Follow the 2023 SuperMotocross World Championship (SMX) with direct updates from Playoff 2 of the post-season in Chicago through Racefeed.

Image: Octopi Media.

250SMX qualifying:
Justin Cooper and his Monster Energy Yamaha Star Racing-prepared Yamaha YZ250F set the quickest lap in Chicago’s rain-affected second unseeded 250SMX qualifying session. However, RJ Hampshire of Rockstar Energy Husqvarna earned the distinction of the fastest 250 rider entering the motos on the strength of his first-session effort. Hampshire was four-tenths of a second off Cooper in the second session with a 1:53.628s to land second, but his 1:52.205s from earlier stood as the fastest time in the class on the combined timesheet. Similarly, Seth Hammaker (Monster Energy Pro Circuit Kawasaki) was near the top of the second-session results in third, but his best lap from earlier in the afternoon earned him second behind Hampshire with all best laps combined. Levi Kitchen (Monster Energy Yamaha Star Racing) was third, followed by other contenders Hunter Lawrence (Team Honda HRC) and Cooper to complete the top five. Fresh off his success in the first SuperMotocross World Championship round a week ago in Charlotte, Jo Shimoda was fifth aboard his Monster Energy Pro Circuit Kawasaki ride, followed by Tom Vialle (Red Bull KTM), Dilan Schwartz (Toyota of Redlands BarX Suzuki), Jalek Swoll (Rockstar Energy Husqvarna), and Pierce Brown (TLD Red Bull GasGas) in the top 10. Winner of the first moto in Charlotte, Haiden Deegan (Monster Energy Yamaha Star Racing) will go to the gate 13th as he only came within 2.112s of Hampshire’s class-leading time.

450SMX qualifying:
First in the initial timed session and third in the rainy second outing, Ken Roczen delivered the top 450SMX qualifying time to Progressive Insurance Ecstar Suzuki. At 1:51.562s in the first premier-class outing, Roczen lapped the unique Chicago track 0.42s quicker than Team Honda HRC’s Jett Lawrence to earn the first gate pick for the opening 450SMX moto. The second factory-prepared Honda CRF450R qualified third with Chase Sexton aboard as the Charlotte SMX winner came within 0.758s of Roczen’s pace on their respective best laps. Garrett Marchbanks gave Muc-Off FXR ClubMX Yamaha representation near the top of 450SMX qualifying with the fourth-fastest lap on the combined timesheet, lapping quicker than factory riders Justin Barcia (TLD Red Bull GasGas), Jason Anderson (Monster Energy Kawasaki), Aaron Plessinger (Red Bull KTM), Adam Cianciarulo (Monster Energy Kawasaki), and Dylan Ferrandis (Monster Energy Yamaha Star Racing) in positions five through nine. Privateer Ty Masterpool (HBI Racing Kawasaki) completed the top 10.

250SMX LCQ:
With Joshua Varize (AEO Powersports KTM Racing) comfortably out front after securing the holeshot, the battle for the final transfer position was on as the day’s first last chance qualifier race progressed. Luke Neese (Muc-Off FXR ClubMX Yamaha), Hunter Yoder (Partzilla PRMX Racing), Chris Blose (Phoenix Racing Honda), and Derek Kelley (AEO Powersports KTM Racing) eventually found positions five through eight — with six transfer positions available — and garnered the most attention as the checkered flag neared, especially after an unfortunate fall for Kelley while running inside the top six. Blose and Kelley ultimately fell short by finishing seventh and eighth, with Varize leading Preston Kilroy (Muc-Off FXR ClubMX Yamaha), Coty Schock (Phoenix Racing Honda), Cullin Park (Phoenix Racing Honda), Neese, and Yoder in successfully transferring to the two-moto main event program.

450SMX LCQ:
Tight racing through and outside of the left-handed first turn after the mostly grass start on the Chicagoland Speedway infield between Jerry Robin (Estenson Racing/FCC Motosports Yamaha) and Phil Nicoletti (Muc-Off FXR ClubMX Yamaha) led to Nicoletti coming away with the lead after a few more corners. Robin settled into second, with TPJ Racing’s Romain Pape running a close third and attempting to qualify for his first SuperMotocross motos. Jeremy Hand (Hand Racing/Valley Motorsports Honda) pressured Pape until the French rider made a mistake and lost third place — the final transfer spot — to Hand, along with the fourth position to privateer rider Kevin Moranz. Pape would finish a frustrating fifth after running in the final transfer spot for much of the race, while Nicoletti, Robin, and Hand punched their tickets to the motos.

250SMX moto one:
Well-executed starts for primary contenders Deegan and Lawrence soon led to the two co-points leaders in 250SMX initially breaking away from the field. Deegan opened up a somewhat comfortable lead of 2.2s, but Lawrence, noting after the race that he spent some time getting used to the dirt’s unideal lighting and dark nature, soon reeled Deegan in. A mistake for Deegan in the turn before the finish line forced the rookie to roll the larger-than-average finish line double and allowed Lawrence to slip by and take control of the night’s first race. Shimoda and Vialle suddenly entered the picture as they pulled closer to the leaders — especially Shimoda, as he put on an impressive charge during the closing laps to pick off Deegan and come dangerously close to challenging Lawrence for the moto win. Just when he closed the gap most to Lawrence’s rear wheel, Shimoda tried a new outside line and had his upper body violently whipped into the handlebars due to the unexpected angle of the rut. Shimoda’s charge culminated in a second-place finish while Lawrence captured the win by a margin of 2.409s. Deegan held third ahead of Vialle, while newly named Motocross of Nations Team USA member Hampshire completed the top five as the last rider within 10s of Lawrence at the checkered flag. Kitchen, Swoll, Maximus Vohland (Red Bull KTM), Seth Hammaker (Monster Energy Pro Circuit Kawasaki), and Jordon Smith (Monster Energy Yamaha Star Racing) filled out the rest of the top 10. After a first-turn crash, Ryder DiFrancesco (Monster Energy Pro Circuit Kawasaki), Cooper, and Varize ended up 12th, 17th, and 20th.

450SMX moto one:
Lawrence sped into the early lead with Barcia and Sexton in tow. Sexton soon fended off Barcia and fully set his sights on catching his teammate. Roczen, the day’s fastest qualifier, ran fourth, followed by Ferrandis, who benefited from a fourth-place start, with ClubMX representative Nicoletti running a solid sixth. After sweeping both motos at the SuperMotocross-opening Charlotte event a week ago, Sexton was unable to keep Lawrence close and settled for second, 8.459s in arrears of the undefeated 450MX Pro Motocross Championship winner at the checkers. Roczen worked past Barcia for the race’s final podium spot, followed by Barcia and Plessinger, who charged from eighth to complete the top five. Ferrandis, Nicoletti, Webb, Masterpool, and Marchbanks filled out the rest of the top 10, with Cianciarulo just 1.228s behind Marchbanks at the end. Cianciarulo’s Monster Energy Kawasaki stablemate Anderson had a similarly unideal moto, culminating in a 13th-place finish.

250SMX moto two:
Keen to reach his potential in a race after finding himself on the ground in the early moments of moto one, Cooper swiped the holeshot and assumed early control of the concluding 250SMX action of the night. Setting up a duel for the overall, Shimoda and Lawrence ran second and third in the early going. Shimoda made a successful move for the lead on the second lap but, while being closely pursued by Lawrence, backed off briefly after a few corners of looking down at his motorcycle, sensing an engine problem. Lawrence took over the race lead and never gave it up, leading the final four laps and opening up a 5.41s lead before the checkered flag appeared. Shimoda settled for second, finalizing his 2-2 moto scores for the night, with both moto wins being within reach at various points. Sweeping both motos, Lawrence heads to the final race of the year as the overall winner of the double-points offering Chicago SuperMotocross round. Deegan took third in this second 250SMX moto, matching his first-moto result to secure third overall. The stand-out rookie was chased to the checkered flag by Hampshire and Vohland in the top five. Cooper’s strong start led to a sixth-place finish, with DiFrancesco, Smith, Hammaker, and Schwartz rounding out the top 10.

450SMX moto two:
Following a delay to resolve a gate malfunction that kept the gate from falling at all in the first attempt to get going, the holeshot and early lead in the night’s final race was earned by Nicoletti. Nicoletti rocketed past his factory-backed competition on his ClubMX-prepared Yamaha YZ450F, but the tall order of keeping Lawrence, Sexton, and others behind proved too much halfway through the first lap of the long Chicagoland Speedway track. Lawrence sped past Nicoletti as the field worked to the furthest end of the track for the first time and led laps one through nine. Before the completion of the 10th lap, Lawrence mysteriously waved a charging Roczen by into the lead, prompting questions about the status of his bike. With Sexton roughly 16s further back in third, Lawrence cruised to the checkers behind Roczen with no evident motorcycle problems, finishing 5.314s behind the now-father of two as of this week. On the podium, Lawrence explained how he realized mid-race that letting Roczen by would cost Sexton in the calculation for the overall. Sexton finished third, with his 2-3 results on the night earning him third overall behind Roczen’s 3-1. With first in the opening moto and second in moto two, Lawrence claimed the overall victory and added 50 new points to his SMX series total. After Lawrence and Sexton in second and third in moto two, Plessinger ended his strong day in the fourth spot, earning fourth overall with 5-4 finishes. Ferrandis was fifth in this second moto and the overall results, going 6-5 on the night. Anderson, Webb, Colt Nichols (Rick Ware Racing Madd Parts Kawasaki), Nicoletti, and Barcia rounded out the top 10 in 450SMX moto two.