Image: Octopi Media.

Monster Energy Yamaha Star Racing’s Pierce Brown made a mixed return at the Washougal round of Pro Motocross, displaying speed throughout the weekend despite falling victim to misfortune in both motos.

Brown – sidelined since the Birmingham Supercross round in March with a broken collarbone and dislocated wrist – qualified sixth at the technical Washington circuit, before being caught up in a turn two pile-up.

With his YZ250F damaged in the incident – losing all coolant – it prompted the team to withdraw him before the issue worsened. Later, after running inside the top-10 in moto two, a late-race crash relegated him to 17th at the finish.

“It was my first outdoor back in a minute,” recalled Brown. “So, yeah, I felt like a fish out of water there for a little bit. I had a good qualifying, though – I ended up P6 overall, and then had a really good start to moto one, but ended up getting tangled up with Landen [Gordon] and some of the other guys that fell on the start.

“Then somebody ran over my bike and clipped my radiator hose, so I lost all the coolant, and the team pulled me off as a precaution, so that was unfortunate. In moto two, I had the last gate pick, so I didn’t know what to expect but I came out decent.

“I was right in the top-10 area for about 30 minutes and then had a fall late, and ended up 17th. On paper, I’m not stoked with it, but we rode alright. I mean, we definitely have something to
work on. So that’s something to look forward to, but I’m just glad to be back.”

It has been an injury-interrupted two years for Brown since joining Star Racing in 2025, with the 24-year-old having contested just one Pro Motocross round before Washougal – last year’s Ironman National. Three rounds remain in 2026, beginning at Unadilla on August 15.