Round eight of the AMA Pro Motocross winds its way into the Pacific North West at Washougal MX Park in Washougal, Washington. The riders are ready to give it their all as this marks the last race before a mid-season break. Today is also the Military Appreciation Round, so you’ll see teams displaying patriotic colors all weekend long – scroll to the end of this thread to see more. Lets get into the action.
450 MOTO 1
Chase Sexton stormed his way to a win in the first 450MX moto. The reigning number one got out front early and led all 16 laps of the opening race. He capitalized on a major mistake from Jett Lawrence in the opening stages and extended his lead which held until the finish. Sexton obviously rejoined the series at the halfway point but showed he’s as good as ever with his first win of the 2025 season. He’s also now the fourth different rider to win a moto this year joining Jett Lawrence, Hunter Lawrence, and Eli Tomac.
Speaking of Tomac, the number three finished second in moto one. Like Sexton, Tomac capitalized on Jett Lawrence’s fall and made his way around the current points leader. Tomac made the move into second place and held off a hard-charging Jett Lawrence in the later laps of the moto. Their charged pushed up the rear of Sexton and Tomac finished just three seconds behind the race winner.
Jett Lawrence crossed the line third in moto one. After charging hard in the opening laps behind Sexton, the Honda HRC rider lost the rear end on lap eight and slipped back to third place. He found himself fighting lapped riders and was unable to re-pass Tomac in the final laps of the moto. A third to start the day still keeps him in position for an overall podium.
“In that first moto I just asked way too much of the motorcycle,” Jett said. “Once I got up and tried getting in a flow again I wasted two laps where Eli [Tomac] was gone and he was riding fast.”
450 MOTO 2
The second 450 moto started with a bang as all four heavy hitters ran up front. Unfortunately the race was red flagged which forced a full one-by-one restart on the gate. Jett Lawrence held the advantage off the restart and never relinquished the lead throughout the moto. Chase Sexton applied pressure during the entire race but never managed to get around Lawrence.
“This is my worst track of the circuit and I just had to rely on my starts,” Lawrence said. “I really had to work hard in the second moto and the restart made it even more difficult to have to stop and get going again…I’ve had a really good run and you can’t always win everything. Winning always comes to an end at some stage but I’m still happy with a second and to rebound in the second one with a race win.”
The running order didn’t determine the overall rankings as Lawrence’s win still put him second overall. Sexton’s second place gave him the overall so the incentive to pass for the lead just wasn’t there as he kept Lawrence at bay. Sexton clinched the overall win and put an end to Jett’s streak.
“It was nice to get a win today,” Sexton said. “It’s been a while since I’ve won a race – since the Salt Lake City Supercross – so it’s good to get that monkey off my back and go into the break with momentum…my speed was better today and I’m stoked to click off a win…I was pretty far off last weekend and went to work this week to be better. I knew I was really good at this track and had the ability to win here. I got great starts, rode well, and made it happen.”
Eli Tomac finished third again in race two, putting him third overall on the day. A pass around Hunter Lawrence solidified his spot on the overall podium and marks one of Tomac’s best rides as of late. The former champ needed this boost of confidence and 2-3 scores set him up nicely going into the break.
“Different setup – I found something that I was just really comfortable on and we were within the same zip code as these guys,” Tomac said. “Before Millville I did some testing and I thought the bike was better and then I took it to the race and it was not better. I take responsibility for telling the team. It looked faster on the clock but it just didn’t work in a race environment.”
Hunter Lawrence gave up his streak of podium finishes but still took fourth overall to continue his run of top five finishes. “Another top-five overall—fourth on the day,” said Lawrence. “I kept the top-five streak alive; that makes 19 in a row, so that’s pretty cool, and I’m happy to leave here in one piece. The visibility was really tough today, with the shadows; I might need to see an eye doctor to make sure I’m not partially blind! But it was the same for everyone, and I’m glad to make it through.”
RJ Hampshire rounded out the top five with 4-6 moto finishes. “I feel like we just keep making progress as the series develops,” said Hampshire. “I ran up there with the front guys for a bit in moto one on my way to finish P4. Second moto, decent start, then made a push towards the top-five after the restart, but lost the rear with a few laps to go – another top five and we keep progressing.”
450MX OVERALL RESULTS (Top 10)
| 1. | Chase Sexton | (KTM) | 1-2 |
| 2. | Jett Lawrence | (Hon) | 3-1 |
| 3. | Eli Tomac | (Yam) | 2-3 |
| 4. | Hunter Lawrence | (Hon) | 5-4 |
| 5. | RJ Hampshire | (Hus) | 4-6 |
| 6. | Justin Cooper | (Yam) | 6-5 |
| 7. | Justin Barcia | (GG) | 7-7 |
| 8. | Valentin Guillod | (Yam) | 9-10 |
| 9. | Colt Nichols | (Suz) | 12-9 |
| 10. | Mitchell Harrison | (Kaw) | 10-11 |
250 MOTO 1
Haiden Deegan controlled all of the first 250 moto. The Monster Energy Star Racing Yamaha rider got up front early and ran a solid pace while Jo Shimoda fought his way forward. Once Shimoda got close, Deegan turned up the intensity and broke away. The reigning champ finished six seconds up on the Red Bud winner and opened the day with a win. Shimoda stayed close and finished second.
Garrett Marchbanks qualified fastest and finished third in moto one. After rounding lap one in 10th place, the Pro Circuit Kawasaki rider continued to chip away at the leaders and passed into third with four laps remaining.
250 MOTO 2
Jo Shimoda carried his momentum into moto two and started second behind Seth Hammaker. The Honda HRC rider made the move for the lead just after the finish line and passed Hammaker around the outside for the top spot. Once up front, Shimoda controlled the race and held the lead for the next 15 laps. He crossed the line first and clinched his second overall win of the season, going 2-1 on the day.
“It was a good day,” Shimoda said. “This one means a lot to me. As a team, we worked really hard for this. I know we’re far out of the championship, but this is awesome, and I hope we can keep doing it.”
Haiden Deegan had his share of struggles in race two but still finished second. After starting back in seventh, Deegan nearly hit the ground with Ryder Difrancesco and again with Mikkel Haarup. The number one managed to keep it on two wheels and made a pass for second with just four laps left. 1-2 results see him flip-flop with Shimoda as Deegan claimed second overall.
“I kind of struggled with my bike today,” Deegan said. “I qualified sixth, which was my worst of the year, so we’ve got to go back to work on that a little bit…I felt like I was riding a bull out there, it was wild. We finished second and didn’t lose any points, so in the big picture it was a good day.”
Seth Hammaker grabbed the holeshot and later finished third in the moto, marking the best national result of his career. His Pro Circuit Kawasaki teammate, Garrett Marchbanks finished fourth in the moto which earned him third overall (3-4) and gave him his first overall podium.
“I battled with Deegan for about 25 minutes, which was a good fight,” Marchbanks said. “Toward the end, I tried to make a pass on my teammate [Hammaker] for third, but it didn’t quite come together. I later found out that even if I had made the pass, I still would have finished third overall. So I just chilled, brought it home, and locked in my first-ever overall outdoor podium. I’m super proud of that result.”
Seth Hammaker led early in moto two and later finished third which put him fourth overall. “I got an amazing start and pulled the holeshot,” Hammaker said. “Jo [Shimoda] got around me early, and I was able to latch onto him and keep a solid pace. Then [Haiden] Deegan got by me with a couple laps to go, and I ended up finishing third. With a 7–3 result on the day, I took fourth overall, my best outdoor finish so far, which is pretty cool.”
Austin Forkner’s pair of fifth’s gave him fifth overall which is his best finish of the season. “I was fourth off the start in the first moto and around ninth in the second moto,” Forkner said. “I went 5-5 for fifth overall – it is crazy what a couple of starts will do! I am really happy with my riding and day. My speed was not blazing fast, but I put clean and consistent laps together.”
250MX OVERALL RESULTS (Top 10)
| 1. | Jo Shimoda | (Hon) | 2-1 |
| 2. | Haiden Deegan | (Yam) | 1-2 |
| 3. | Garrett Marchbanks | (Kaw) | 3-4 |
| 4. | Seth Hammaker | (Kaw) | 7-3 |
| 5. | Austin Forkner | (Tri) | 5-5 |
| 6. | Dilan Schwartz | (Yam) | 4-11 |
| 7. | Mikkel Haarup | (Tri) | 10-7 |
| 8. | Max Vohland | (Yam) | 8-9 |
| 9. | Drew Adams | (Kaw) | 13-6 |
| 10. | Ryder Difrancesco | (GG) | 11-8 |
QUALIFYING
450MX
Jett Lawrence clocked the fastest qualifying time today in the 450MX division. The Honda HRC Progressive is still the 450 points leader and his time was a full second than anyone else on track. Chase Sexton grabbed second overall but was a second off Jett. RJ Hampshire rounded out the top three.
450MX OVERALL QUALIFYING (Top 10)
| 1. | Jett Lawrence | (Hon) | 2:10.869 |
| 2. | Chase Sexton | (KTM) | 2:11.880 |
| 3. | RJ Hampshire | (Hus) | 2:12.073 |
| 4. | Hunter Lawrence | (Hon) | 2:12.516 |
| 5. | Eli Tomac | (Yam) | 2:12.622 |
| 6. | Justin Cooper | (Yam) | 2:12.948 |
| 7. | Jorge Prado | (Kaw) | 2:13.940 |
| 8. | Mitchell Harrison | (Kaw) | 2:15.211 |
| 9. | Malcolm Stewart | (Hus) | 2:15.369 |
| 10. | Justin Barcia | (GG) | 2:15.777 |
250MX
Garret Marchbanks is the fastest 250 rider during both sessions today as he grabbed the quickest qualifying time. Dilan Schwartz and Seth Hammaker were behind the Pro Circuit Kawasaki rider but rounded out the top three overall times. Haiden Deegan was fast in Q1 but qualified sixth overall.
250MX OVERALL QUALIFYING (Top 10)
| 1. | Garrett Marchbanks | (Kaw) | 2:14.412 |
| 2. | Dilan Schwartz | (Yam) | 2:15.080 |
| 3. | Seth Hammaker | (Kaw) | 2:15.125 |
| 4. | Jo Shimoda | (Hon) | 2:15.715 |
| 5. | Ryder Difrancesco | (GG) | 2:15.821 |
| 6. | Haiden Deegan | (Yam) | 2:16.034 |
| 7. | Austin Forkner | (Tri) | 2:16.338 |
| 8. | Drew Adams | (Kaw) | 2:16.497 |
| 9. | Levi Kitchen | (Kaw) | 2:16.725 |
| 10. | Jalek Swoll | (Tri) | 2:16.926 |
Washougal notes:
- Jason Anderson (Monster Energy Kawasaki) is out for the remainder of the season.
- Aaron Plessinger (Red Bull KTM) is not on the gate for today’s race.
- Tom Vialle (Red Bull KTM) will skip round eight after a crash at round seven.
