Jett Lawrence Captures Unadilla Victory and Reclaims Control of Pro Motocross Championship

Cole Davies Storms to Fourth 250SMX Class Win to Tighten Title Fight

NEW BERLIN, NY – August 16, 2026 – (Motor Sports NewsWire) – After the final break of the summer the stretch run of the 11-race Pro Motocross Championship, sanctioned by AMA Pro Racing, got underway from legendary Unadilla MX, with the ninth race of the campaign and Round 26 of the 2026 Monster Energy SMX World Championship. Picture perfect weather conditions greeted riders at the ELF Lubricants Unadilla National, as did one of the largest crowds in the history of the event, which set the tone for an exciting and wild afternoon of racing that saw dramatic shifts in each title fight as Honda HRC Progressive’s Jett Lawrence [#1] captured his fourth win of the season and reclaimed the 450SMX Class points lead along with it. In the 250SMX Class, Monster Energy Yamaha Star Racing’s Cole Davies also claimed his fourth win and moved within a single point of reclaiming the championship lead.

Qualifying

• It was all Jett Lawrence in morning qualifying as the reigning series champion paced both sessions, posting a rare identical lap time in each session at 2:12.122. That placed him four tenths ahead of his brother, teammate, and championship leader Hunter Lawrence [#96] and his time of 2:12.586. Red Bull KTM Factory Racing’s Jorge Prado [#26] rounded out the top three [2:12.842], with Monster Energy Yamaha Star Racing’s Haiden Deegan [#38] in fourth [2:12.973] to complete a top four within a second of one another.

Moto 1 [30 Minutes + 2 Laps]

• The premier class stormed out the starting gate for the first time with Deegan out front with the holeshot ahead of Hunter Lawrence, Jett Lawrence, and Red Bull KTM Factory Racing’s Eli Tomac [#3].
• Hunter Lawrence got the edge and was able to move into the lead on the opening lap. Deegan fought back initially, but Lawrence asserted his hold of the top spot. Jett Lawrence then began his pursuit of Deegan. Behind the lead trio, Prado made the pass on Tomac for fourth.
• As Jett looked to make a pass on Deegan the pair almost came together entering a corner, which forced Lawrence to dismount his Honda. He remounted quickly but dropped to fifth as Prado assumed third.
• Jett made a quick pass around Tomac to claim fourth and looked to erase a double-digit deficit to Hunter Lawrence out front.
• As Hunter Lawrence solidified a 3.5 second lead on the field Deegan and Prado began a battle for second. Prado bided his time and made the pass.
• Just past the halfway point of the moto Jett Lawrence closed in on Deegan to begin another battle with the rookie. It was short lived as Lawrence made a quick and easy move to get back into podium position.
• As time ran out on the race clock, lapped traffic allowed Jett Lawrence to close in on Prado and start a late fight for second. As they entered the track’s infamous and steep uphill-downhill section known as “The Wall,” Lawrence made a decisive move to take the position.
• Back out front, Hunter Lawrence was in a class of his own and easily captured his 10th moto win of the season by 9.4 seconds over Jett, with Prado in third. Deegan followed in a distant fourth, with Monster Energy Kawasaki’s Garrett Marchbanks [#36] in fifth.

Moto 2 [30 Minutes + 2 Laps]

• The second moto began with the Lawrence brothers out front, with Hunter leading Jett to the holeshot with Prado in tow.
• Hunter took advantage of the clear track to open a gap over his brother, as they inched away from Prado. Behind them, Monster Energy Kawasaki’s Cornelius Tøndel [#417] and Deegan battled for fourth.
• As the opening five minutes came to a close, Prado charged onto Jett’s rear fender to make it a three-rider fight up front. The Spaniard made the pass briefly, but Lawrence countered to reclaim the position. As a result of Prado’s pace, Jett looked to push the pace and pressure Hunter.
• The Lawrences then duked it out, as Prado sat patiently behind them. Jett waited for his opportunity and attacked with a quick strike to take the lead with a little more than 20 minutes left on the race clock. Moments later, Prado made the move around Hunter for second. Just a couple seconds back, Deegan started to close from fourth.
• As the moto reached its halfway point, the top four sat within five seconds of one another, with Jett Lawrence managing a lead of just over a second over Prado.
• With 14 minutes to go on the race clock Prado closed in on Jett to reignite a battle for the lead. As this unfolded Hunter Lawrence crashed while running third on the steep downhill portion of The Wall. After an extended period to get back on track the points leader eventually resumed but was unable to ride at pace, which caused him to drop down the running order.
• Back up front, Jett Lawrence withstood the attack from Prado and pulled back out to a lead of nearly two seconds. Deegan, who moved up to third, lost touch and fell more than 10 seconds back.
• As the moto entered its final five minutes Jett added to his lead and moved more than four seconds ahead of Prado. For Hunter Lawrence, his race officially came to an end as he rode his damaged Honda back to the pits.
• Jett continued to build on his advantage and soon established a double-digit margin over Prado in the late stages of the moto. He rode to his eighth moto win of the season by 10.7 seconds over Prado, with Deegan nearly a half minute behind in third. Hunter Lawrence was credited with 39th.

Overall

• Jett Lawrence ended a two-race winless drought, which equals the longest in the premier class, for the 28th overall victory of his career on the heels of a 2-1 performance that dramatically altered the championship.
• Prado put forth one of his best efforts on American soil with a 3-2 effort that provided him with the third podium finish of the season and his career.
• Deegan amassed his fourth consecutive podium finish in third following a 4-3 effort. It’s the sixth top three result of his rookie campaign.
• Hunter Lawrence finished eighth overall (1-39) for his worst finish of the season. It marked the first time in the Pro Motocross premier class that he failed to finish inside the top five.
• As a result of Hunter’s misfortune, he lost control of the points lead as Jett moved back atop the standings with two rounds and four motos remaining. Ten points now separate the siblings.

Despite initially giving up the early lead to Haiden Deegan [#38], Hunter Lawrence [#96] quickly seized control of Moto 1 and carried on to victory.
MX Sports Pro Racing, Inc.

Hunter [#96] and Jett [#1] Lawrence paced the field to begin Moto 2, with Jett eventually able to take control as Hunter suffered heartbreaking misfortune.
MX Sports Pro Racing, Inc.

450SMX Class Overall Results (Moto Finishes // Points)

1. Jett Lawrence, Landsborough, Qld., Australia, Honda (2-1 // 47)
2. Jorge Prado, Lugo, Galicia, Spain, KTM (3-2 // 42)
3. Haiden Deegan, Temecula, Calif., Yamaha (4-3 // 38)
4. Garrett Marchbanks, Coalville, Utah, Kawasaki (5-4 // 35)
5. RJ Hampshire, Hudson, Fla., Husqvarna (6-8 // 30)
6. Dylan Ferrandis, Avignon, France, Ducati (9-6 // 29)
7. Jed Beaton, Beulah, Tas., Australia, Yamaha (10-9 // 25)
8. Hunter Lawrence, Landsborough, Qld., Australia, Honda (1-39 // 25)
9. Justin Cooper, Cold Spring Harbor, N.Y., Yamaha (8-12 // 24)
10. Justin Barcia, Monroe, N.Y., Ducati (14-7 // 23)

450SMX Class Championship Standings (Race 9 of 11)

1. Jett Lawrence, Landsborough, Qld., Australia, Honda – 402
2. Hunter Lawrence, Landsborough, Qld., Australia, Honda – 392
3. Haiden Deegan, Temecula, Calif., Yamaha – 336
4. Jorge Prado, Lugo, Galicia, Spain, KTM – 311
5. RJ Hampshire, Hudson, Fla., Husqvarna – 282
6. Dylan Ferrandis, Avignon, France, Ducati – 243
7. Garrett Marchbanks, Coalville, Utah, Kawasaki – 241
8. Cooper Webb, Newport, N.C., Yamaha – 201
9. Mikkel Haarup, Silkeborg, Denmark, Triumph – 189
10. Justin Barcia, Monroe, N.Y., Ducati – 174

SMX World Championship Regular Season Standings (Round 26 of 28)

1. Hunter Lawrence, Landsborough, Qld., Australia, Honda – 738
2. Cooper Webb, Newport, N.C., Yamaha – 516
3. Jorge Prado, Lugo, Galicia, Spain, KTM – 503
4. Dylan Ferrandis, Avignon, France, Ducati – 419
5. Jett Lawrence, Landsborough, Qld., Australia, Honda – 402
6. Garrett Marchbanks, Coalville, Utah, Kawasaki – 388
7. Ken Roczen, Mattstedt, Germany, Suzuki – 349
8. Justin Cooper, Cold Spring Harbor, N.Y., Yamaha – 347
9. Eli Tomac, Cortez, Colo., KTM – 337
10. Haiden Deegan, Temecula, Calif., Yamaha – 336

1st Place – Jett Lawrence | #1 Team Honda HRC Progressive (2-1)

“I’m bummed [that Hunter crashed]. I don’t want to [take the points lead] like this. He was right there. It sucks. It is what it is. I know he’s okay so that’s good, but not how I wanted the day to end up.”

2nd Place – Jorge Prado | #26 Red Bull KTM Factory Racing (3-2)

“We had three weeks to work on the bike, and we knew exactly what we had to do. I was convinced we were on the right path with my decisions and today proved it. This was my best performance of the year and now we’re headed in the right direction. Hopefully a win will come soon.”

3rd Place – Haiden Deegan | #38 Monster Energy Yamaha Star Racing (4-3)

“Just keep working hard and it’ll pay off. I’ve kind of struggled with this track in the past, but we came away with a podium today. We’ll keep working and try to come back better next week.”

450SMX Class Highlights // Unadilla National

Qualifying

• With a tightening title fight Monster Energy Pro Circuit Kawasaki’s Levi Kitchen [#47] got his day off to a much-needed strong start with the fastest overall lap of 2:15.262, which came in the first session. He was followed by AEO Powersports KTM’s Caron Mumford [#71], who led the way in the second session with a time of 2:15.995. The top three was rounded out by Monster Energy Pro Circuit Kawasaki’s Drew Adams [#35] with a time of 2:16.360.

Moto 1 [30 Minutes + 2 Laps]

• The first moto of the afternoon kicked off with the Rockstar Energy Husqvarna Factory Racing machine of Casey Cochran [#59] out front with the holeshot ahead of Honda HRC Progressive’s Chance Hymas [#29] and Davies. Kitchen started a few positions back in seventh.
• Cochran crashed out of the lead and the race on the opening lap, which forced Hymas to stop and avoid him and ultimately allowed Davies to move into the lead. Behind them, Quad Lock Honda’s Brodie Connolly [#144] moved into third, with Kitchen giving pursuit from fourth.
• Hymas closed back in on Davies to initiate a battle for the lead. Kitchen, meanwhile, battled Connolly for third and made the pass. He faced a deficit of 5.3 seconds to the leader.
• Over the next few laps Kitchen made inroads on the gap to Davies and Hymas as the fastest rider on the track. That pressure pushed Hymas back onto Davies, forming a three-rider battle at the front.
• A small bobble by Hymas opened the door for Kitchen to make a quick move for second and set his sights on his championship rival. A few laps later, Kitchen took advantage of a bobble by Davies to capture the lead with a little more than 13 minutes to go. It marked the first time he sat at the front of the field since the third race of the season at Thunder Valley.
• As Kitchen moved out to a lead of more than five seconds, Hymas challenged Davies for second and made the pass. However, he went down and gave up two positions, remounting in fourth. Davies moved back into second while Mumford slotted into third.
• Kitchen managed his advantage the rest of the way and carried on to his third moto win of the season by 8.1 seconds over Davies, while Mumford equaled a career-best moto finish in third. Hymas was fourth, with Rockstar Energy Husqvarna Factory Racing’s Ryder DiFrancesco [#34] in fifth.

Overall

• Davies’ 2-1 effort gave him his class-leading fourth overall win of the season and his career.
• Kitchen’s resilient effort in Moto 2 resulted in an improvement of 31 positions and was enough to land him in the runner-up spot with 1-6 finishes for his fifth podium result of the summer.
• Hymas rode to a third consecutive overall podium finish in third (4-2) as his second half surge continued.
• Kitchen’s performance allowed him to keep hold of the points lead and red plate, with just a single point now sitting between him and Davies with two rounds and four motos remaining.

Casey Cochran [#59] led in Moto 1 early but crashed out of the race, which allowed Cole Davies [#37] to lead before eventually giving way to Levi Kitchen [#47].
MX Sports Pro Racing, Inc.

Landen Gordon [#180] forced several riders off track to begin Moto 2, which opened the door for Davies [#37] to seize control of the moto.
MX Sports Pro Racing, Inc.

250SMX Class Overall Results (Moto Finishes // Points)

1. Cole Davies, Waitoki, New Zealand, Yamaha (2-1 // 47)
2. Levi Kitchen, Washougal, Wash., Kawasaki (1-6 // 41)
3. Chance Hymas, Pocatello, Idaho, Honda (4-2 // 40)
4. Carson Mumford, Simi Valley, Calif., KTM (3-4 // 38)
5. Ryder DiFrancesco, Bakersfield, Calif., Husqvarna (5-3 // 37)
6. Brodie Connolly, Tauranga, New Zealand, Honda (8-5 // 31)
7. Drew Adams, Chattanooga, Tenn., Kawasaki (7-9 // 28)
8. Caden Dudney, Des Moines, Iowa, Yamaha (6-11 // 27)
9. Nate Thrasher, Livingston, Tenn., Yamaha (10-12 // 22)
10. Julien Beaumer, Lake Havasu City, Ariz., KTM (9-13 // 22)

250SMX Class Championship Standings (Race 9 of 11)

1. Levi Kitchen, Washougal, Wash., Kawasaki – 334
2. Cole Davies, Waitoki, New Zealand, Yamaha – 333
3. Julien Beaumer, Lake Havasu City, Ariz., KTM – 290
4. Ryder DiFrancesco, Bakersfield, Calif., Husqvarna – 275
5. Chance Hymas, Pocatello, Idaho, Honda – 270
6. Kayden Minear, Perth, WA, Australia, Yamaha – 240
7. Carson Mumford, Simi Valley, Calif., KTM – 226
8. Jo Shimoda, Suzuka, Japan, Honda – 194
9. Michael Mosiman, Sebastopol, Calif., Yamaha – 146
10. Casey Cochran, Portsmouth, Va., Husqvarna – 146
11. Nate Thrasher, Livingston, Tenn., Yamaha – 146

SMX World Championship Regular Season Standings (Round 26 of 28)

1. Cole Davies, Waitoki, New Zealand, Yamaha – 564
2. Levi Kitchen, Washougal, Wash., Kawasaki – 511
3. Ryder DiFrancesco, Bakersfield, Calif., Husqvarna – 439
4. Seth Hammaker, Bainbridge, Pa., Kawasaki – 314
5. Chance Hymas, Pocatello, Idaho, Honda – 308
6. Carson Mumford, Simi Valley, Calif., KTM – 296
7. Jo Shimoda, Suzuka, Japan, Honda – 294
8. Julien Beaumer, Lake Havasu City, Ariz., KTM – 290
9. Nate Thrasher, Livingston, Tenn., Yamaha – 283
10. Kayden Minear, Perth, WA, Australia, Yamaha – 267

1st Place – Cole Davies | #37 Monster Energy Yamaha Star Racing (2-1)

“This track was sketchy. I had to get in my flow and step it up. Everyone was riding good, so it was up to me to make it happen like I did. It’s a tight championship now, so we’ll race to the end and hopefully pull it off.”

2nd Place – Levi Kitchen | #47 Monster Energy Pro Circuit Kawasaki (1-6)

“I’ve had like 12 [come-from-behind] rides this year. It’s been tough, but I’m trying to stay positive. I’m riding great and that’s good. I’m glad I didn’t crash, because that was sketchy. I don’t know what the points are, but I know it’s close. We’ll regroup, try to come out swinging, and carry this momentum into Budds Creek.”

3rd Place – Chance Hymas | #29 Honda HRC Progressive (4-2)

“I definitely want to be there [atop the podium]. I’m getting glimpses of it and it’s getting frustrating, but I’m keeping my head down and going for it. This was one of the most technical tracks of the year and I’m feeling really good on the bike. [A win is] coming for sure, but I’m trying to be patient.”

250SMX Class Highlights // Unadilla National

Post-Race Press Conference // Unadilla National

The 2026 Pro Motocross Championship will continue next Saturday, August 22, with the penultimate round of the SMX World Championship regular season from Southern Maryland’s Budds Creek Motocross Park. The Yamaha Budds Creek National Presented by Carter CAT will feature live network coverage on NBC, starting at 12:30 p.m. PT / 3:30 p.m. ET. Comprehensive live coverage from Budds Creek will air on Peacock, beginning with Race Day Live at 7 a.m. PT / 10 a.m. ET, followed by coverage of the motos at 10 a.m. PT / 1 p.m. ET.

Media Contacts:
Brandon Short / MX Sports Pro Racing
[email protected]
(304) 284-0101

Sean Brennen / Feld Motor Sports
[email protected]
(703) 448-3664

About the Monster Energy SMX World Championship:

The Monster Energy SMX World Championship™ is the premier off-road motorcycle racing series in the world that combines the technical precision of stadium racing with the all-out speed and endurance of outdoor racing. Created in 2022, the Monster Energy SMX World Championship Series combines the Monster Energy AMA Supercross Championship and the AMA Pro Motocross Championship into a 28-round regular season that culminates with the season-ending SMX World Championship Playoffs.
Visit SuperMotocross.com for more information.

About Pro Motocross Championship:

The Pro Motocross Championship features the world’s fastest outdoor motocross racers, competing aboard homologated bikes from one of seven competing manufacturers on a collection of the roughest, toughest tracks on the planet. Racing takes place each Saturday afternoon, with competition divided into two classes: one for 250cc machines, and one for 450cc machines. MX Sports Pro Racing, the industry leader in off-road powersports event production, manages the Pro Motocross Championship.
For more information, visit ProMotocross.com.

About Monster Energy AMA Supercross Championship:

Monster Energy AMA Supercross is the most competitive and highest-profile off-road motorcycle racing championship on the planet. Founded in America and sanctioned by the American Motorcyclist Association (AMA) since 1974. Over 17 weeks, Supercross attracts some of the largest and most impressive crowds inside the most recognizable and prestigious stadiums in North America to race in front of nearly one million live fans and broadcast to millions more worldwide.
For more information, visit SupercrossLIVE.com.

About MX Sports Pro Racing, Inc.:

MX Sports Pro Racing, Inc., manages and produces the world’s premier motocross racing series – the Pro Motocross Championship, sanctioned by AMA Pro Racing. MX Sports Pro Racing is an industry leader in off-road powersport event production and management, its mission is to showcase the sport of professional motocross competition at events throughout the United States. Through its various racing properties, partnerships and affiliates, MX Sports Pro Racing, Inc., organizes events for thousands of action sports athletes each year and attracts millions of motorsports spectators.
Visit MXSportsProRacing.com for more information.

About Feld Motor Sports, Inc.:

Feld Motor Sports, Inc. is the worldwide leader in producing and presenting specialized arena and stadium-based motorsports entertainment. Properties include Monster Jam^®, Monster Energy AMA Supercross, and the Monster Energy SMX World Championship. Feld Motor Sports, Inc. is a subsidiary of Feld Entertainment, Inc.
Visit monsterjam.com, SupercrossLIVE.com, and feldentertainment.com for more information.

Source: SMX League

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