Image: Octopi Media.

Continuing his 2023 season that has included the 250SX East championship in Monster Energy Supercross and the 250MX Pro Motocross Championship crown, Hunter Lawrence stayed in front of a surging Jo Shimoda to win both 250SMX motos at the double points-offering Chicago round of the inaugural SuperMotocross World Championship.

Well-executed starts in the opening moto for primary contenders Haiden Deegan (Monster Energy Yamaha Star Racing) and Hunter Lawrence (Team Honda HRC) 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.

Jo Shimoda (Monster Energy Pro Circuit Kawasaki) and Tom Vialle (Red Bull KTM) 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 RJ Hampshire completed the top five as the last rider within 10s of Lawrence at the checkered flag. Levi Kitchen (Monster Energy Yamaha Star Racing), Jalek Swoll (Rockstar Energy Husqvarna), 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), Justin Cooper (Monster Energy Yamaha Star Racing), and Joshua Varize (AEO Powersports KTM Racing) ended up 12th, 17th, and 20th.

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. Sweeping both motos, Lawrence heads to the final race of the year as the overall winner of the double-points offering Chicago SuperMotocross round.

Shimoda settled for second, finalizing his 2-2 moto scores for the night, with both moto wins being within reach at various points.

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 Dilan Schwartz (Toyota of Redlands BarX Suzuki) rounding out the top 10.

Triple points are on offer at the season-ending Los Angeles SuperMotocross round on September 23. Lawrence holds a narrow three-point lead over Shimoda in the 250SMX standings, with Deegan a further four points back in third.

Detailed results