The 2025 SuperMotocross World Championship (SMX) Final hit The Strip at Las Vegas Motor Speedway with an entertaining night of action to close out the season. Reaction dives into the commentary from around the paddock post race.

450SMX

Image: Octopi Media.

Jett Lawrence (Honda HRC Progressive) – First:
It’s definitely emotional. Honestly, midway through, I thought it was over — I was struggling to close on Eli [Tomac] and Hunter [Lawrence], and at one point I kind of gave up. Then with about three laps to go, I told myself, ‘I’m just going to send it.’ If it worked, great – if I crashed, that was the risk. Thankfully, it paid off. Afterwards, the emotions hit me — especially seeing how well Hunter was riding this weekend. To be honest, if he hadn’t been sick, I think he would’ve had this — this 100 percent would’ve been a different story. He was so strong all weekend, and I was slacking compared to him. It’s really special to be out there racing with my brother, and I’m thankful for the team behind us.

Hunter Lawrence (Honda HRC Progressive) – Second:
It was a bittersweet night. I feel like I rode really well and gave it my all, but I came up just short in the end. I was able to win the final moto and do what I needed to there, but I probably could’ve been a little better in the first one. Still, it was a great night overall for the team, winning both championships and going 1-2 again in the 450 class — lots of positives to take away, and now I’m looking forward to Motocross of Nations.

Justin Barcia (Rockstar Energy GasGas Factory Racing) – Ninth:
Las Vegas was full on! The track had a bit of everything, which made it a tricky day for me. All in all, we did our best as usual, but our best wasn’t quite good enough. A big thank you to everyone who has been part of this season – we tried our best all year, and we can hold our heads high knowing that we never gave up!

RJ Hampshire (Rockstar Energy Husqvarna Factory Racing) – Sixth:
All in all, it was another solid weekend! I felt good on the bike in timed qualifying, then didn’t get the best start in moto one, but I felt like I rode well. The second moto, I got a good start, but I felt a little tight in the beginning and I figured it wasn’t worth risking it too much out there. I didn’t feel overly comfortable on the high-speed sections, but I think overall I was sixth for tonight. It was a solid few races of SMX, and I’m excited to be leading into next year with a solid base.

Eli Tomac (Monster Energy Yamaha Star Racing) – Third:
It was a solid weekend for us. I had a really strong first moto and was able to get a good start, and made the pass on Hunter [Lawrence] on lap two. I led most of the race but ended up getting caught by Jett [Lawrence] and getting passed in the last few laps, but I did what I could to put up a good fight. We went into moto two with the same mindset, but I just didn’t ride quite as well as in moto one. Third overall on the weekend and third overall in SMX – it was solid. Of course, we wanted more, but it was a good weekend for the team.

Justin Cooper (Monster Energy Yamaha Star Racing) – Fifth:
Vegas is always a tough one with the hard-packed conditions, but I actually felt really comfortable all day and felt like I had good speed. The starts were really good, so we turned that around, which was great. I had a good race in the first one, but in the second one, I crashed on the second lap. I tried to get my way back up there and was fighting those guys, but my bike was really bent up, so it was tough to move forward. I did what I could and came up a little bit short on that battle for fourth, but we’ll take fifth in the championship.

Cooper Webb (Monster Energy Yamaha Star Racing) – Seventh:
The Vegas finale was pretty wild with triple points and all of us being so close. In the first moto, I really struggled. I had some arm pump and just didn’t apply myself. In the second one, I got a holeshot, which was awesome, and ran up front for a while. I just didn’t quite have the speed, so I got pushed back, but we’ll work with it. I had a better second moto, and we ended up sixth in points. I wish we could’ve made the top five – that was the goal – but we made it through safe and we’ll get ready for the upcoming 2026 season.

Ken Roczen (Progressive Insurance Ecstar Suzuki) – Fourth:
We had a pretty awesome day. We were five and four for fourth overall and fourth in the championship as well – that was pretty much the best-case scenario we could have come out of here with, and that’s what we did. So, I’m pretty pumped. You know, you’ve got to put in some consistent rides before thinking about the next step, and I’m really happy and I think the team is happy. We’ve been tinkering with the bike all weekend just trying to improve in little areas, and I’m really happy to finish the season off in fourth.

Kyle Chisholm (Twisted Tea Suzuki) – DNQ:
The bike felt awesome, I felt good about it, and just needed to get into the main event. Unfortunately, another rider, just a racing incident, nothing on purpose, moved over a little bit in a rhythm… We came together. I didn’t have a bad crash, but I landed right on top of his bike and hurt my shoulder and my arm pretty good. The good news is that nothing’s broken, just bruised and beat up a little bit. I’ll be okay, it’s just a bummer to end the season that way and not be out there in the mains where I want to be… We’ll move on and try to get ready for World Supercross.

250SMX

Image: Octopi Media.

Tom Vialle (Red Bull KTM Factory Racing) – Third:
The track was really fast today and I had a tough start in Moto 2, but I pushed hard until the very end! I’m pretty satisfied with third in the SMX Championship – I feel like I maximized what was possible for today. Overall, I’m happy with the way that I have ended my 250 career, I pushed as hard as I could in that second race, and I was satisfied in the end with how it worked out tonight.

Jo Shimoda (Honda HRC Progressive) – First:
Honestly, the day was really stressful, especially the second moto — I need to rewatch it! There was a lot of contact out there, but I’m glad I stayed up and kept pushing. To be the first Japanese rider to win a championship like this means so much to me. Accomplishing something so important gives me a huge confidence boost, and I’m really proud of everyone who helped make this possible.

Haiden Deegan (Monster Energy Yamaha Star Racing) – Ninth:
I gave it everything I had to win the championship. This new format of racing in SMX makes for an intense grand finale. I always give 110 percent. It’s high-stakes racing, and it’s hard to really explain what that’s like without being in that situation. Props to Jo [Shimoda] on the championship. He put up a helluva fight. I have made it to every single gate drop since I started racing pro. Last night finally bit me as I cracked my collarbone. I am getting it fixed and will be back to work to come back stronger than ever.

Nate Thrasher (Monster Energy Yamaha Star Racing) – Fourth:
I kind of struggled all day with setup. I think I made changes every time we went out on track, so to end up fourth tonight, we’ll take it. I got terrible starts, but I just dug deep. The first moto I was way back and ended up fifth, and then was fourth in moto two. In these last two rounds, my intensity has been there, and I was kind of back to my old self. I’ve got a lot of momentum going into next year, and I’m looking to carry that into it. I feel like I’m in the best spot that I’ve been in a long time. It’s time to fight for the supercross championship, whatever coast I’m racing.

Cole Davies (Monster Energy Yamaha Star Racing) – 23rd:
Unfortunately, it just wasn’t our day in Vegas. It wasn’t due to a lack of effort – we just couldn’t catch a break. I came into the weekend carrying a niggling thumb injury from Charlotte, followed by a heavy hit during qualifying. We locked in for the mains, but another crash put me out of the race, and we parked it for the night. It’s definitely not the way we wanted to end our SMX Playoffs, but all we can do is learn from it and continue to grow. I’m looking forward to the off-season and getting back to where I know I belong. I can’t thank the entire Star Yamaha team enough for everything they’ve done and continue to do for me week in, week out.

Max Anstie (Monster Energy Yamaha Star Racing) – 17th:
Vegas was tough. In the first moto, I came together with someone on the first lap and ended up a half a lap behind and a lap down. In the second moto, I didn’t have a great gate pick. I did everything I could to get a great start, but pushed in and ended up going straight off the track, and was riding around at the back. It doesn’t help having to go through the LCQs for these races. It is what it is. At the end of the day, my goal was to just race and get back to feeling fit and strong, and to have a good off-season now and be solid for next year.

Daxton Bennick (Monster Energy Yamaha Star Racing) – 12th:
Qualifying went pretty well, but I had some crashes in the LCQ race, which for sure put me behind the eight ball going into moto one. I had the last gate pick, but I made the best of it and rode really well to salvage a ninth-place finish. So I was happy with that. Then I put myself in a really good spot in the second moto. I think I came out second or third and rode in fifth for a while, but I just locked up, unfortunately. There’s not much to say except that I’m disappointed. We’ll learn from this and come out next year swinging.

Garrett Marchbanks (Monster Energy Pro Circuit Kawasaki) – Seventh:
Overall, I’m really happy with the season. I felt like I finally started putting all the pieces together and showing I can be that top guy. We stayed relatively healthy all year and had a lot of solid rides that built my confidence and proved what I’m capable of. The crash at the start of the playoffs wasn’t ideal, but even with that setback, I was able to dig deep and finish out the year strong. I’ve learned a ton, and now the focus is on getting some rest, resetting, and coming back even stronger next season, ready to fight for wins.

Levi Kitchen (Monster Energy Pro Circuit Kawasaki) – 14th:
It was an up-and-down season, but I felt like there were a lot of positives. I’m a bit frustrated with how the night turned out, especially with being up front at the start of the first moto and then going down early on. I had a bike issue in that second moto that unfortunately ended my race early. I put together some good motos and showed speed, but I just didn’t put the whole night together. I learned a lot racing SMX and battling with these guys. I’ll take a little time off, reset, and then get back after it. Looking forward to coming in stronger next year.

Seth Hammaker (Monster Energy Pro Circuit Kawasaki) – Second:
Today was a crazy end to a long season. I didn’t come out with the championship, but I’m super happy to end the night with the moto win. I did my best to avoid the chaos and focus on my own race. After Jo [Shimoda] and Haiden [Deegan] went down, I was able to capitalize on their mistakes and take the win. This year held a lot of adversity and ups and downs for me. Overall, it was nice to get through the whole season healthy. I only missed one race, and the goal was to make it to every race and build this foundation, from moving to Florida and changing my riding style and mindset. It feels good to see everything pay off, and having never given up. It feels like a new chapter in my career. I feel like it’s only going to get better. I have a lot to learn still, but it was positive to see this year and all the stuff that we worked on pay off and help me. I’m looking forward to 2026.

Drew Adams (Monster Energy Pro Circuit Kawasaki) – 16th:
It was a roller coaster of a weekend here in Vegas. I qualified P3, which felt good to finally get back up there in qualifying. In the first moto, I got tangled up in a pile-up on the opening lap and bent my shifter back into my footpeg, so I couldn’t shift at all. Several laps later, another rider landed on the back of me, which made it a rough moto. I ended up with some bone bruising in my arm and a pretty bad burn on the back of my calf. I went over to the Alpinestars rig, got checked out, and after sitting on the bike for a minute, I thought, ‘Alright, I can race the second moto.’ I fought through the pain and came from around 20th up to ninth. Considering I was only at about 70 to 75 percent for that race, I’m happy with how it turned out. Overall, it’s a solid way to finish out my rookie season, and now I’m looking forward to building on it for next year.

Ty Masterpool (Monster Energy Pro Circuit Kawasaki) – Fifth:
Overall, it was a good day. The results don’t really show it, but I had to go through the unseeded qualifying and Wildcard race, but I made it into the motos. In moto one, I got cleaned out on the first lap and had to come from almost dead last. I worked my way through the pack, but unfortunately, by the second moto, I was still pretty banged up from that crash. I was able to get a better start and hold my pace up front. I’m happy with a fifth overall, which is a solid result for everything that went on today. I’m happy to close out the year healthy and with a great group of people around me, and I’m really looking forward to next year.

Jordon Smith (Triumph Racing) – Sixth:
Unfortunately, I dislocated my shoulder in the first practice today and was not sure if I was going to be able to race. I gutted it out for a sixth place and I am proud of myself for that. It was a long season, but I’m proud of myself and every single person on this team for the work they put in this year.