Technical, soft conditions and three main events per class made for a lot to follow throughout the Indianapolis Triple Crown. We’ve gathered the direct takes from riders for this Reaction feature from round nine of the 2026 Monster Energy Supercross Championship.

450SX

Image: Octopi Media.

Eli Tomac (Red Bull KTM Factory Racing) – Second:
It was a good night overall. I made one mistake in race three, which allowed Hunter [Lawrence] to pull out a second or two lead, which I just wasn’t able to bring back. I’m glad to get out of here in P2 because this place makes for a really tough night of racing with the Triple Crown format, as well as the soil, so I’m looking forward to the break now.

Jorge Prado (Red Bull KTM Factory Racing) – Sixth:
My first round back at Indianapolis was a very solid day – I’m happy with P6 overall with three sixth-place scores across the finals. I was also P4 in practice and had solid starts all night, so I’m obviously not 100 percent yet, but I think that given how I felt this weekend, I really optimized everything. It was important to gain experience in racing a track like this for the future. I’m happy to come out of here with a solid result and then get one weekend off where we will put in a lot of work, and then enter the next round way better.

Aaron Plessinger (Red Bull KTM Factory Racing) – 19th:
My day was going alright in Indianapolis and I felt we made some steps forward throughout qualifying. I climbed up to eighth in the first race, which was good, given where I started – I felt I rode pretty well. And then in race two, I got a pretty good start inside the top-five before Kenny [Roczen] slid on one of the on-offs, then he went double while I tripled, which had me plough directly into his back tire on the next jump. It took me off the bike and now I have a pretty good bruise on my right arm where his tire hit me, but as bad as it was, I think I got pretty lucky to get away from that one with nothing broken. We didn’t do the third race, which was unfortunate, although now having a weekend off, we’ll keep up the work and keep grinding.

Hunter Lawrence (Honda HRC Progressive) – First:
We keep the red plate, that’s what I wanted to do this weekend! Last weekend, I was frustrated with my result and what I felt could’ve been. The team knuckled down this week and got a lot of work in, so it’s cool to see that pay off. Any win is difficult, but this was a Triple Crown – there’s three times the risk. I had my own scenario in the second race, where Cole Thompson and Vince Friese were racing each other and I was in the middle. I ended up sending Cole off the back of the berm – I don’t know how I stayed on my bike, honestly, I just got lucky because there was some carnage out there! Me and the team, we work hard! I’m blessed to have amazing people around me, and I can’t ask for much more.

Cooper Webb (Monster Energy Yamaha Star Racing) – Third:
Indianapolis was a decent day. Qualifying went well. I ended up fifth, and then was 4-3-4 across the board. So, I was consistent, but just off the top two guys tonight. I also got arm pump pretty bad in the first one, and went backwards. The second two, I actually rode much better – it was just my starts that kind of cost me. So just a little bummed. I felt like today I really needed to turn it around and get a win for the points, but it is what it is. We’re not going to give up. We’re going to keep fighting.

Justin Cooper (Monster Energy Yamaha Star Racing) – Fourth:
It was a really good day here in Indy. I felt really good as soon as I hit the track. I was really close to qualifying first, and we had some good races. The first one, I got fifth, and the second one, I got the win. We actually got out front right to begin with. Eli [Tomac] got around me, and I was able to pass him back, so that was a really cool way to win. So yeah, nothing but smiles after that one.

Garrett Marchbanks (Monster Energy Kawasaki) – 14th:
It felt like we were searching for a bit throughout the day in these soft, rutted conditions, but the team and I kept working and making small changes that helped as the day went on. I had a crash in the first race that bent the bike up pretty badly, which made it tough to put consistent laps together. Race two was better and I felt more comfortable, but in race three I got caught up in an incident in the first turn and had to fight from way back. The results might not look great on paper, but I’m encouraged by the progress we made. We’ll use the break to reset and come back ready for Birmingham.

Malcolm Stewart (Rockstar Energy Husqvarna Factory Racing) – Seventh:
Indy as a Triple Crown is always going to make for an interesting night! The track breaks down quite a bit, but we did the best we could with a seventh-place result tonight. My starts were good in races two and three, and overall I didn’t feel bad, but it was one of those tracks where mistakes were easily made. If you got out of the rhythm, you could lose a lot of time, which happened to me a couple of times. It wasn’t a bad race though, we made a lot of progress throughout this week and with one weekend off, we’ll enjoy the break and then get back to work!

Ken Roczen (Progressive Insurance Cycle Gear Suzuki) – Fifth:
Indianapolis, man, you were gnarly again… It’s just the track, it breaks down so much, the Triple Crown here is really intense. We had such an amazing day. I felt pretty comfortable on my motorcycle all day. The first race was really kind of like a dream ride again. I just felt connected, made some passes happen, and was able to take that one home. I really enjoyed that. You know, sometimes you need those rides. And then everything went south in the second race. I made a massive mistake that was just unfortunate with bad timing. Right after the start I cross rutted and high sided off the tabletop, and [then] I couldn’t clear it. So the next triple I basically dropped two and a half… As I was bouncing up, [Plessinger] was right behind me and just rode basically under my bike and put me in a backflip. He got scraped up pretty good and we went down pretty hard. So, not the ideal situation – you definitely see everything kind of flushing down the drain. But once I checked that everything was good, I just went to work and, for the situation, I felt pretty fast and smooth out there, so we just did damage control. It was an opportunity missed. In the last race, not the greatest start, and ended up bringing it home at third. So, my riding was really good, we’re definitely taking the positive of that. It’ll be nice going into an off weekend and then we’ll come back strong.

Colt Nichols (Twisted Tea Suzuki) – 17th:
Indy Supercross is done and dusted and honestly it was a pretty horrible day for me. I struggled from the jump today, and I don’t really know why. I wish I had a better explanation for all that was going on. Physically I felt okay, I was just struggling to kind of get a feel I need, and it showed. I was really slow in practice today and didn’t really have much of a flow. I was just on the ground a lot in the races. Starting terrible and crashing a lot: it was just a really, really rough day. So, there’s a lot of homework to do and a lot of stuff I need to figure out to be better. And the team is so awesome. We’ve been working really hard and everyone’s still got such a positive attitude. I feel like they’re riding or dying with me I want to put up some better results for you guys – for the team, for the fans, everything. So, there’s a lot of work to do but we’ll be back for Birmingham.

Jordon Smith (Triumph Factory Racing) – 11th:
It felt good to get three gate drops and more motos in. I needed that experience. I felt better each time, and we have made great improvements on the bike. I felt more comfortable, so we can put some more motos in at home and come back swinging after the break.

250SX

Image: Octopi Media.

Cole Davies (Monster Energy Yamaha Star Racing) – First:
It took me a couple of rounds to get this done. I was too excited, too antsy, and it cost me. I’ve been so pissed off the last couple of weeks getting beaten, but we calmed it down tonight and let each race come to me. The bike was working incredible all night, especially in the whoops and rhythm sections where I made most of my passes. I hate getting beaten, and tonight we came out on top. Big thanks to the entire Monster Energy Yamaha Star Racing Team for giving me the tools to sweep Indianapolis.

Pierce Brown (Monster Energy Yamaha Star Racing) – Fifth:
Indy was a tough day. I never could really get the ball rolling, and that didn’t make it easy. I made a mistake in the first main and fell. That one stung. The next two mains, I went 3-4. So yeah, it was a trying night, but we didn’t lose too many points. We’re still in it. Our focus is forward, and we’re just going to take this week to regroup and come out swinging in Birmingham.

Nate Thrasher (Monster Energy Yamaha Star Racing) – 10th:
It was a tough day for me. It’s frustrating putting in the work and not showing it on the track. I’ve been struggling with some shoulder issues, but I’m doing everything I can to push through. We’re going to keep working to get back to 100 percent and where I belong. A big thanks to the team.

Caden Dudney (Monster Energy Yamaha Star Racing) – 17th:
I didn’t feel great all day. We didn’t have the best bike setup this weekend, but I have to go back and work on some stuff and be better for Birmingham.

Jo Shimoda (Honda HRC Progressive) – Second:
My goal was to get a good start and run up front in each of the three races. I made my personal mistakes, moments where I needed to be better. My passing strategy was not that good, so halfway through the motos, I needed to find a way to pass people. My fitness is improving, the bike is a lot better from the first round, and now I think I can push more. I’m getting faster and faster, so sometimes I want the bike stiffer and stiffer, which is what we’re working on. We’ll try to win a race first and go from there. With Cole Davies, he was fast in the beginning and I was kind of planning to get him at the end when he got tired, but in 250 you only get 10 minutes – it’s not that long, so for tonight, it was just too late. The communication with the team is really good, and I feel like the relationship is growing, so that’s what’s been helping me the most this year.

Seth Hammaker (Monster Energy Pro Circuit Kawasaki) – Third:
Overall, it was a solid day. I started strong in qualifying and grabbed P1, which put me in a good position heading into the night. The first two races didn’t go exactly how I planned, especially the second one after I made a mistake in the whoops and crashed, but I was able to come back from last to ninth. I was proud of the way I bounced back in race three. I put my head down, made some passes, and got up to second, which helped salvage third overall. It was important for the points, and I’m looking forward to moving into the East/West Showdown in Birmingham after the break.

Daxton Bennick (Rockstar Energy Husqvarna Factory Racing) – Fourth:
This round was pretty good, looking back at it. I was better in the first qualifying and good in the second one too, with fourth overall. We did the best we could each time on track and came away with a fourth place overall, which is not too bad. One weekend off now and then we’ll get back to it in Birmingham!

Jalek Swoll (Triumph Factory Racing) – Eighth:
It was a better day! We are trending in the right direction. It’s still not the result that I want, but I feel that I did all I could. I was happy to get some good starts and lead laps. I feel like that’s what it takes to build yourself back up. The first race wasn’t great, but I was more like myself in the last two. There is still some work to do, but I feel like getting to that pace is very doable.