Cycle News Staff | September 21, 2024
It all comes down to this! The third and final round of the SuperMotocross Playoffs takes place today at The Strip in Las Vegas, Nevada. With a $1 Million payout on the line, we are sure to see some exciting racing to close out the 2024 SMX series. Let’s get into the action.
It’s a winner take all situation at the Las Vegas finale. Photos: Brown Dog Wilson
450SMX
Moto 1
Jett Lawrence put in a clutch performance to win race one. After stalking Eli Tomac for nearly all of the 20-minute main event, the two continued to yo-yo back and forth on the indoor and outdoor sections. Lawrence threw down a huge scrub on the outdoor portion of the track and took over the lead with a minute and a half left in the race.
Tomac led almost all of the first 450 moto. Photos: Brown Dog Wilson
“I knew Eli was taking that outside so coming up that time I was just like, ‘Please stay left, please stay left.’ Don’t take my line,” Lawrence said. “I had that line and if I could send it and get close enough I might be able to get next to him and I was able to do it that lap.”
Eli and Jett were this close in race one.
Eli Tomac held on for second. He led almost all of the first main event over Lawrence but lost the spot late in the race to the charging number-one.
Jett made a pass with about a minute and a half left on the clock.
Hunter Lawrence crossed the line third. The current points leader started third behind the two leaders and rode a consistent race to land on the podium. He’s still in contention for the SMX title which will be awarded after the second moto.
Hunter Lawrence finished third.
Chase Sexton was forced to retire after Justin Barcia landed on him during the first lap. He’s out for the rest of the night with a hand injury.
Moto 2
Race two was all about Jett Lawrence as he dominated the final race of the night. He started first and second with brother Hunter and the two stayed that way through to the finish. Jett controlled the race, winning the overall with a 1-1 sweep of the night. For the second year in a row he’s the SuperMotocross champ.
Jett and Hunter were neck and neck in the early parts of race two.
Light ’em up. Jett Lawrence is back-to-back SMX champ.
Hunter Lawrence finished second on the night with a second place result in race two. He needed to beat Jett and put one other rider between the pair in order to take the title. Hunter couldn’t make a pass happen and settled for second overall with 3-2 results. The two brothers tied on overall points with the tiebreaker going to Jett.
Hunter stayed close for second overall.
“The second moto, that was a great moto,” said Hunter. “I’m not bummed on it at all, I left it all out on the track. Neither one of us made any mistakes and I didn’t win, you know. That was the best version of me tonight and who knows what that version of Hunter will be in a year’s time from now. But we’ll keep knocking on the door and trying.”
Hunter Lawrence technically tied for first but the tiebreaker went in Jett’s favor.
Eli Tomac took third in moto two. An exciting opening lap saw Tomac send it through the pack and land in a podium position. He stayed there until the checkers, earning third overall on the night.
Tomac cruised to third.
“The last couple weekends there’s just not many mistakes [from the Lawrence brothers]”, Tomac said. “I’ve made a mistake and it gets capitalized on and every time I get passed. I need to be more mistake free because I want to be up front.”
450 Podium.
The most coveted number in racing.
450SMX Overall Results (Top 10)
| 1. |
Jett Lawrence |
(Hon) |
1-1 |
| 2. |
Hunter Lawrence |
(Hon) |
3-2 |
| 3. |
Eli Tomac |
(Yam) |
2-3 |
| 4. |
Aaron Plessinger |
(KTM) |
4-4 |
| 5. |
Cooper Webb |
(Yam) |
6-5 |
| 6. |
Justin Cooper |
(Yam) |
5-7 |
| 7. |
Ken Roczen |
(Suz) |
8-6 |
| 8. |
Justin Barcia |
(GG) |
9-8 |
| 9. |
Harri Kullas |
(KTM) |
11-12 |
| 10. |
Freddie Noren |
(Kaw) |
15-11 |
250SMX
Moto 1
Haiden Deegan controlled the competition in the first 250 moto. The points leader grabbed the holeshot and led every lap of the opening main event without contention. He’s now five for five and heads into the final race with the title all but wrapped up.
Haiden Deegan controlled moto one and extended his win streak.
Pierce Brown landed on the podium in second. The TLD GasGas rider started second behind Deegan and rode his best race of the year to take a close runner-up position. Brown stayed close to Deegan and sets himself up for a strong overall finish in Las Vegas.
Pierce Brown ran up front and finished second.
Tom Vialle crossed the line third after a suspenseful race. The Frenchman is still in position to win the SMX crown and held off charges from Jo Shimoda and Jordon Smith. Vialle needs to beat Deegan in moto two if he wants a shot at the title.
Tom Vialle held on for third.
Moto 2
An exciting moto two ended the 250SMX season. Ty Masterpool grabbed the early lead and was chased by Tom Vialle. With Deegan starting back in sixth, Vialle still had a shot at the title in the early laps. Vialle tagged wheels with Masterpool and hit the deck, effectively ending his hopes for the championship.
Ty Masterpool started up front in race two.
But Pierce Brown took over and claimed the overall with 2-1 finishes.
Pierce Brown went on to pass Masterpool for the lead and took over the top spot. Now in first, Brown slotted himself in position to take the night’s overall win. This marks his first professional win and launches him to third in the SMX points.
Brown earned his first career win. Photo: Align Media
“It just feels like a monkey off my back,” said Brown. “Obviously it’s been a goal for a while and now it’s expected…It’s crazy what a start can do. I feel like nothing’s really changed speed wise, I’ve been putting in the work week in and week out. It just hasn’t been able to show because I’ve been starting seventh or 10th.”
Deegan put in a charge but later settled for second.
Deegan battled his way to second after starting outside the top five. The defending champ sent it for a few consecutive laps but later backed it down with the championship in sight. 1-2 finishes put him second on the night but first in the SMX points. Deegan’s now back-to-back SuperMotocross champ and cashes another half-million payday.
1-2 finishes still gave Deegan the SMX title.
“I actually had a good start but I let off too early and got pinched off so it was kind of my fault,” Deegan said. “From there I had to lock in and get my lines dialed. I started making some passes, made my way up to third and then Tom [Vialle] went down so I was into second. Then I tried to put a charge on and catch Pierce [Brown] but he was riding so good. It just wasn’t worth the risk. I saw four laps to go and I just thought, ‘The championship sounds really nice right now I don’t want to do something stupid.’ Just had to ride it in.”
Jordon Smith landed third in the final main, bumping him to third overall.
Jordon Smith finished third in moto two, earning him third overall for the finale. A strong ride from Smith saw him follow his teammate Deegan in for a podium result, his best finish of the SMX Playoffs.
250 Podium.
250SMX Overall Results (Top 10)
| 1. |
Pierce Brown |
(GG) |
2-1 |
| 2. |
Haiden Deegan |
(Yam) |
1-2 |
| 3. |
Jordon Smith |
(Yam) |
5-3 |
| 4. |
Jo Shimoda |
(Hon) |
4-5 |
| 5. |
Tom Vialle |
(KTM) |
3-8 |
| 6. |
Max Anstie |
(Yam) |
10-4 |
| 7. |
Ty Masterpool |
(Kaw) |
9-6 |
| 8. |
Levi Kitchen |
(Kaw) |
6-10 |
| 9. |
Julien Beaumer |
(KTM) |
11-9 |
| 10. |
Garrett Marchbanks |
(Kaw) |
8-12 |
QUALIFYING
450MX
Jett Lawrence is looking to defend his 450SMX title and logged the fastest lap of the day late in the second qualifying session. The Honda HRC rider clocked a 1:33, 1.1 seconds faster than second place. Hunter Lawrence jumped to second overall and was the only rider in the 1:34 range. Eli Tomac logged the third best time, just eight tenths back from the Lawrences. Cooper Webb and Jason Anderson rounded out the top five.
Jett Lawrence topped the time sheets by more than a second.
Points leader Hunter Lawrence was second.
Eli Tomac clocked third overall.
450SMX Combined Qualifying (Top 10)
| 1. |
Jett Lawrence |
(Hon) |
1:33.875 |
| 2. |
Hunter Lawrence |
(Hon) |
1:34.958 |
| 3. |
Eli Tomac |
(Yam) |
1:35.725 |
| 4. |
Cooper Webb |
(Yam) |
1:35.911 |
| 5. |
Jason Anderson |
(Kaw) |
1:35.962 |
| 6. |
Chase Sexton |
(KTM) |
1:36.076 |
| 7. |
Malcolm Stewart |
(Hus) |
1:36.623 |
| 8. |
Justin Cooper |
(Yam) |
1:36.944 |
| 9. |
Aaron Plessinger |
(KTM) |
1:37.064 |
| 10. |
Christian Craig |
(Hus) |
1:37.281 |
250SMX
Haiden Deegan is four-for-four so far in the SMX Playoffs. The reigning champ did it again with P1 in both 250 qualifiers, posting the fastest lap in each session. Julien Beaumer clocked a close second, five-hundreths of a second back from Deegan. Ryder Difrancesco looked arguably his best of the season and landed third in the overall qualifying.
250SMX riders take to the track.
Haiden Deegan clocked the fastest laps in both 250 qualifiers.
250SMX Combined Qualifying (Top 10)
| 1. |
Haiden Deegan |
(Yam) |
1:37.208 |
| 2. |
Julien Beaumer |
(KTM) |
1:37.259 |
| 3. |
Ryder Difrancesco |
(GG) |
1:38.146 |
| 4. |
Ty Masterpool |
(Kaw) |
1:38.432 |
| 5. |
Tom Vialle |
(KTM) |
1:38.545 |
| 6. |
Levi Kitchen |
(Kaw) |
1:38.792 |
| 7. |
Pierce Brown |
(GG) |
1:38.799 |
| 8. |
Jordon Smith |
(Yam) |
1:38.917 |
| 9. |
Jo Shimoda |
(Hon) |
1:39.404 |
| 10. |
Garrett Marchbanks |
(Kaw) |
1:39.836 |
In The Pits
Teams brought the Vegas theme for the finale. Here’s Cameron McAdoo’s Pro Circuit Kawasaki KX250.
Chrome details.
Kyle Chisholm sporting Fly’s new Abyss LE.
Vented front plate on Deegan’s ride.
Partzilla PRMX Kawasaki.
White and gold for the Muc-Off FXR Yamaha’s.
Two-thirds of Team USA for MXON.
Today marks the final round of Phil Nicoletti’s career.
The TLD GasGas team is sporting “Venom” themed graphics to support their partnership with Sony Pictures.
Vegas vibes with Tom Vialle.
Jason Anderson is rocking a special collab kit from Alpinestars and Nahmias.
Let’s go racing!
You’re welcome.
