Welcome to the 2025 Motocross of Nations held at Ironman Raceway in Crawfordsville, Indiana. Get an inside look at Team USA as we bring you all the action from the weekend.
The Story of the Race Video
After Sunday’s main event, its Team Australia on top for the second year in a row with a low score of 19 points. Both Hunter and Jett Lawrence earned the MX Open and MXGP overall wins as well. Team USA finished second overall in a tie with Team France at 33 points. The tiebreaker went to the United States thanks to Eli Tomac’s final moto where he finished second and put in the best moto finish for the team.
RACE 1 – MXGP/MX2
The first race of the day pitted the MXGP and the MX2 riders together for the first set of points. Lucas Coenen (Belgium) grabbed the holeshot but Jett Lawrence (Australia) snuck by him on the opening lap. Lawrence used a slick outside line to pass Coenen and sprint away with the early lead.
Coenen stayed close for the first half of the race until Jett dropped the hammer. Lawrence cruised the final lap and still took the win by just over seven seconds at the line. Coenen held on for second.
The battle for third went on for the entire race as Romain Febvre, Tim Gajser, and Eli Tomac all fought for the final podium spot. Febvre tucked the front on the start straight and watched the other two rivals move their way around the new MXGP champion.
Tomac rode on Gajser’s rear wheel for the remainder of the moto but never got close enough to seal a pass. He took fourth while the Slovenian rider earned the last spot on the box.
Kay de Wolf was the highest placing 250 rider in eighth. He led a trio of MX2 riders to the line which included Mathis Valin in ninth and Justin Cooper in 10th. Sacha Coenen ran up front for the first half of the race but two crashes looked to cause a mechanical failure and he did not finish the race.
Team Germany struggled in race one after both of their riders – Ken Roczen and Simon Laengenfelder – fell in the first two turns. Roczen clawed his way back to 18th but Laengenfelder did not complete the opening lap.
The last lap shook up the overall standings as Belgium held the lead until Sacha Coenen went out of the race. This put Team France into first until de Wolf passed Valin on the final lap. De Wolf’s pass actually bumped the USA to a tie for the lead with France at 14 points, but the USA gets the tiebreaker due to Tomac’s higher finish.
RACE 1 RESULTS (Top 10)
| 1. | Jett Lawrence – AUS | (Hon) | 16 Laps |
| 2. | Lucas Coenen – BEL | (KTM) | 07.012 |
| 3. | Tim Gajser – SLO | (Hon) | 17.417 |
| 4. | Eli Tomac – USA | (Yam) | 19.361 |
| 5. | Romain Febvre – FRA | (Kaw) | 37.927 |
| 6. | Ruben Fernandez – ESP | (Hon) | 55.921 |
| 7. | Isak Gifting – SWE | (Yam) | 59.758 |
| 8. | Kay de Wolf – NED | (Hus) | 1:00.895 |
| 9. | Mathis Valin – FRA | (Kaw) | 1:01.052 |
| 10. | Justin Cooper – USA | (Yam) | 1:24.233 |
RACE 2 – MX OPEN / MX2
Race two saw the MX Open division go heads up against MX2, marking the second and final moto for the 250 riders. Hunter Lawrence made it look all too easy as he went on to lead every lap of the entire race. He and Jett now have the two best scores while their teammate Kyle Webster crashed yet again in the first turn. They still lead by one point over USA going into the final moto.
Jo Shimoda worked his way up to second at the checkers. The Japanese rider looked comfortable as ever as he battled with the 450cc regulars at the front of the pack. Shimoda benefitted the most with struggles from other riders and slotted into a safe second for the second half of the race.
Jan Pancar of Slovenia put in a solid ride for third. He started second behind Lawrence and held the pace in the early laps before slowly losing spots to Shimoda and Hampshire. With falls from those around him, Pancar managed to nab the final spot on the box, holding off factory riders like Liam Everts and Maxime Renaux who rounded out the top five.
RJ Hampshire fought his way to second and one point but later fell multiple times and dropped all the way to seventh at the checkers. He’d pass, then fall, pass, then fall. The Husqvarna rider certainly had the pace to run up front and he’ll have one more shot in the final moto of the day.
Kay de Wolf was again the top finishing MX2 rider in eighth. With 1-1 results in the MX2 division, he earned the overall win for the day. Justin Cooper again finished 10th and was the second-best MX2 rider.
RACE 2 RESULTS (Top 10)
| 1. | Hunter Lawrence – AUS | (Hon) | 16 Laps |
| 2. | Jo Shimoda – JAP | (Hon) | 09.479 |
| 3. | Jan Pancar – SLO | (KTM) | 14.927 |
| 4. | Liam Everts – BEL | (Hus) | 16.474 |
| 5. | Maxime Renaux – FRA | (Yam) | 20.396 |
| 6. | Andrea Bonacorsi – FRA | (Fan) | 22.240 |
| 7. | RJ Hampshire – USA | (Hus) | 24.706 |
| 8. | Kay de Wolf – NED | (Hus) | 34.174 |
| 9. | Calvin Vlaanderen – NED | (Yam) | 39.584 |
| 10. | Justin Cooper – USA | (Yam) | 45.153 |
RACE 3 – MX OPEN / MXGP
All of the 450 riders came together for the final race of the day which included the MX Open and the MXGP competitors. Jo Shimoda nailed the start this time around and led Lucas Coenen and Hunter Lawrence through the first turn. Lawrence made quick work of his Honda HRC teammate and found himself into the top spot early in the race. Jett slotted into a top five position but connected with Isak Gifting and fell well outside the top 10.
Hunter Lawrence controlled all of the final moto and once again grabbed another victory. With two wins on the day, Lawrence earned the overall for the MX Open division an helped carry Team Australia to their second consecutive MXON championship.
Eli Tomac came on strong as the race wore on. He charged his way through the top five, passing Liam Everts and Jo Shimoda to the crowd’s approval. Tomac went to work on Lawrence’s lead and cut it down to five seconds at the checkers. Tomac’s effort was the best result of the day for Team USA and put them second on the overall podium.
After falling early in the race, Jett Lawrence remounted and began a series of hot laps on his way to the front. He continuously moved up and got around his fellow Honda HRC rider in the second half of the moto. Lawrence found his way to third at the line, earning him the MXGP overall as well as helping Team Australia in the final standings.
Tim Gajser and Romain Febvre battled to the checkered flag, passing Jo Shimoda in the procress. Febvre’s fifth place finish bumped Team France to third on the day.
Lucas Coenen ran up front early on and put Team Belgium in a strong spot for an overall podium. He later hit the deck and salvaged a 10th place finish.
Team USA’s RJ Hampshire was fighting his way forward but did not finish the race.
RACE 3 RESULTS (Top 10)
| 1. | Hunter Lawrence – AUS | (Hon) | 16 Laps |
| 2. | Eli Tomac – USA | (Yam) | 07.012 |
| 3. | Jett Lawrence – AUS | (Hon) | 17.417 |
| 4. | Tim Gajser – SLO | (Hon) | 19.361 |
| 5. | Romain Febvre – FRA | (Kaw) | 37.927 |
| 6. | Jo Shimoda – JAP | (Hon) | 55.921 |
| 7. | Liam Everts – BEL | (Hus) | 59.758 |
| 8. | Isak Gifting – SWE | (Yam) | 1:00.895 |
| 9. | Maxime Renaux – FRA | (Yam) | 1:01.052 |
| 10. | Lucas Coenen – BEL | (Hus) | 1:24.233 |
TEAM RESULTS (Top 10)
| 1. | Australia | 19 Points |
| 2. | USA | 33 |
| 3. | France | 33 |
| 4. | Belgium | 43 |
| 5. | Slovenia | 57 |
| 6. | Italy | 58 |
| 7. | Sweden | 84 |
| 8. | Switzerland | 86 |
| 9. | Latvia | 88 |
| 10. | Spain | 89 |
QUALIFYING RACES
MXGP
Jett Lawrence put on an absolute clinic in the MXGP Qualifying Race. The Honda HRC rider was the fastest qualifier of anyone this morning and he quickly took over the lead on lap one. Lawrence was pressured early on from Ken Roczen and the two quickly sprinted away from the rest of the field. No one could match their pace at the front and while Roczen stayed close, Jett eventually stretched his lead out to more than eight seconds at the line.
Newly crowned MXGP World Champion Romain Febvre battled his way to third, rounding out the podium behind Lawrence and Roczen. The Factory Kawasaki pilot battled the entire race with the other two Honda’s of Ruben Fernandez and Tim Gajser but Febvre managed to hold the spot until the checkers.
Eli Tomac got off to a poor start after pulling 35th gate pick on Friday. He lined up on the far outside and was buried going into turn one. He made up spots lap after lap and eventually found himself knocking on the door of a top 10 finish. Tomac got up to the rear wheel of Antonio Cairoli but never got close enough to make a pass. Tomac finished ninth.
MXGP QUALIFYING RACE RESULTS (Top 10)
| 1. | Jett Lawrence – AUS | (Hon) | 11 Laps |
| 2. | Ken Roczen – GER | (Suz) | 8.277 |
| 3. | Romain Febvre – FRA | (Kaw) | 17.474 |
| 4. | Ruben Fernandez – ESP | (Hon) | 19.399 |
| 5. | Tim Gajser – SLO | (Hon) | 23.550 |
| 6. | Lucas Coenen – BEL | (KTM) | 29.282 |
| 7. | Isak Gifting – SWE | (Yam) | 37.641 |
| 8. | Antonio Cairoli – ITA | (Duc) | 46.545 |
| 9. | Eli Tomac – USA | (Yam) | 49.904 |
| 10. | Jeremy Seewer – SUI | (Duc) | 1:02.833 |
MX2 QUALIFYING RACE
The MX2 Qualifying Race was arguably the most exciting gate drop of the day. Simon Laengenfelder, the newest MX2 World Champion, nailed the holeshot but was quickly passed by his KTM Factory Racing teammate Sacha Coenen. Coenen moved to the lead and never relinquished.
Kay de Wolf made a strong series of passes on the opening lap and followed Coenen to the lead. While sitting second, the Dutch rider continued to pressure Coenen up front. in the final stages of the race, the two were wheel to wheel with Coenen maintaining the advantage at the line.
Justin Cooper grabbed a great start even with 35th gate pick. He slotted into the top five on lap one and immediately found himself battling with the front runners. Cooper passed up to third and was in the lead pack with Coenen and de Wolf. For a time it looked like he could move further up the grid, but lappers played a factor late in the race and the American rider rounded out the overall podium.
Laengenfelder dropped down to fourth with Australia’s Kyle Webster rounding out the top five.
MX2 QUALIFYING RACE RESULTS (Top 10)
| 1. | Sacha Coenen – BEL | (KTM) | 11 Laps |
| 2. | Kay de Wolf – NED | (Hus) | 02.891 |
| 3. | Justin Cooper – USA | (Yam) | 05.097 |
| 4. | Simon Laengenfelder – GER | (KTM) | 36.448 |
| 5. | Kyle Webster – AUS | (Hon) | 40.205 |
| 6. | Camden Mc Lellan – RSA | (Tri) | 49.999 |
| 7. | Guillem Farres – ESP | (Tri) | 51.363 |
| 8. | Mathis Valin – FRA | (Kaw) | 52.036 |
| 9. | Janis Reisulis – LAT | (Yam) | 54.303 |
| 10. | Andrea Adamo – ITA | (KTM) | 55.143 |
MX OPEN QUALIFYING RACE
The final gate drop of the day saw the MX Open riders take to the track. Hunter Lawrence put on a clinic as he led wire-to-wire in a start-to-finish victory. He crossed the line first and earned Team Australia the lowest score possible with just two points leading into Sunday’s racing.
Jo Shimoda put in an impressive ride for second. This is one of – if not the first – times Shimoda has raced a 450 in a professional setting and the Japanese rider looked comfortable as ever he passed his way into the runner-up spot. Shimoda is no doubt the best rider on Team Japan and also made it a 1-2 result for the Honda HRC team.
Calvin Vlananderen finished a quiet third place, taking another podium for Team Netherlands. The Dutch riders have another strong team this year and have two low scores other than Coldenhoff’s DNF in the MXGP race. This puts them second going into Sunday.
Team USA’s RJ Hampshire got pinched off at the start and was forced to fight his way through the field. The Husqvarna rider passed his way into the top five and eventually made his way around Liam Everts and Andrea Bonacorsi for fourth. With Hampshire’s fourth, Team USA heads into Sunday fifth overall with seven total points.
MX OPEN QUALIFYING RACE RESULTS (Top 10)
| 1. | Hunter Lawrence – AUS | (Hon) | 11 Laps |
| 2. | Jo Shimoda – JAP | (Hon) | 08.266 |
| 3. | Calvin Vlaanderen – NED | (Yam) | 14.614 |
| 4. | RJ Hampshire – USA | (Hus) | 18.703 |
| 5. | Liam Everts – BEL | (Hus) | 22.012 |
| 6. | Andrea Bonacorsi – ITA | (Fan) | 26.542 |
| 7. | Maxime Renaux – FRA | (Yam) | 28.526 |
| 8. | Valentin Guillod – SUI | (Yam) | 35.766 |
| 9. | Pauls Jonass – LAT | (Kaw) | 39.062 |
| 10. | Jan Pancar – SLO | (KTM) | 43.103 |
QUALIFYING HIGHLIGHTS
MXGP QUALIFYING PRACTICE
Saturday morning marked the first time bikes hit the track here at Ironman. First up were the timed qualifying sessions which take place before the official qualifying races. MXGP riders were up first with Jett Lawrence setting the fastest time of anyone on track. His time held up for rest of the day, more than one full second quicker than second place Tim Gajser. Lucas Coenen was third overall in MXGP while Team USA’s Eli Tomac was fourth.
MXGP QUALIFYING RESULTS (Top 10)
| 1. | Jett Lawrence – AUS | (Hon) | 1:55.866 |
| 2. | Tim Gajser – SLO | (Hon) | 1:57.139 |
| 3. | Lucas Coenen – BEL | (KTM) | 1:57.872 |
| 4. | Eli Tomac – USA | (Yam) | 1:58.598 |
| 5. | Ruben Fernandez – ESP | (Hon) | 1:58.659 |
| 6. | Ken Roczen – GER | (Suz) | 1:59.142 |
| 7. | Romain Febvre – FRA | (Kaw) | 1:59.265 |
| 8. | Glenn Coldenhoff – NED | (Fan) | 2:00.038 |
| 9. | Isak Gifting – SWE | (Yam) | 2:00.183 |
| 10. | Antonio Cairoli – ITA | (Duc) | 2:00.970 |
MX2 TIMED QUALIFYING
Team USA’s Justin Cooper came out swinging in the MX2 division as he posted the fastest lap of the session. Cooper’s best time was nearly a full second better than Kay de Wolf and Sacha Coenen who rounded out the top three. Other MX2 favorites like Guillem Farres and Kyle Webster completed the top five.
MX2 QUALIFYING RESULTS (Top 10)
| 1. | Justin Cooper – USA | (Yam) | 1:58.594 |
| 2. | Kay de Wolf – NED | (Hus) | 1:59.442 |
| 3. | Sacha Coenen – BEL | (KTM) | 1:59.688 |
| 4. | Guillem Farres – ESP | (Tri) | 2:00.990 |
| 5. | Kyle Webster – AUS | (Hon) | 2:01.000 |
| 6. | Mathin Valin – FRA | (Kaw) | 2:01.194 |
| 7. | Andrea Adamo – ITA | (KTM) | 2:01.224 |
| 8. | Simon Laengenfelder – GER | (KTM) | 2:01.366 |
| 9. | Camden Mc Lellan – RSA | (Tri) | 2:01.904 |
| 10. | Janis Reisulis – LAT | (Yam) | 2:02.323 |
MX OPEN TIMED QUALIFYING
The final practice session saw the MX Open riders on track. With the lines already cut in, Hunter Lawrence dropped the hammer and topped the time sheets with a time nearly two seconds better than USA’s RJ Hampshire in the runner-up position. Netherlands’ Calvin Vlaanderen was third overall with Maxime Renaux and Liam Everts rounding out the top five. Note that Everts is riding a 450 this weekend as he’s usually an MX2 rider.
MX OPEN QUALIFYING RESULTS (Top 10)
| 1. | Hunter Lawrence – AUS | (Hon) | 1:58.217 |
| 2. | RJ Hampshire – USA | (Hus) | 2:00.037 |
| 3. | Calvin Vlaanderen – NED | (Yam) | 2:00.191 |
| 4. | Maxime Renaux – FRA | (Yam) | 2:00.814 |
| 5. | Liam Everts – BEL | (Hus) | 2:01.270 |
| 6. | Jo Shimoda – JAP | (Hon) | 2:01.624 |
| 7. | Jan Pancar – SLO | (KTM) | 2:01.918 |
| 8. | Valentin Guillod – SUI | (Yam) | 2:01.962 |
| 9. | Francisco Garcia – ESP | (Kaw) | 2:02.176 |
| 10. | Pauls Jonass – LAT | (Kaw) | 2:02.447 |
IN THE PITS VIDEO
