Welcome to the post season playoffs for the 2026 SuperMotocross World Championship! Columbus, Ohio serves as round 29 of the SMX season with this being the first of the post-season playoffs. Hunter Lawrence and Cole Davies lead the way as the number one seeded riders in the 450 and 250 divisions respectively. Let’s get into the action from Historic Crew Stadium.
450 MOTO 1
A rain-soaked track couldn’t keep the world’s best 450 riders from doing battle in front of a sold-out crowd. While Jorge Prado led early on, Haiden Deegan stalked the KTM rider and made his move for the lead on lap two. This is essentially Deegan’s first indoor race on the 450 machine and the Star Racing Yamaha rider made it look easy as he led the remainder of the shortened 15-minute plus one lap race. Deegan claimed the opening victory to kick off the SMX Playoffs.
The 2026 AMA Supercross Champion, Ken Roczen returned to action for the first time since Salt Lake City and he took home second in race one. Roczen used his technical abilities to tackle to muddy race track and rode a consistent race despite being 17-seconds behind Deegan.
Jorge Prado grabbed the holeshot and led early on but was passed one lap later by Deegan. He later finished third in race one. The Red Bull KTM rider is fresh off an overall win at the Ironman National and certainly used that momentum to land on the box in the opening moto.
Struggles kept coming for the number-one seeded, Hunter Lawrence. He suffered multiple crashes and dropped all the way down to 21st position at the line.
450 MOTO 2
Deegan came out swinging with another good start in moto two. The race one winner held a slight margin over Ken Roczen in the early laps and did everything in his power to maintain the top spot. He managed to build a gap and led all 12 laps on the rain-soaked race track and claimed his first ever win on a 450, going 1-1 for the overall victory.
The muddy conditions didn’t seem to phase Deegan one bit as he led all but one lap en route to a double-victory, dominating the field for his first-ever 450 class win. He’s the only non-Honda rider to win a post-season 450 race and won by the largest margin ever in a Playoff race. The strong ride boosted Deegan to second in the post-season points standings, two back from Jorge Prado.
“This is a dream come true,” Deegan said. “I just won a 450 race. This is crazy. I can’t express how happy I am right now. It’s just a weight off my shoulders, especially on a day like today when conditions were like this and I’m racing against guys with a lot more experience on a track like this. I’m just so happy and ready to keep it going.”
Roczen was one of the only riders jumping a majority of the obstacles during both motos which helped catapult him to a pair of second-place results. He started close to Deegan in race two but never got close enough to pass the rookie. Mistakes and an eventual fall forced the Suzuki rider to take second along with second overall. He now jumps from 10th to fourth in the SMX points going into the double-points paying round in Los Angeles.
“Just nice and content,” Roczen said. “That was my gameplan coming into here. I had a blast out there. To get a 2-2, I couldn’t ask for anything more, honestly. What a solid weekend. I can’t wait for the next race.”
Cooper Webb landed third in race two after battling with Jorge Prado for nearly the entire race. The two rivals yo-yo’d back and forth with Webb holding the spot for the second half of the race. 9-3 results put Webb fourth on the day with Prado’s 3-4 proving enough for third overall.
Jorge Prado finished third overall in his first-ever go at the SMX Playoffs. After missing the post-season entirely last year, he’s now fresh off a first overall win in America and showed the same diverse riding ability that earned him two MXGP World Titles. Prado battled with three-time Supercross champion, Cooper Webb, for the entire second moto before logging 3-4 results on the day. This is his fourth-consecutive overall podium including the last three rounds of Pro Motocross. More importantly, Prado takes the red plate from Hunter Lawrence and now leads the SMX points going into round two.
“My worst races came in the mud this year and I got up here on the podium, which is amazing for me,” Prado said. “Just improvement, from being in the top 15 [earlier in the season] to getting on the podium. We’re now leading the SMX series, and I cannot be happier than this.”
The number-one ranked Hunter Lawrence is fresh off clinching the Pro Motocross Championship and with Jett Lawrence out for the Playoffs, Hunter was the odds-on favorite. The Honda HRC rider struggled all day in Columbus. Multiple falls in both motos dropped him outside the top 10 overall, going 21-8 for 15th overall. He dropped from first to sixth in the SMX points.
“So glad the championship isn’t decided on the first round,” Lawrence said. “I’ve struggled at first SMX rounds in years prior, but nothing like this! I’m shaking off the championship hangover, and going to get back to my winning ways next weekend at round two.”
450 OVERALL RESULTS (Top 10)
| 1. | Haiden Deegan | (Yam) | 1-1 |
| 2. | Ken Roczen | (Suz) | 2-2 |
| 3. | Jorge Prado | (KTM) | 3-4 |
| 4. | Cooper Webb | (Yam) | 9-3 |
| 5. | Joey Savatgy | (Hon) | 8-5 |
| 6. | Dylan Ferrandis | (Duc) | 14-9 |
| 7. | Aaron Plessinger | (KTM) | 10-6 |
| 8. | Shane McElrath | (Bet) | 13-7 |
| 9. | Jordon Smith | (Tri) | 12-11 |
| 10. | Garrett Marchbanks | (Kaw) | 7-16 |
250 MOTO 1
Cole Davies fired out of the gate in the first 250 moto and looked to be the man to beat as he quickly opened up a near 30-second lead. The number-one ranked 250 rider led all but four laps as he suddenly faced bike problems. A locked up rear wheel halted his race and forced Davies to DNF with the mechanical issue.
“I was leading the first one by quite a bit, and unfortunately had a rock or something stuck in my rear brake, and I just fried my bike,” Davies said.
The problems for Davies proved beneficial for Daxton Bennick who inherited the lead with four laps to go. The Rockstar Husqvarna rider went on to take his first professional win by crossing the line first in race one. This is a huge plus for Bennick as its his best result just before his time with the Husqvarna team nears its end.
Levi Kitchen took home second in race one. The last time we saw Kitchen he was riding off the track to a double-DNF at the Ironman National but he looked back to normal despite the tough conditions in Columbus. Kitchen put himself in contention for the overall win with a strong ride to open the day.
Bennick’s Husqvarna teammate, Ryder DiFrancesco, landed third in moto one. Ryder D struggled with crashes in the first half of the race but bounced back with consistent laps towards the end. A fall from Caden Dudney on the final lap helped put DiFrancesco on the box.
250 MOTO 2
Cole Davies grabbed the holeshot from the farthest outside gate pick and came out once again in first place. He meant business after a DNF put him last in race one. Davies led all 11 laps and easily claimed the victory by over 15-seconds ahead of Levi Kitchen. He made the most of a bad day and still landed 10th overall, which puts him third in the SMX points.
“So I DNFed that one, but I reset for Moto 2,” Davies said. “I had the last gate pick on the far outside, but got a great start and the win in the second one. It was a good reset, and we were able to salvage what we could today. If you’re going to have something go wrong, this is the one to do it at. So we’ll reset. We have two good weekends coming up.”
A 2-2 day for Levi Kitchen earned him the overall win. He kept things under control once again in race two and made a decisive pass on Daxton Bennick on the final lap of race two. This gave Kitchen the tiebreaker for his first overall win since the Hangtown National back in June. After losing the Pro Motocross in the final round, this win marks his second Playoff podium and sees Kitchen take over the SMX points by five.
“We were coming to the white flag and I saw Dax [Bennick],” Kitchen said. “I knew if I could get him I might have a chance, but I really had no idea. That was nice, I was able to put two motos together. This was a great race to have. I’m feeling better and looking forward to next weekend.”
Bennick took second on the day by finishing third in race two. He and Kitchen duked it out for second position but lapped riders eventually played their part for the race one winner. The two tied on points with Bennick’s 1-3 losing the tie breaker and putting him for second on the day. It’s still his first SMX Playoff podium and bumps him to fourth in the points.
“I gotta be happy with today,” Bennick said. “Two solid motos. I had [the win] with two laps to go but Levi [Kitchen] was riding good. Gotta give it to him. I’m just grateful for a great day and excited to start the Playoffs like this.”
“Consistency is crucial on a day like today,” said DiFrancesco. “We got off to a decent start [in Moto 2], and I just rode my laps. I want to win one of these things, but last year these guys were super-consistent, and that’s my goal for this year so we can show up at Missouri and have a shot at [the title].”
“I’m pretty stoked on my day overall in Ohio at the first round of the playoffs,” McAdoo said. “I always enjoy a good mudder, especially when I can keep it on two wheels all day. Fifth overall on the day, and I’m looking forward to hopefully getting a dry race in Los Angeles next weekend!”
250 OVERALL RESULTS (Top 10)
| 1. | Levi Kitchen | (Kaw) | 2-2 |
| 2. | Daton Bennick | (Hus) | 1-3 |
| 3. | Ryder DiFrancesco | (Hus) | 3-4 |
| 4. | Max Vohland | (Yam) | 4-6 |
| 5. | Cameron McAdoo | (Kaw) | 6-7 |
| 6. | Caden Dudney | (Yam) | 5-8 |
| 7. | Chance Hymas | (Hon) | 9-5 |
| 8. | Landen Gordon | (Yam) | 5-9 |
| 9. | Drew Adams | (Kaw) | 10-11 |
| 10. | Cole Davies | (Yam) | 22-1 |
SMX Next
The SMX Next World All-Stars kicked off a shortened main event for the first of two Playoff races. Monster Energy Kawasaki Team Green’s Kade Johnson got out front with the holeshot but was quickly passed by ClubMX Yamaha’s Ryder Malinoski with KTM Orange Brigade’s Wyatt Thurman giving chase from third.
The battle for the lead continued as Johnson made the pass and regained control of the race. Malinoski tried for another push but lost control and fell which put Thurman up to second. Malinoski briefly resumed in third but went down again and eventually dropped out of contention as Monster Energy Kawasaki Team Green’s Vincent Wey slotted into podium position.
Johnson kept it clean the rest of the way and took the second SMX Next victory of his career by 10.6 seconds over Thurman, while Wey rounded out the podium. Johnson has now amassed a four-race podium streak in SMX Next competition and will lead the All-Stars standings entering next weekend’s championship-deciding race, with a two-point lead over Thurman and a five-point lead over Wey.
“I was just patient,” Johnson said. “I’m trying to prove myself to get a pro contract. I just tried to ride my best, keep it on two wheels, and get the best result I could. I’ve been consistent recently and now have five podiums in-a-row. I think the start was critical there and it definitely helped.”
