450 Storylines: Thunder Valley Recap
JETT LAWRENCE: (1st; 1-1): Earned his second straight victory to grab the red plate from his brother with an 8 point advantage. It was his 26th 450SMX win in Pro MX, closing in on Bob Hannah for fourth all-time. Jett made his 30th career 450SMX start outdoors, during which he’s amassed 26 wins, 28 podiums, 28 top 5s, & 29 top 10s. His 68th SMX League* victory places him seventh all-time and his 90th SMX League podium places him 24th all-time.
LUCAS COENEN: (2nd; 2-2): The Belgian MXGP points leader had an incredibly successful Pro MX debut and his first SMX League race. Sporting fellow Belgian and motocross icon Roger DeCoster’s #104, Coenen kept Jett on his toes in each moto to record an impressive 2-2 effort in his first start in the U.S. series.
HUNTER LAWRENCE: (3rd; 4-4): Though he lost his points lead and was penalized a position in Moto 1, the elder Lawrence was still able to earn his 20th career 450SMX podium in Pro MX in 25 tries. That ties legend Jimmy Weinert for 28th on the all-time 450SMX outdoor podiums list. Hunter is 25th on the all-time SMX League podiums list.
NOTES: Garrett Marchbanks (4th; 3-6): Scored a career best 450SMX finish outdoors and the second-best Pro MX finish of his career (3rd in 250SMX at 2025 Washougal).
Haiden Deegan (6th; 11-3): Was handed one of the harshest position penalties in Pro MX history, dropping from fourth to 11th place for a loss of 7 spots after he cut the track across multiple laps.
Justin Barcia (20th; 15-41): Made his 380th SMX League start and 119th 450SMX start in Pro MX.
Justin Rodbell (23rd; 20-25): Made his 50th career 450SMX start outdoors and the 77th of his SMX League career. Sage Powers (34th; 34-31), Grant Hoffman (36th; 35-35), & Cody Walker (40th; 41-34): Each made their SMX League and 450SMX debuts in Pro MX along with previously mentioned runner-up finisher Lucas Coenen.
450 Class: High Point Facts
- HISTORY LESSON: The first 450SMX race at High Point was on May 29, 1977, for the premier class finale. Tony DiStefano held a comfortable points lead over Honda teammates Jim Pomeroy & Marty Smith entering the event. DiStefano scored a 1-2 victory to clinch his third straight title. Since then, only Ricky Carmichael (7 in-a-row) & Eli Tomac (3 in-a-row) have achieved the three-peat. Prior to that, Gary Jones kicked off 450SMX division by winning the first 3 championships.
- 49 SEASONS OF HISTORY: High Point Raceway is hosting its 49th 450SMX round, only missing the 2020 covid-shortened season since the inaugural race in 1977. High Point Raceway, affectionately known as the “Country Club of Motocross,” holds the distinction of hosting the 100th and 200th rounds of 450SMX competition. In 1982, Rick Johnson won the 100th round and in 1995 Doug Henry won #200. The historic venue was originally named Hi-Point Raceway after a sponsor that never came to fruition. Track organizers decided to keep the name but changed the spelling to High Point.
- HIGH POINT MOMENTS: Legendary motocross promoter Dave Coombs Sr. decided to run the course backwards in 1978, a decision that was not well received. That same year a raucous crowd overran security to gain access to the track and were quickly cleared out when the 500cc class stormed off the gate… 4 years after his last professional victory and 2 years after coming out of retirement, Damon Bradshaw took High Point by storm in 1997, literally. As Davey Coombs, son of Coombs Sr., wrote at the time – “Bradshaw skippered through axle-deep ruts & seat-deep water to win one of the muddiest nationals ever, with a 3-1 tally”… Ricky Carmichael’s dominance at High Point from 2001 to 2007 is legendary, winning 13 out of 14 motos. David Vuillemin managed to win the first moto in 2001 before Carmichael embarked on a 13-moto win streak… James Stewart scored the final SMX League victory of his career at High Point in 2014 with a 1-1 effort.
- CHAMPIONSHIP AND OPENER %: The 450SMX winner at High Point has won the title 27 times in 48 seasons (56%), including 6 of the past 7 years. It happened just twice in the 90’s (1997 Jeff Emig & 1999 Greg Albertyn). High Point has never opened 450SMX but was the opener for the 1980 500cc season. Chuck Sun swept that race on a Honda and won the title.
250 Storylines: Thunder Valley Recap
JO SHIMODA: (1st; 3-2): Earned his seventh career 250SMX victory in Pro MX, tying him with a slew of athletes for 27th all-time. His 13th career SMX League victory moves him into the top 60 all-time, tied with Dean Wilson and others for 59th. Shimoda made his 70th career 250SMX start outdoors and 135th SMX League start. He’s seeking his 50th career SMX League podium at High Point. Only 53 athletes have earned 50+ career SMX League podiums.
LEVI KITCHEN: (2nd; 1-8): Huge Moto 2 charges by Kitchen and Seth Hammaker after a first-turn crash resulted in a tie for the points lead. Hammaker only salvaged seventh overall, but his Pro Circuit teammate Kitchen grabbed his 16th podium in 49 career 250SMX starts in Pro MX. That moves him into 37th on the all-time 250SMX podiums list outdoors.
NICK ROMANO: (3rd; 4-5): After earning 0 top-5 finishes in his first 39 SMX League starts and stuck without a ride entering 2026, Romano held out for a ride and has proven his worth. In his 40th SMX League start at Thunder Valley, Romano earned his first career podium. He led laps and was even in contention for the overall deep into Moto 2. His previous career best came the race prior at Hangtown and the 2024 Indianapolis SX where he finished sixth.
NOTES: Sacha Coenen (4th; 14-1): The Belgian MX2 points leader and twin brother of Lucas dominated the Moto 2 by 6 seconds to rebound from a rough Moto 1 in his SMX League debut.
Ryder DiFrancesco (5th; 9-3): Earned his second career 250SMX top 5 finish in 41 Pro MX starts his first since 2024 Washougal. Carson Wood (17th; 27-10): Familiar face from SMX Next made his SMX League debut.
250 Class: High Point Facts
- HISTORY LESSON: The first 250SMX race held at High Point Raceway was on May 29, 1983, when Mark Barnett swept for Suzuki. The week before in St. Louis, Barnett suffered a broken chain in the second moto, which allowed Jeff Ward & Johnny O’Mara to seize control of the championship. This prevented Barnett from securing a fourth straight 250SMX title in Pro MX, something that has never been done.
- 43 SEASONS OF HISTORY: High Point Raceway has separate histories between 250SMX & 450SMX competition. While 450SMX racing started in 1977, 250SMX didn’t arrive in Mt. Morris until 1983. Last season, High Point celebrated its 42nd 250SMX race. Just like 450SMX, the event only missed the 2020 covid-shortened season since its inaugural 250SMX round.
- SEEING RED: Mitch Payton’s Pro Circuit squad not only earned its maiden Pro MX win at High Point, Ty Masterpool helped the team capture its unprecedented 300th victory at High Point with a stunning upset over Haiden Deegan in 2024. Brian Swink secured the first Pro MX win for the team at High Point in 1991, after contributing to the team’s 13 total 250SMX victories in SX alongside Jeromy Buehl & Jeremy McGrath. Currently, the team boasts 309 SMX League wins and 128 Pro MX wins and will have 2 red plates under the tent for the first time in team history.
- CHAMPIONSHIP %: The 250SMX winner at High Point has won the title just 14 times in 42 seasons (33%), but it’s occurred for 5 of the past 7 years.
WMX Storylines: Thunder Valley Recap
LACHLAN TURNER: (1st; 1-1): Earned her seventh straight victory with a 1-1 weekend in Colorado. Turner was also penalized 10 championship points for an infraction with the red cross flag, while rival Charli Cannon was penalized 5 points for the same infraction. Turner won the Friday moto by nearly 30 seconds, but her winning margin was only 2.7 seconds for Saturday’s moto. Turner leads the Championship by 9 points through 2 rounds.
CHARLI CANNON: (2nd; 2-2): Finished runner-up to Turner for the sixth straight race. She has held the lead in each of the four motos this season but has endured her own miscues like tip overs and penalties, which have factored into the ongoing quest for her first U.S. win.
TAYLAH MCCUTCHEON: (3rd; 3-4): Australian rider earned her first U.S. podium at Thunder Valley and sits fourth in points, just 1 shy of Jordan Jarvis for third. It signified the first time in WMX history that a pair of Australians finished on the overall podium.
NOTES: Jordan Jarvis (4th; 5-5): The veteran continued her consistent start to the season with 5-4-5-5 moto finishes thus far, placing her third in the championship.
Lotte Van Drunen (5th; 4-6): Reigning back-to-back MXGP champion made her WMX debut, overcoming the odds racing a stock Yamaha to card a top 5 finish.Mikayla Nielsen (9th; 16-3): Suffered a bike failure in Moto 1 on the final lap while running second but rebounded with a podium result in Moto 2. It’s the first time she failed to finish inside the top 5 in her WMX career and dropped from third to fifth in points.
