexpected outcomes, Budds Creek’s own history suggests the championships are in store for another twist ahead of the finale.

In the 450SMX Class, the Lawrence brothers’ championship saga is in the midst of yet another unexpected turn, as Honda HRC Progressive’s Jett Lawrence has regained possession of the red plate from his older sibling and teammate, Hunter Lawrence. In a summer filled with uncharacteristic and somewhat odd bouts of adversity for both riders, the latest incident significantly afflicted Hunter. It gave Jett his largest advantage of the season at 10 points. It signifies the fifth exchange of the points lead between the siblings and has put the pressure squarely on Hunter to try and win out over the last four motos.

The 250MX Class title race is just as intriguing. Cole Davies currently sits just a single point out of the points lead coming into Budds Creek, having amassed back-to-back victories and four wins over the past six races. The sophomore New Zealander has been the most successful rider in the division this summer, and returns to the site of his first-ever moto win, which came last season. Sitting ahead of Davies is Monster Energy Pro Circuit Kawasaki’s Levi Kitchen, who himself has an overall victory at Budds Creek on his resume. The veteran out of Washington appears to be in top form, along with Davies, setting the stage for a compelling afternoon on Saturday as both look to get the upper hand amidst a dwindling number of motos, each in pursuit of his first national championship and the most prestigious 250cc title in the sport.

Just two rounds and four motos remain in the 2026 Women’s Motocross Championship Powered by Synchrony (WMX), bringing added tension to the title fight between Altus Motorsports bLUcRU Yamaha’s Lachlan Turner and Quad Lock Honda’s Charli Cannon. Currently, the championship rivals are separated by 15 points heading into this weekend’s penultimate round from Southern Maryland’s Budds Creek Motocross Park, where they and a growing field of challengers will battle for victory at the Yamaha Racing Budds Creek National Presented by Carter CAT.

Rain yesterday and this morning soaked the track and will leave a muddy surface to race on, despite the efforts of track crews to restructure it. The good news is rain stopped before riders were called to the starting gates.

WMX Moto #1 (Friday) 

The WMX Moto #1 was completed Friday before the soaking rains turned Budds Creek into a quagmire. Taylah McCutcheon(10) grabbed the holeshot while Lachlan Turner(1) got a bad start, falling back to the middle of the pack in 13th. Mayla Herrick(23) was up front early but encountered problems on lap three and fell out of contention. Turner worked her way through the pack and ultimately took the win over Charli Cannon(7) and Mikayla Nielsen(51).

250MX Moto #1

Levi Kitchen(47) and Cole Davies(37) went 1-2 across the holeshot line. Kitchen got the start he needed, but it was all for naught. He went down on the first lap as the bike slipped out from underneath him in the mud. Things were already questionable as Kitchen, lining up in the far left starting position, ran off the track right from the gate drop.

The move drew the attention of AMA officials as it was obvious Kitchen gained positions before re-entering the track. Davies inherited the lead with Chance Hymas(29) close behind. Davies was cautious as riders did not take a sight lap due to track conditions. Hymas passed for the lead but stalled briefly in deep mud and gave the top spot back to Davies. Kitchen had trouble remounting his bike and dropped well back into the field. He had worked his way up to the 10th spot before running out of goggle tear-offs.

After discarding the useless eye protection, Kitchen dropped out of the top ten. To make matters worse, AMA officials informed his crew that Levi would be penalized four positions for his off-track excursion. Out front, Davies, Hymas, and Landen Gordon(180) crossed under the checkered flag. Kitchen was credited with the 14th finishing position.

450MX Moto #1

Haiden Deegan (38) was the fastest qualifier, and he took the holeshot over Hunter Lawrence (96) and Eli Tomac (3).

Jorge Prado(26) and Cooper Webb(2) followed the top three. Jett Lawrence(1) did the same thing as Levi Kitchen. Starting one spot to the right of where Levi did, Jett got off the track and kept on the gas. In the first turn, the points leader got bumped off the track, knocking Jett back to the 18th position across the holeshot line, and out front, Hunter remained in the lead as the top five remained the same. Jett had more difficulty on the opening lap and dropped to 22nd and out of a points-paying position. As the pack sorted out, Jett began to make his move forward. Just as the AMA notified his team that the start was under review. Just past the midpoint of the race, Jett was up into the top 10. Out front, Hunter was working through lapped traffic. A charging Deegan cut the lead interval to 1.5 seconds as he followed the points leader around the slower riders. With five minutes to go, Hunter had stretched the lead on Deegan to three seconds. Prado had passed Tomac and Jett moved up to seventh.

If he holds that position, he and Hunter will be tied for the points lead at the end of the moto. The AMA reported to Jett’s crew that he would not be penalized positions because he did not gain a competitive advantage by going off the track. However, he was penalized a “license point.” If a rider accumulates too many license points, additional penalties can be assessed. As the laps wound down, Jett passed Justin Barcia (51) and Webb to finish fifth and maintain the points lead, albeit by just two points. The difference between a win and second place is worth three points more for the winner than the second-place rider, so Hunter could retake the points lead if he wins the second 450MX moto.

WMX Moto #2

Mikala Nielsen(51) led Lala Turner(1) and Charli Cannon(7) to the holeshot line. However, by the time they finished lap one, the championship contenders left Nielsen in the dirt. Mayla Herrick ran in fourth. Once out front, Turner pulled away from the field.

Herrick crashed mid-race and lost two positions. This cost her a chance at another podium. The results for Moto #2 were the same as Moto #1: Turner dominated, with Cannon and Nielsen taking second and third, respectively.

250MX Moto #2

With no more rain falling, the efforts of track crews and bright sunshine, the racing surface has dried out. Riders should be able to show their talents under improved racing conditions. Chance Hymas and Parker Ross(40) outran Cole Davies to the line at the start.

Levi Kitchen was mired back in seventh. After bringing the red plate to Budds Creek, Kitchen sits 22 points behind Davies after the poor finish in the first moto. If Hymas wins the moto, he will take the overall win over Davies, with the tie-breaker going to the better finish in moto #2. With 10 minutes gone in the timed portion of the moto, Hymas leads Davies by four seconds and nine seconds over Kitchen.

Under 10 minutes to go, the interval from Hymas to Davies remained virtually the same. But Kitchen was closing, and when Davies bobbled slightly, Levi made the pass for second place. Davies was smart not to fight with Kitchen. Cole will still finish second overall, and if Kitchen takes the lead away from Hymas, it will elevate Davies to the overall win. A 1-3 result will beat a 2-2 score, with the tiebreaker being the win in moto #1. Hymas holds on for the moto win and takes the overall victory. Davies finishes third behind Kitchen but will take a 14-point advantage over Levi into the final event of the regular season at Crawfordsville next Saturday.

250MX Overall Event Results

250MX Points Standings

450MX Moto #2

Hunter Lawrence and Jorge Prado raced to the holeshot line with Hunter getting the start he needed. He immediately opened up an interval over Prado. Haiden Deegan and Jett Lawrence started poorly, with Danger Boy in ninth and Jett in 11th. Mikkel Haarup(31) sat in third. Jett and Deegan quickly moved up and were battling with Justin Barcia and RJ Hampshire(24) for the fourth spot. Jett Lawrence navigated the group of bunched-up riders and closed on Haarup. With the pass, Jett moved into the final podium position, but trailed his brother by 14 seconds at the halfway point of the moto. Deegan was unable to follow Jett and was mired in sixth, behind Barcia and Haarup, 28 seconds off the lead. As they ran, Hunter, Prado and Deegan held the top three spots in the fight for the overall win.

Jett is one point behind Deegan for the final overall podium spot. Barcia went down, and Deegan moved up a spot, further securing that overall third position. As the clock ran down, Hunter seemed to have it on cruise control. He led Prado by 6.5 seconds and his older brother by 10 seconds.

Deegan moved past Haarup but trailed Jett by 29 seconds as they reached the two-laps-to-go mark. On the final lap, Jett got side-by-side with Prado, but Jorge held him off. A few corners later they evened up again, and this time Jett made the pass and rode away for second. The late pass was a big one for Jett; he trails Hunter by a single point heading into the final event of the Pro Motocross season.

450MX Overall Event Results

450MX Points Standings

Budds Creek Recap

450MX:  Hunter Lawrence’s sixth 1-1 performance and sixth victory of the summer is the seventh of his career, but more importantly, moved him back atop the championship standings with one race remaining. Prado secured back-to-back overall runner-up finishes after a 3-3 afternoon. Deegan captured his fifth consecutive overall podium result in third (2-4) and now has eight podiums in the first 10 races of his rookie season. Jett Lawrence settled for fourth (5-2), which signified just his third-ever non-podium finish in 37 premier class starts and his first not impacted by a crash nor a penalty. An 11-point swing moved Hunter Lawrence back atop the championship standings heading into the final round, with he and Jett separated by a single point. It signified the sixth time the points lead has changed hands between the siblings this summer.

250MX:  Hymas’ 2-1 effort allowed him to break through for the third overall win of his career. With it, he became the seventh different rider to capture a 250SMX Class victory this summer, which set a new record for race winners in a single season.
Davies grabbed his third straight podium result in second (1-3) and now has seven top three finishes this summer, which has ultimately moved him in control of his own destiny in the championship. The rookie Gordon captured the first overall podium result of his career in third (3-7), making him the eighth different rider to claim a maiden podium this summer. Kitchen’s strong effort in the second moto helped him make the most out of a challenging afternoon in fifth overall (14-2). ”’;A 15-point swing in the championship moves Davies back atop the point standings heading into the final round, where he’ll hold a 14-point lead over Kitchen for the last two motos of the season.