The Arlington round of Monster Energy Supercross 2026 saw a clash of the titans in the 450SX main event, with defending champion Cooper Webb in the thick of battle this past Saturday night. Ultimately claiming a third-place result, Webb details his night inside AT&T Stadium in this Conversation feature.

Image: Octopi Media.

Cooper Webb, if there were any opportunities out there to be found, you were seeing them, and you were going for it. At times, it seemed like there might have been some frustrating situations out there. What kind of emotions were you battling throughout that main?

Just, you know, cat-and-mouse. Like you’re trying to make the move on Kenny [Roczen], but then you’ve got someone behind you, and he’s going fast – but then it felt like we were a little bit faster coming through. So it’s pick your lines, basically. I made two mistakes all night, or one really big one on the on-on, off. And that’s where Hunter [Lawrence] got me. And then, yeah, I was bummed at myself. I feel like early in the race, I should have made something happen, but with that being said, you know, it is what it is. We were all really close, and yeah, later when Eli [Tomac] made his pass on me, I had just gotten around Kenny, and then obviously had to get back by him, or when I came back on track, I was behind him. So, just yeah, I got unfortunately shuffled around and kind of lost that tow at the end when I had to get around the 94 late. And [the leaders] just had that gap on me, so I’m happy with the riding, I just need to be more aggressive at the beginning.

You mentioned the aggressiveness at the beginning. I think it was the second turn there, you guys were – Kenny [and] you were right next to each other. How do you manage that fine line of not being too aggressive two turns into the race, but knowing something like that’s coming?

Yeah, exactly – it’s hard. You want to solidify yourself, and I should have shut the door maybe in the first rhythm, and I didn’t. I kind of wanted to give him a little bit of room, and he took advantage of it. As we know, Kenny’s really good at the beginning of the races, so that’s where you don’t want to get into that cat-and-mouse and slow the race up. So I was happy with settling in and slotting behind him, but then there was a certain time where I was like, ‘Hey, it’s time to go, the guys are coming.’ I think we just all knew, like, whoever got Kenny first could break away, and that was going to do the job. And I think that’s what happened.

Image: Octopi Media.

On a bit of a lighter note, you had a different helmet and gear during the opening ceremonies. How cool was it for you to pay tribute to so many people who have served in the Air Force and to represent them on a stage like this?

Yeah, man, it was great. It’s obviously a special weekend as always with the military appreciation, but especially in the opening ceremonies with the lit kit. I got a legit Air Force kit with the patches, everything legit. It was in battle use, so that was pretty cool. And it’s always an honor to race hard for them, but also, you know, as everyone knows, they go through it, so it’s the least we can do to give back. So it was a really cool setup for the opening ceremonies.

You were kind of known for being the king of one-on-one battles. Now that we’re in this situation where all four guys that are in the title contention were all top four in that race, how does that change your mentality when it comes to racecraft and your tactics when it comes to finding your position in the race?

It doesn’t change much, you just kind of read the room as is. And like I said, it was going to be who didn’t make mistakes, and I felt like it was going to be whoever got Kenny first, who was going to be able to break away, and that’s exactly what Hunter did. Obviously, Eli’s smart, Kenny’s smart, Hunter’s smart, and I’m smart. That was clear tonight… it just felt like a slot car [race], it felt like we were at the [Daytona] 500, just drafting each other out there, honestly. So yeah, as I said, I think I’ll re-watch it and see where I could have been better, but the one mistake on the on-on-off cost me with Hunter getting by, but other than that I felt like I had a solid race, and it’s one of those where I should have, could have.

Image: Octopi Media.

When you got Kenny, I’m sure you knew Eli was right there, but did you expect him to make such a hard [pass] attempt on you? And then when you went on the concrete, how did you not panic too much and maybe lose it right there trying to get back on the track?

Yeah, I really didn’t, only because obviously I just got him, so I was kind of protecting that inside a little bit, but then I had been going wide and cutting down. And so when I heard someone there, I was a bit surprised. And then when he really put me off, I was like, ‘Oh, okay.’ That allowed Kenny to get back by – so that kind of sucked in that sense. But yeah, when you’re off the track on the concrete, it’s scary. You don’t want to get on it hard – you don’t really know what to do. So I just kind of did what I felt was right. But yeah, I ended up getting passed twice. So like I said, the turn before you make a pass, I’m ready to set still, and then I got shuffled back from that. That was a bit of a bummer, you know, it wasn’t dirty or anything, but it would have been nice not to get behind the number 94 again.

Naturally, the top guys you’re racing with are the main competitors. But what was the second biggest piece of the competition tonight, the lappers or that track?

As Hunter said, the lappers were bad, but there wasn’t much you could do to be completely honest. We were all doing the same lines and the same thing. So they tried their hardest, but the track was gnarly. I mean, there’s no doubt. I love that. Like, I love when it breaks down. But as we saw, the whoops claimed a lot of people, so I stuck to the old reliable jump line, which I think was the best approach. And the same thing, like, I saw Hunter get all the side plates out a few times, and I thought that was going to be the crash, and it wasn’t, so tip the cap to him. But yeah, the track was gnarly and tricky as always. But it was fun.

You said you didn’t think there was anything dirty about the pass, but do you feel like you got used up just a little bit? Like, maybe there could have been a little more patience on that one pass?

I mean, obviously, yeah, on my end, I’m hoping it didn’t happen, right? But yeah, I think Eli had the same mentality as me, like we all needed to get to Hunter if we wanted a chance at winning. And I think that’s where he saw his opening – I can’t fault him for that. But like I said, going off and then losing that position, just getting kind of eaten up in that way, was a bummer. Because I felt like I wasn’t holding the number three up at all. We were all riding well. But as I said, it is should’ve, would’ve, could’ve. And if I see an opening, I’ll be sure to take it.