2024 Las Vegas SuperMotocross Recap

It all ended just the way most people expected.

The final round of the three-race SuperMotocross Championship playoff series concluded on Saturday at Las Vegas Motor Speedway in Las Vegas with the reigning champions still reigning.

In the 450 class, a three-way make it or break it, winner takes all scenario ended shortly after Moto 1 when Chase Sexton was landed on by Justin Barcia that not only ended his race, but Sexton's day and any chance of claiming the SMX title. Sexton sat out Moto 2 leaving the $1 million for grabs to Jett and Hunter Lawrence. Eli Tomac had an outside shot but needed a similar scenario with both brothers knocked out early.

It didn't happen as Jett (1-1) won both Motos first catching up to a speedy Tomac (2-3) who grabbed the Holeshot in the first race and succumbed the lead in the waning minutes and then in Moto 2 Lawrence grabbed the Holeshot and though Hunter (3-2) and Tomac tailed not far behind, neither made much of an effort to catch and pass.

"It sucked we didn't have Chase (Sexton) out there. I want to send my prayers to him and hope he has a speedy recovery or nothing too bad," said Jett Lawerence on the podium. "It feels good. I sat out outdoors with injury and it sucked so it's still good to come back and start where I left off from. I'm happy but it still sucks again, because it's against Hunter it's a little harder to swallow. This new bike is unreal (emphasis added).

Apparently, no one expected Hunter Lawrence to ride so well in his rookie 450 class season. He finished second to Sexton in the 2024 Pro Motocross Championship series. Time will tell how well he continually takes playing second fiddle to his younger brother.

For the Las Vegas round, Lawrence finished second overall on the tie-breaker over Tomac and tied in total points with Jett but lost the SMX Championship on the tie-breaker. Tomac finished third overall on the day and in the SMX Championship. Sexton's DNF and DNS dropped him from second in the SMX standings, just a point back of Hunter entering the round, to seventh in the final SMX standings. Jett was third, nine points back of the lead before the gates drooped.

In the 250 class, Haiden Deegan made it five straight Moto wins with a dominating performance in the first race but in Moto 2 got squeezed out in ninth, to start, but eventually worked his way up to second and seemingly dialed it back a bit with a focus on clinching the SMX Championship rather than risk a crash and injury trying for another win. In the six Moto SMX racing Deegan went 1-1-1-1-1-2.

"It feels good," Deegan said. "Back-to-back is definitely a dream come true. I've worked my butt off ever since as a kid to get here."

Note: If you got confused when the TV commentator implied that Deegan needed a fifth place to win and you wondered how a rider, who won the first five Motos and carried a 19-point lead into the round, needed to finish that high, that's because it was not in regards to the SMX Championship, it was the overall for the round. Would be nice to get some professional... Never mind. The overall went to...

Pierce Brown rode (2-1) on the day to take the final round tie-breaker over Deegan for his first professional win. His performance also jumped him from seventh in the SMX standings to third which came with a pretty hefty payout too.

"All I can say is I'm speechless right now," Brown said. "I feel like this win has been long overdue. We've been working really hard last couple of years and I'm just so stoked we got it done."

Dirt bike racing goes into hibernation mode except for the Motocross of Nations in a couple of weeks and a couple of overseas races but the 2025 Supercross season starts Jan. 11 for Anaheim 1 in Anaheim, CA.

2024 SuperMotocross 450 Class Las Vegas Results

  1. Jett Lawrence (1-1)
  2. Hunter Lawrence (3-2)
  3. Eli Tomac (2-3)
  4. Aaron Plessinger (4-4)
  5. Cooper Webb (6-5)

2024 SuperMotocross 250 Class Las Vegas Results

  1. Pierce Brown (2-1)
  2. Haiden Deegan (1-2)
  3. Jordon Smith (5-3)
  4. Jo Shimoda (4-5)
  5. Tom Vialle (3-8)

2024 SuperMotocross 450 class Season Standings After Round 3

  1. Jett Lawrence - 156: 2024 450 class SMX Champion
  2. Hunter Lawrence - 156
  3. Eli Tomac - 129
  4. Aaron Plessinger - 116
  5. Cooper Webb - 109

2024 SuperMotocross 250 Class Season Standings After Round 3

  1. Haiden Deegan - 166: 250 class 2024 SMX Champion
  2. Tom Vialle - 132
  3. Pierce Brown - 131
  4. Jo Shimoda - 130
  5. Jordon Smith - 124

2024 Las Vegas SuperMotocross