A pivotal round of Monster Energy Supercross 2026 took place inside Empower Field at Mile High on Saturday, with Denver producing another chapter in 450SX as one point now separates Ken Roczen and Hunter Lawrence. It was also another supreme performance for Haiden Deegan in 250SX, with Captured revisiting the action in illustrated form.

Hunter Lawrence’s Denver victory was about as clutch as it gets. He slashed a four-point deficit to just one entering the Salt Lake City season-finale, which is now a winner-take-all showdown between he and Ken Roczen. What a 450SX series it has been…

Monster Energy Pro Circuit Kawasaki’s Cameron McAdoo returned after being sidelined since Seattle in February. It was encouraging to see him back behind the gates, although P13 in the main event proved a tough outing for the podium contender.

Australian teenager Kayden Minear made his professional debut on the weekend, capturing an impressive P5 result. It wasn’t without controversy, however, with Minear in a fourth-place transfer position in the heat, before being assisted off track by Levi Kitchen directly before the finish line. He went around the finish line structure, and his final lap wasn’t recorded, meaning he was classified as a lap down and was forced to qualify through the LCQ. But hey, perhaps the added track time paid off!

Red Bull KTM’s Jorge Prado was back to form – he posted P1 in his heat race, and sixth in the main after battling firmly inside the top five.

It was a hard-packed affair in Denver, with traction hard to come by under the elevated conditions. The elder Lawrence is well-known as a master of this type of surface, similar to how Nashville formed up.

Progressive Insurance Cycle Gear Suzuki’s Ken Roczen maintains the red plate entering Salt Lake, with his P2 ride holding equal importance to Lawrence’s win. If, however, Roczen had beaten Lawrence at Denver, then it would’ve created at least a seven-point gap between the pair, and more cushion at the finale. A lot was riding on the Colorado round for each rider, with the pressure at this stage no doubt enormous.

Gage Linville debuted for Triumph Factory Racing in 250SX West, as he is set to contest the remainder of the 2026 Monster Energy SMX Championship for the outfit aboard the TF 250-X. He was 11th in Denver – a solid position to build from.

Chase Sexton [almost] signing out from what has been a difficult first Supercross season with Monster Energy Kawasaki.

It was nothing short of Deegan domination in Denver. He surpassed Jett Lawrence’s 250SX win record in the division after claiming his 14th P1 result – and he was sure to let that fact be known post-race. Have we mentioned he’s been ultra-impressive in 2026?

Dedication…

A P2 for Levi Kitchen in Denver was a welcome finish, and although he was never really in the title picture, the Monster Energy Pro Circuit Kawasaki rider is ranked second in the 250SX West standings. So, can we categorize his Supercross season as a pass?

More on Eli Tomac’s #tiregate saga. The Red Bull KTM rider returned to Denver and had a prototype Dunlop on the rear of his KTM 450 SX-F FACTORY EDITION called the MC790, which made its debut with both Tomac and Garrett Marchbanks on the weekend. Early reports suggest it’s designed to land somewhere between Dunlop’s traditional MX34 and the scoop, which Eli has indeed favored at various points of late.

The final nail in the coffin of Cooper Webb’s Monster Energy Supercross 450SX title-defense landed in Denver. Again, a late-race collision with Prado kind of sums up Webb’s year – with things just not quite falling in his direction for a fourth crown. He’s mathematically eliminated now that he’s 35 points behind Roczen, and will no doubt want to add one more win to his tally at the very least for 2026.