Jett Lawrence has been named in the Australian team for the 2022 Motocross of Nations at the iconic Red Bud circuit in Michigan, USA.
The young prodigy will make his MXON debut, as well as his competitive 450 debut, riding a Honda HRC-prepped CRF450R in the MX Open class at the prestigious event.
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Lawrence will be joined on the Australian team by his brother Hunter and Mitch Evans. All three riders are currently contracted to Honda HRC, with the Lawrence brothers racing in AMA Supercross and AMA Pro Motocross, and Evans competing in the MXGP World Championship.
Hunter Lawrence will pilot his Honda CRF250R in the MX2 class, while Evans will ride a CRF450R in the MX1 class. Both Hunter and Evans have competed at MXON previously.
Led by team manager Michael Byrne and his assistant Gary Benn, the three Honda pilots will be looking to take Australia to the top step of what is often described as the Olympics of Motocross.
Australia’s best result to date came in 2011 when Chad Reed, Brett Metcalfe, and Matt Moss finished third overall at Saint Jean d’Angely.
The 2018 Motocross of Nations saw Australian finish fourth with Hunter earning second place overall in the MX2 class behind Spain’s Jorge Prado. In the same event, Evans finished 7th in the MX Open class and Kirk Gibbs finished 12th in the MX1 class.
In 2019, the Aussies finished a lowly 15th, before the 2020 event was cancelled. While the event returned in 2021, Australia did not send a team.
The Lawrence brothers from Queensland are two of the most popular riders in America at the moment, with Jett narrowly leading Hunter in the AMA Pro Motocross 250 class title race. Jett already has two American national 250 titles to his name, but a third title and success at MXON will almost certainly see him progress to the 450 class in 2023.