Words: Simon Makker

The opening race of the SuperMotocross World Championship (SMX) playoffs at Charlotte’s ZMax Dragway came with its share of twists as the year’s highest-placed Supercross and Pro Motocross riders commenced battle for the big prize. MotoOnline looks at the main takeaways and talking points ahead of this weekend’s second round in Texas.

7. Webb’s result:
After a shortlived return to Pro Motocross where he sprained the same thumb that saw him miss most of the outdoors, Cooper Webb entered Charlotte fired up and ready to battle. Unfortunately, it wasn’t the weekend the Monster Energy Yamaha Star Racing rider had anticipated at his home race. After qualifying in eighth, Webb scored a good start to the opening 450SMX moto, but took an off-track excursion that saw him on the wrong side of a concrete barrier. He cut a few sections of the track before he could rejoin the fray in the same position he’d left the circuit, but was later penalized six positions. That saw him drop from P8 to 14th in the moto results. Things didn’t go much better for him in the second moto, when he found himself buried off the start and had to claw his way from 21st to eighth. He finished a disappointing 10th and holds down the same position in the SMX standings. Heading into the two final rounds he needs to perform if he wants any chance of landing on the playoffs podium.

6. To paddle or not to paddle:
One of the main talking points that came out of the 450SMX class was the pros and cons of using a paddle tire. Monster Energy Yamaha Star Racing’s Eli Tomac opted to install a paddle rear for the two 450SMX motos and the difference off the start was immediately obvious when he holeshot the opening race and was never threatened from there. It was a clearly his strategy to hit the lead early, stay out of the chaos, and manage the moto from the front. The second moto saw his slot into third early before getting the better of Lawrence and Justin Cooper (Monster Energy Yamaha Star Racing). As he and Jett diced for most of the race, it was obvious that Tomac and his paddle tire had the advantage through the whooped-out sand rollers, but Jett was able to stay close and keep the pressure on by focusing on the harder, smoother sections of track.

5. The emergence of JuJu:
Concord saw talented rookie Julien Beaumer enter the 250SMX title discussions, courtesy of a remarkable 2-4 result. The Red Bull KTM rider had shown flashes of promise during both the Monster Energy Supercross and Pro Motocross championships (finishing seventh in 250SX West and 11th in 250MX), but ‘JuJu’ really showed his true potential as a future star when the gates dropped for the first of the SMX rounds. After qualifying third behind RJ Hampshire (Rockstar Energy Husqvarna) and Haiden Deegan, the Arizona-based 18-year-old holeshot the first moto and stretched out a huge lead over the rest of the pack, before succumbing to Deegan late in the race. He then holeshot the second moto and again tried to build a gap, but found himself in the sights of Levi Kitchen (Monster Energy Pro Circuit Kawasaki), who passed him soon afterward. Beaumer then relinquished positions to Deegan and Max Anstie (Monster Energy Yamaha Star Racing) to cross the line in fourth, but still finished the day in a confidence-inspiring runner-up result overall. It was one of the performances of the whole day and one that will give him plenty of motivation heading to Texas this weekend.

4. Sexton still leads:
Courtesy of his points accumulation across both regular championships, Red Bull KTM’s Chase Sexton entered Charlotte with the 25 points, with Hunter Lawrence (Team Honda HRC Progressive) on 22, Jett Lawrence on 16 and Eli Tomac on 11. A fairly quiet 4-3 weekend for the 2024 450MX champion saw him leave Charlotte with third overall, and his SMX playoffs points lead trimmed to just four points over a resurgent Lawrence. That slender gap is actually less than the differential between first and second at Texas (more on that in a minute), meaning things are effectively all squared up between the two rivals. But can Sexton hold on? We’re currently facing a scenario that mirrors what happened last year. Sexton won round one in 2023 while the early leader, Lawrence, struggled with bike set-up and finished fourth overall. The tables turned over the second and third rounds, and ultimately Lawrence rebounded to claim the crown. Now Sexton finds himself in that same position Jett did last year – if he rebounds this weekend he’ll carry a huge amount of confidence into the Vegas finals, but if he can’t match the pace of his rivals, his title hopes will be much tougher.

3. Points pressure to ramp up:
Looking purely at the points distribution for the playoffs, if you were going to have a bad round, you’d want it to be Charlotte. From here on the points on offer escalate dramatically, with double points available this weekend at Texas, and a maximum of 75 points up for grabs come Vegas. Over such a short series, it almost creates a winner-takes-all scenario for any of the main contenders, particularly for those who find themselves placed inside – or near – the top five entering the final round. With a lot of points still up for grabs, you can expect the leaderboards to change a bunch over the next two rounds as the pressure (and prize-money) ramps up.

2. Deegan in devastating form:
If Charlotte was any indication, Monster Energy Yamaha Star Racing’s Haiden Deegan seems hell-bent on destroying the 250SMX field during this three-round series. The only chink in the reigning SMX champion’s armor at the opening round was his starts, but Deegan’s sheer speed, determination and on-track creativity more than nullified that weakness. In both motos he was able to overcome top 10 starts, clinically dispatch of every rider in front of him, take the lead from Beaumer and Kitchen, and storm away to a 1-1 victory. Deegan always rides like he’s a point to prove, and his never-give-up attitude creates all sorts of headaches for his rivals. Now that he as a perfect 50 points against his name, the pressure is now on Kitchen, Tom Vialle (Red Bull KTM), Jo Shimoda (Team Honda HRC Progressive) and Beaumer to take the fight back to Deegan this weekend.

1. The Lawrence vs Tomac showdown:
It was the battle we’ve been waiting all year for, and the stars aligned at Charlotte for the much-anticipated showdown between the winningest rider in the field, Eli Tomac and phenom Lawrence. After winning the first moto, it looked like Tomac would clean-sweep the round when he passed Lawrence on the opening lap, then dispatched of Cooper shortly afterward. But Lawrence had other ideas, as he hung onto Tomac’s rear wheel and stalked him for multiple laps, before executing a brilliant pass through the rollers to take the lead. Tomac hung tough and was ready to pounce if the young Australian made a mistake, but it never came, as Lawrence claimed a 2.4s win and take the round honors on countback. The two front-runners put on a great show, setting the scene for hopefully some more great battles over the coming rounds.