Hunter Lawrence needed to survive, not dominate. He did both. The 27-year-old Australian claimed his first AMA Pro Motocross 450 National Championship on August 30 at Ironman Raceway in Crawfordsville, Indiana, edging brother and Honda HRC Progressive teammate Jett Lawrence by two points after one of the more chaotic final rounds the series has produced.
The brothers entered the day separated by a single point. Lap one of the opening moto nearly ended Hunter’s season when Haiden Deegan’s crash collected him and sent him to the back of the field. Hunter clawed back to eighth. Jett, nursing a reaggravated ankle injury sustained in the first turn, could only manage 11th. In moto two, Jett secured third and sixth overall; Hunter finished fourth for fourth overall, and the math held. Championship to Hunter.
It capped a season defined entirely by the two brothers. Hunter and Jett combined to win 20 of 22 motos across the 11-round series, trading the points lead six times. No other rider won a single moto. Hunter collected six overall victories, opening the year with a perfect 1-1 at Pala, California, and carried nine individual moto wins into the finale to Jett’s seven. That the title came down to a single point entering the last round, and two points at the finish, reflects how little separated them all year.
For Hunter, the result closes a long loop. He finished runner-up to Chase Sexton in his 2024 450 debut season, then lost the SuperMotocross finale to Jett on a tiebreaker after the two finished level on points. A shoulder injury slowed his 2025 Supercross campaign, and Jett beat him again in the 2025 outdoor series. This year he came back sharper, finished second in the 2026 Supercross championship, and brought that momentum into the outdoor season from round one.
“The first lap in the first moto, I was like, ‘Here we go again,'” Hunter said on the podium. “In the second moto, I just knew I had to finish right behind Jett; most of my work was done in the first moto. Thank you America; we’re living the American dream, and we couldn’t do it anywhere else but here.”
Jett, twice the outdoor champion at this level, was characteristically direct about the day. “I tweaked my foot so many times in practice and in that first race,” he said. “Hunter rode unreal this year. He was the main guy; I did my best to try and get him, but I just couldn’t get it done.”
The championship is Honda’s 16th premier-class AMA Pro Motocross Riders title, extending the brand’s own record. Prior winners on Honda include Gary Jones, Donnie Hansen, David Bailey, Rick Johnson, Jeff Stanton, Jean-Michel Bayle, Jeremy McGrath, Ricky Carmichael, and Jett Lawrence. Honda HRC Progressive’s back-to-back 1-2 finishes in the 450 standings are the sort of result that tends to look inevitable in hindsight and is anything but while it’s happening.
Honda also secured the AMA Pro Motocross Manufacturers Championship. In the 250 class, Chance Hymas and Jo Shimoda each took overall wins during the season; Shimoda was leading the 250 championship when an injury at round 6 ended his campaign, with Hymas finishing fourth in the final standings.
Next up is the SuperMotocross World Championship, opening September 12 in Columbus, Ohio. Honda HRC Progressive has won the 450 class at every round in the series’ three-year history, and Jett Lawrence and Shimoda are the defending 450 and 250 SMX champions. Whether Jett’s ankle holds is the question the team will spend the next two weeks answering.
Source: Honda. Images courtesy of Honda.
