Hunter Lawrence Secures Back-to-Back Victories with Washougal Triumph to Extend Pro Motocross Championship Lead

WASHOUGAL, Wash. (July 25, 2026) – The Pro Motocross Championship, sanctioned by AMA Pro Racing, made its final visit to the West Coast for Round 25 of the 2026 Monster Energy SMX World Championship, where the tricky forest setting of the Pacific Northwest’s Washougal MX Park challenged the world’s best racers. The FLY Racing Washougal National Presented by Peterson CAT also signified the series’ annual Military Appreciation Race, which added to the fanfare of the event with military inspired graphics, gear, and special ceremonies celebrating the men and women of the Armed Forces. The most ideal weather conditions of the season greeted the field, which led to another impactful afternoon of racing that saw Honda HRC Progressive’s Hunter Lawrence [#96] add to his 450SMX Class points lead following his fifth win of the season. In the 250SMX Class, Monster Energy Yamaha Star Racing’s Cole Davies [#37] made a resounding return to the top of the podium with a dominant 1-1 effort, moving back within striking distance in the title fight a week removed from his worst outing of the season.

Qualifying

• The morning sessions served as another progressive step for Monster Energy Yamaha Star Racing rookie Haiden Deegan [#38] as he sat atop the time sheets for the first time following a stellar lap of 2:08.223 in the first session that held through the session. He was followed by Monster Energy Kawasaki’s Garrett Marchbanks [#36] who enjoyed his best-ever qualifying result with a 2:05.581. Honda HRC Progressive’s Jett Lawrence [#1] rounded out the top three [2:08.702], with Hunter Lawrence in fourth [2:08.748]. The top four were separated by a mere half second.

Moto 1 [30 Minutes + 2 Laps]

• Deegan carried the momentum into the first gate drop of the afternoon as he led the field to the holeshot, only to lose traction in the next corner and drop to the tail end of the field. That allowed Jett Lawrence to assume the lead with Hunter Lawrence in tow. Red Bull KTM Factory Racing’s Jorge Prado [#26] started third.
• As the top three quickly pulled away from the field through the opening five minutes, Deegan did well to make a quick recovery from his misfortune and found his way into the top 10.
• As the moto reached its halfway point the Lawrences remained less than two seconds from one another, with Prado falling more than 10 seconds behind. Deegan, meanwhile, stormed all the way up to fourth place and looked to erase a 20 second deficit to the top three.
• As the moto continued the gap between the Lawrences slowly grew, as Jett tightened his grip on the lead while the race clock wound down. Soon, Jett found himself more than five seconds ahead of Hunter and added to that advantage over the final laps.
• Jett carried on to capture his seventh moto win of the season by 7.2 seconds over Hunter, with Prado a distant third. Deegan maintained his hold of fourth, improving 26 positions, while Troy Lee Designs Red Bull Ducati Factory Racing’s Dylan Ferrandis [#14] rounded out the top five. 

Moto 2 [30 Minutes + 2 Laps]

• The Lawrence brothers led the field into the first turn to begin the final moto, with Jett able to grab the holeshot over Hunter, only for the elder sibling to take control of the top spot. Deegan slotted in behind them in third.
• As Jett looked to pressure for the lead early, he lost balance off a jump and was forced to take evasive action off to the side of the track. As Hunter pulled away, Jett reentered the track just ahead of Deegan and kept the Yamaha rider behind him.
• The top three sat within four seconds of one another through the first 10 minutes of the moto, which allowed them to open a double-digit margin over the rest of the field.
• As the Lawrences mirrored one another’s lap times, it allowed them to pull away from Deegan. From there, the lead trio settled in, with Hunter able to move more than two seconds clear of Jett.
• As the moto passed the halfway point, Jett dropped the hammer and quickly erased the deficit to Hunter. A battle for the lead unfolded as Jett hounded Hunter and soon wrestled the lead away with just over 10 minutes to go.
• A short time later Jett gave up the lead and went down after losing traction on the face of a jump. That allowed Hunter to reclaim the top spot as Jett remounted just ahead of Deegan once again to initiate a short-lived battle for second.
• Jett Lawrence put in a torrid charge in the closing laps to get within striking distance of Hunter on the final lap, but Hunter secured his ninth moto win of the season by 1.4 seconds. Deegan followed in third.
• After a review of Jett Lawrence’s off-track incident at the beginning of the moto, race officials determined he accelerated on the side of the track, which is an infraction of the rulebook and resulted in a one position penalty. As a result, Deegan was credited with second with Jett relegated to third.

Overall

• Hunter Lawrence’s 2-1 effort resulted in his fifth overall win of the season, with back-to-back victories heading into the season’s final break in action.
• With the Moto 2 penalty, Jett Lawrence dropped from a tie with Hunter for the overall win to a runner-up effort and a loss of two points with 1-3 finishes.
• Deegan enjoyed another consistent afternoon with his fifth podium finish of the season following 4-2 finishes. He has back-to-back podiums for the first time during his rookie campaign.
• Hunter Lawrence extended his lead in the championship standings to 12 points over Jett with three races remaining. Deegan remains third, 69 points out of the lead.

Qualifying

• Fresh off his first career win one week ago, Red Bull KTM Factory Racing’s Julien Beaumer [#13] put himself atop the charts in the first session of the morning with a time of 2:15.562 and it looked as if it may stand until the tail end of the final session when Davies laid down a time of 2:12.269 to move atop the overall classification by a few tenths. Rockstar Energy Husqvarna Factory Racing’s Ryder DiFrancesco [#34] rounded out the top three [2:12.571]. 

Moto 1 [30 Minutes + 2 Laps]

• The first moto of the day began with Davies out front with the holeshot over the Rockstar Energy Husqvarna Factory Racing duo of DiFrancesco and Daxton Bennick [#58]. Beaumer and Monster Energy Pro Circuit Kawasaki’s Levi Kitchen [#47], the hometown favorite and points leader, were two of many riders involved in a crash just after the holseshot line, which forced both to start deep in the 40-rider field.
• The clear track allowed Davies to sprint out to a lead of more than three seconds just a couple laps in, as DiFrancesco settled into second and Honda HRC Progressive’s Chance Hymas [#29] moved up to third.
• Further back, Beaumer and Kitchen worked their way through the field together, as both were able to break into the top 20 within the first 10 minutes of the moto. They continued their charge and moved within striking distance of the top 10 just past the halfway point of the moto.
• As the moto entered its final 10 minutes Davies moved out more than 10 seconds clear of the field. Kitchen, meanwhile, continued his determined climb with a pass on Beaumer and a forward push that carried him into the top 10, with an eye on additional passes.
• Davies cruised to his fifth moto win of the season with a wire-to-wire effort, crossing the finish line 17.1 seconds ahead of DiFrancesco, who secured the best moto result of his career. Hymas rounded out the top three, with Bennick in fourth and AEO Powersports KTM’s Carson Mumford [#71] in fifth. Kitchen clawed his way up to sixth, improving 22 positions.

Moto 2 [30 Minutes + 2 Laps]

• The second and deciding moto started with DiFrancesco out front with the holeshot ahead of ClubMX Yamaha’s Hunter Yoder [#60] and Hymas, with Davies chasing from fourth. Kitchen started outside the top 10. The battle up front intensified on the opening lap as both Hymas and Davies got around Yoder and looked to pressure DiFrancesco for the lead.
• Davies pushed the pace and was able to get around Hymas. He then closed in on DiFrancesco’s rear fender. The Yamaha rider bided his time and pulled the trigger on the pass to take the lead with more than 26 minutes left on the race clock. Kitchen, meanwhile, remained mired in 12th place.
• As the moto reached the halfway mark, Davies managed a lead of nearly five seconds over DiFrancesco, while Hymas settled into third. Further back, Kitchen fought his way into the top 10 and looked to move as far forward as possible.
• DiFrancesco looked to chip away at Davies’ lead inside the final five minutes and after briefly closing in, Davies responded to establish his biggest lead of the moto and end the threat.
• The New Zealander never put a wheel wrong and capped off perhaps his most dominant outing of the season by a margin of 7.3 seconds over DiFrancesco. Hymas followed in third. Kitchen finished a few positions back in sixth.

Overall

• Davies’ second 1-1 effort of the summer netted him the third win of his career. It also brought him back into the thick of the title fight with the season’s stretch run looming.
• DiFrancesco wrapped up the best performance of his career with a 2-2 performance to grab a runner-up finish.
• After capturing his first podium result of the season last weekend, Hymas made back-to-back finishes in the top three following a 3-3 effort.
• Mumford enjoyed a breakthrough afternoon of his own with 5-4 finishes that left him just off the podium in fourth, for the best finish of his career.
• Kitchen weathered through a tough afternoon at his home track with a 6-6 effort that placed him fifth overall.
• Davies’ dominant day helped him outscore Kitchen by 18 points and moved him within seven points of the Kawasaki rider in the championship standings with three races remaining. Beaumer, who finished sixth (8-5), is third, 25 points out of the lead.

The 2026 Pro Motocross Championship will observe a late-summer break before returning for the anticipated stretch run of each respective title fight over the final three races of the SMX regular season. The final third of the summer campaign will begin on Saturday, August 15, with the ELF Lubricants Unadilla National from the oldest and most storied venue in American motocross at Central New York’s Unadilla MX. The race will also welcome the return of the Women’s Motocross Championship Powered by Synchrony and can be seen in its entirety 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.

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