The opening round of the 2026 Pro Motocross Championship fired into life at Fox Raceway, with the first outdoor of the season delivering intense racing and an assortment of storylines across both classes. Hear more from the leading riders of each category in this Reaction feature.

450MX

Image: Octopi Media.

P1 | Hunter Lawrence (Honda HRC Progressive):
It was good. I’m really happy with where the bike’s at. Keeping the Lawrence streak of winning at Pala alive was special – I’ve seen Jett [Lawrence] do plenty of those, so it was cool to finally get my first one, especially at round one. We don’t usually love this track, but we always seem to do well here, which is pretty ironic. Having Jett on the podium too, after everything he had to come back from, was awesome. It was just a really happy day, and I’m stoked for the team. Results like this make all the hard work worth it for everyone involved. Every team in the paddock puts in so much effort and dedication, so it’s cool as racers to be able to share days like this with the people behind us.

P2 | Jorge Prado (Red Bull KTM Factory Racing):
This is a great start to the season with second overall! It was a good day of racing – we were battling up front, and even got into the lead during the opening stages of moto two, so I am happy. I think we can build from here – we will learn from it and just be a little sharper once the gate drops next time.

P3 | Jett Lawrence (Honda HRC Progressive):
I’m always going to be hard on myself because the goal is to win, but considering where my foot’s at and how long I’ve been away from riding and racing, it was a solid day. We had a lot of cobwebs to shake off and just needed to get back into race mode, work through a few little hiccups, and build from there. We definitely need to improve the starts because mine weren’t very good today. We’ll go back, regroup, and come into Hangtown hoping to make life a little easier with better starts. Physically, it’s still tough – every jump, I’m landing with most of my weight on my left side. Some of those rough, edgy bumps out of the turns were hard on my foot, but riding the bike is actually easier than walking right now. Today I learned what Pala roost really feels like – most of my previous races here I’ve grabbed the holeshot, so I never really had to deal with it before – that was something I had to learn today too. But it felt really good to be back, feeling that adrenaline again, lining up on the gate, getting those butterflies before the drop – it was good.

P4 | Justin Cooper (Monster Energy Yamaha Star Racing):
Round one of the Pro Motocross series was good. Qualifying went well. I felt comfortable on the bike all day, so overall it was a solid day. I didn’t get the best of starts in the second moto, so that hurt me, but the first moto was good. I got third. Then the second one, I worked my way up to sixth and got fourth overall, which is a good start to the season. I’ve got to dial in those starts a little bit better and be up there in the beginning. But we’ll take it. It’s not my favorite track, so we’ll move on to next week.

P5 | Haiden Deegan (Monster Energy Yamaha Star Racing):
Today was good. I qualified sixth and then Moto 1 had a good start until I tucked it in the first turn. I saved it, but man, it was sketchy. I came from 25th to fifth, so that was a good ride. I had good battles with all these guys in the top 10, who are champions. So it was a fun time learning and battling those guys. Then Moto 2, I got a little better start, but obviously we’ve got to work on that, because if we can start up front, I think we’ll have a better chance of getting on the podium. I made my way back up to fourth from 15th on the start. So a 5-4 on the day, for fifth overall. I’d definitely say it was a good first-round rookie debut. We’ll go back to work this week, get the bike dialed in, do great starts, and come out swinging in Hangtown.

P6 | Chase Sexton (Monster Energy Kawasaki):
Today wasn’t where I was hoping to be, but I put myself in a tough position being on the ground twice. I felt good in moto one and was running in a good spot before a small mistake cost me a few spots late in the race. In moto two, I got a decent start and was battling up front, but another small tipover set me back. I was able to salvage sixth overall, but I expect myself on the podium. We’ll regroup this week to get ready for Hangtown, as I’ll be staying out in California to do some testing with the team.

P7 | RJ Hampshire (Rockstar Energy Husqvarna Factory Racing):
Fox Raceway was positive for me. I was in the fight around that top-five area for most of the day – I wish I could’ve finished the motos off a little better, but this was one of my better Pala results. I’m leaving here pretty happy knowing that we have a lot more to give next weekend and in the upcoming races. We learned a lot this weekend under race conditions, which is something you can’t replicate at home, and we made positive changes with both the bike and my riding.

P8 | Aaron Plessinger (Red Bull KTM Factory Racing):
I’m happy with today. I was a little stagnant in the first moto, which irritated me a little bit. But in moto two, we made some positive changes to the setup, we got a good jump out of the gate, and I was up there in the mix for a little bit. Overall, it was a good day – I just need more motos under my belt. I think I have around seven 35-minute motos under my belt coming into this race, so I knew it was going to be tough. We’ll work into it, though. I’m feeling better, so we’ll keep trusting the work that we are doing.

250MX

Image: Octopi Media.

P1 | Seth Hammaker (Monster Energy Pro Circuit Kawasaki):
Being the first outdoor national of the year and my first Pro Motocross overall win, it feels amazing for it all to happen on the same day. Practice went pretty well, and we made a few bike adjustments to get more comfortable with the track conditions. In moto one, I grabbed the holeshot and led for a while, but made a mistake and lost the lead. In moto two, I got another good start, made a couple quick passes, and got into the lead. From there, I just focused on hitting my marks and being consistent. It feels great to get the first overall win, and hopefully we can keep this momentum rolling.

P2 | Caden Dudney (Monster Energy Yamaha Star Racing):
Pala was a good one, for sure. I rode well all day and had fun doing what I love, and to get a second overall at my third pro national is definitely something. Grateful for this life I get to live and thank you to the people behind me who helped make this happen.

P3 | Cole Davies (Monster Energy Yamaha Star Racing):
Wrapped up the season-opener with a podium. It wasn’t perfect, but it is a solid foundation to build on. We’re locked in for TGO!

P4 | Levi Kitchen (Monster Energy Pro Circuit Kawasaki):
The team has been working really hard, and we feel really good about the progress we’ve made. Honestly, I’m frustrated because I know what we’re capable of. This sport has its highs and lows, and today was one of those days. I put myself in a tough position in moto two and had to fight back from way behind, which made things difficult. At the same time, there are a lot of positives to take away. My moto one victory showed that the speed is there, and the bike is great. We’ll keep building, keep working, and come back ready for Hangtown.

P5 | Julien Beaumer (Red Bull KTM Factory Racing):
Today was a really good day overall. I rode well in qualifying, and then in moto one I got off to a solid start, and then just tipped over on lap one. I came back to 11th in that one, so my riding was good, and then I got off to another really good start in the second moto and rode my laps. I rode to what I know I’m capable of, and that was good enough for a second in that race, so I am happy with where we are at, and the team did an amazing job with the bike. I think that overall we are in a good spot.

P6 | Jo Shimoda (Honda HRC Progressive):
The track is just extreme. The way they prepped it today, one side was really muddy and one side was perfect, then they funneled down to one line. If you look at the lap sheet, the top 15 were basically the same lap time, so track position was important. Unfortunately, I didn’t have good track position today, so we need to be better there. Physically, I had enough time to prepare and train, so I feel really fit and ready to go for more. In the first moto, I kind of flinched and messed up the start. The second moto was actually okay, but I got pushed wide in the second turn and got stuck in a mud area. Later I hit a rock or a sharp edge and almost did a 180 and was stuck on the uphill, so that didn’t help. If I would’ve made one more pass, I would’ve been third overall, so I’m happy with my effort overall – I just need to find a little bit more.

P7 | Lux Turner (Toyota Redlands BarX Yamaha):
I’m pumped to start off the opener like that, that felt good! Awesome day, so proud of myself – all the long days leading up to this paid off! I’m going to get back to work this week and be ready for next weekend. Thank you to my team for all the hard work and support.

P8 | Chance Hymas (Honda HRC Progressive):
Round one at Pala, I was really happy to be back at the races, it’s been a long time. A couple of bad starts held me back a bit, but overall, the riding was good. We made good improvements on the bike throughout the day. I’m happy to be healthy coming out of this weekend, and we’re looking forward to Hangtown.