SuperMotocross 2025 championship ends in fireworks

If there were any lingering doubts about the merit of the SuperMotocross (SMX) playoff structure, they were all but erased with an explosive 2025 finale at the Las Vegas Motor Speedway in Nevada over the weekend. 

Both the 250SMX and 450SMX championships went down to the final motos of the year, completing a long season that combined the AMA Supercross and AMA Pro Motocross championships with a three-round hybrid playoff series. 

Heading into the Las Vegas finale, the headline story was the sibling rivalry between the Honda-mounted pair Jett and Hunter Lawrence. With the points lead in hand, older brother Hunter looked destined to finally dethrone his prodigy little bro, but Jett went 1-2 in the two-moto final to secure his third SMX title and his 10th AMA title.  

Hunter did everything he could, finishing third behind Jett and Eli Tomac (Yamaha) in the first moto, and winning the second moto in dominant fashion. But when a lacklustre Jett decided to put the hammer down in the final race to overtake Tomac for second place, the championship swung in his favour. 

The tension was on the podium was immense with both brothers appearing visibly distraught with the result. The broadcast showed little interaction between the pair, who are also teammates, with Hunter making no reference to Jett in his post-race interview. He only said that he was “gutted” and that he “just came up short”. 

In Jett’s own interview, he noted the bittersweet result, explaining that while he valued the win, he was “bummed” to see his brother sad about the result. He also revealed that Hunter was “battling with a cold” and that he “deserved” the win. 

Of course, the SMX playoffs are not just about the glory, but also the $1million payout that comes with winning the championship. 

While Jett pocketed the big cheque, Hunter still walked awa with $500,000. Tomac was awarded $250,000 for his third-place championship finish. 

But the Lawrence rivalry was not even close to being the biggest drama on the night, with the 250SMX class ending in a game of cat-and-mouse that has rarely been seen before.

Honda’s Jo Shimoda was not the fastest rider in 2025, but he proved to be the most consistent, entering the final race meet needing only a second place overall to secure the championship. 

By the time the second moto rolled around, Shimoda just needed to stay close to his rivals Haiden Deegan (Yamaha) and Seth Hammaker (Kawasaki). He eventually hit the lead, and it looked like the job was done. But Deegan had other ideas. 

Deegan, son of freestyle legend Brian, knew the only way he could win the title was to take Shimoda out of the race. Deegan was clearly the faster rider in the moto, and he caught and passed Shimoda before relinquishing the lead, only to then line-up an aggressive block pass that should have put the Honda rider on the deck. Shimoda anticipated the attack and dodged it, before taking the lead once more. 

For a moment, it looked like Shimoda was going to pull away from Deegan, but the Yamaha rider caught up once again. He tried several more aggressive moves before finally making contact with Shimoda. Both survived, but the next attack put both riders on the ground, letting Hammaker go past into first place. Shimoda remounted to finish second, but Deegan walked away from his bike clutching his shoulder. It was later determined he had suffered a broken collarbone. 

The result gave Shimoda the championship, while Deegan’s injury will likely see him sit out of the upcoming Motocross of Nations. 

In a post-race press conference, Shimoda told reporters that Deegan had warned him about the heated encounter. Deegan apparently said: “You don’t know what’s about to come”. Shimoda, who is from Japan, then replied: “I don’t speak English.” 

Many riders will now turn their attention to the Motocross of Nations on October 5, with the Lawrence brothers aiming to defend their title for Australia. The USA team, which would have been pre-race favourite, is now searching for two new riders after Deegan and KTM’s Chase Sexton both injured themselves in the SMX final.

The 2026 AMA Supercross season will kick off in January, with dates expected to be announced in the coming weeks.