Yamaha champ takes first AMA Supercross win of the season while Hunter Lawrence makes it three straight runner-up finishes

The 2026 Monster Energy AMA Supercross Championship headed outside California for the first time this season, with Round 4 of the Monster Energy SMX World Championship lighting up Houston’s NRG Stadium. The first Triple Crown of the year delivered exactly what it promised: chaos, drama, and three different race winners — yet it was consistency, not outright dominance, that decided the night.

Monster Energy Yamaha Star Racing’s Cooper Webb emerged as the overall winner, claiming his first victory of the season and a crucial momentum shift in his title defence after what had been a frustrating opening few rounds.

Race 1 belonged to Progressive Insurance Cycle Gear Suzuki’s Ken Roczen, who grabbed the holeshot and controlled the sprint from start to finish. Chase Sexton (Monster Energy Kawasaki) followed him home in second, with Eli Tomac (Red Bull KTM Factory Racing) third. Webb opened his night with a solid fourth, while Red Bull KTM’s Jorge Prado rounded out the top five. Honda HRC Progressive’s Hunter Lawrence looked on track for a podium result before a late mistake and tip-over dropped the Australian to seventh.

Race 2 flipped the script. Prado led early after the holeshot, shadowed closely by Lawrence and Jason Anderson. Webb again started fourth, while Roczen, Tomac and Sexton were buried outside the top 10. Lawrence made his move late, taking a composed and convincing win — his first race victory of the night — with Webb charging through to second. Prado held on for third, while Roczen salvaged fifth. Tomac’s title charge took a hit when he crashed from sixth, remounting to finish 13th.

After two races, Webb and Roczen were tied at the top of the standings, with Lawrence and Prado locked together just one point back.

Race 3 delivered a frenetic finale. Tomac launched to the holeshot, with Anderson and Lawrence in tow, while Webb, Roczen and Prado again had work to do from deep in the pack. Webb’s night nearly unravelled when an error over the finish line jump sent him off-track, dropping him back to eighth.

At the front, Anderson briefly took control before Tomac regrouped, muscling his way back into the lead. Lawrence followed Tomac through, briefly positioning himself for the overall victory. As the laps ticked down, Webb clawed his way back into contention, capitalising on mistakes ahead to land a decisive pass for third — the move that ultimately secured him the overall win.

Tomac hung onto the the SX leader red plate in taking the Race 3 victory by over four seconds from Lawrence, while Webb held off Roczen in a tense late-race battle to lock in third.

Webb’s 4-2-3 finishes earned him nine points and the 31st win of his illustrious Supercross career — along with his sixth Triple Crown triumph. For Australian fans, however, the story was once again Hunter Lawrence. The Honda rider finished just one point shy of a maiden 450SMX overall victory, backing up his 7-1-2 results with a third consecutive runner-up finish.

Roczen completed the overall podium on countback, while Tomac’s Race 3 win salvaged fourth overall despite his Race 2 crash. Sexton rounded out the top five.

Crucially for the championship, Tomac’s lead has been trimmed to just four points over Lawrence, with Roczen and Webb closing in fast. With the season gaining intensity, Lawrence’s consistency has him firmly entrenched as a genuine title threat — and it feels like that first overall win is only a matter of time.

Cooper Webb – 1st Place – 450SMX Class
“This feels amazing. I can’t even put it into words. Honestly, it’s weird not to win a [race], but I’ll take any skin I can get right now. It’s been a really tough month mentally, physically, emotionally. Even yesterday was a rough day. Just to come in here today and make this happen means so much. It’s never over. I thought last week might be the nail in the coffin [in the title defense], but that’s a Cooper Webb move to come back a week later, put myself in a good position, and win. I’m proud of myself. We’ve still got plenty of work to do. We need to be better, but it’s a breath of fresh air and a boost of confidence. It’s just good to be back on top.”

Hunter Lawrence – 2nd Place – 450SMX Class
“The first [race] is where it all went bad for me. Just a silly little mistake. I’m happy with how the night went from that point on, honestly. I rode really well and this format is one of the tougher ones for me. Short duration sprints don’t come easy to me. I’m pretty happy with how it went after the first [race] and what could have been. We did good damage control and pulled four points back on the lead. We live to fight another day.”

Ken Roczen – 3rd Place – 450SMX Class
“I’ve got a little bit mixed emotions. This could have been my night. I got a little bit held up by my teammate [Anderson] and that forced me into a couple mistakes where I lost the rhythm and two positions. Here we are, back in third place. It’s the difference between catching Cooper [Webb] and winning and doing what I did. But I don’t want to be too bummed. We’re going to keep chugging along on the podium. My time will come.”

 

2026 450SMX – Houston Triple Crown Overall

  1. Cooper Webb (Yamaha) – 4-2-3 (25 pts)

  2. Hunter Lawrence (Honda) – 7-1-2 (22 pts)

  3. Ken Roczen (Suzuki) – 1-5-4 (20 pts)

  4. Eli Tomac (KTM) – 3-13-1 (18 pts)

  5. Chase Sexton (Kawasaki) – 2-9-6 (17 pts)

  6. Jason Anderson (Suzuki) – 6-7-5 (16 pts)

  7. Jorge Prado (KTM) – 5-3-11 (15 pts)

  8. Malcolm Stewart (Husqvarna) – 8-6-10 (14 pts)

  9. Justin Cooper (Yamaha) – 9-4-12 (13 pts)

  10. Dylan Ferrandis (Ducati) – 11-10-7 (12 pts)

  11. R.J. Hampshire (Husqvarna) – 10-14-9 (11 pts)

  12. Christian Craig (Honda) – 19-8-8 (10 pts)

  13. Aaron Plessinger (KTM) – 12-11-13 (9 pts)

  14. Joey Savatgy (Honda) – 17-12-15 (8 pts)

  15. Garrett Marchbanks (Kawasaki) – 14-15-16 (7 pts)

  16. Colt Nichols (Suzuki) – 13-20-14 (6 pts)

  17. Justin Hill (KTM) – 15-16-17 (5 pts)

  18. Shane McElrath (Honda) – 16-18-18 (4 pts)

  19. Vince Friese (Kawasaki) – 18-17-19 (3 pts)

  20. Mitchell Harrison (Kawasaki) – 20-19-20 (2 pts)

 

450SMX Championship Standings (After Houston)

Overall Position & Total Points Only

  1. Eli Tomac – 88 pts

  2. Hunter Lawrence – 84 pts

  3. Ken Roczen – 76 pts

  4. Chase Sexton – 74 pts

  5. Cooper Webb – 71 pts

  6. Jason Anderson – 62 pts

  7. Justin Cooper – 57 pts

  8. Jorge Prado – 56 pts (–3 adjustment)

  9. Joey Savatgy – 50 pts

  10. Dylan Ferrandis – 49 pts

  11. R.J. Hampshire – 38 pts

  12. Christian Craig – 37 pts

  13. Aaron Plessinger – 36 pts

  14. Malcolm Stewart – 36 pts

  15. Colt Nichols – 28 pts

  16. Justin Hill – 28 pts

  17. Shane McElrath – 17 pts

  18. Garrett Marchbanks – 15 pts

  19. Austin Forkner – 12 pts

  20. Vince Friese – 9 pts (–5 adjustment)