Hunter Lawrence Cuts Ken Roczen Lead to 1 Point — Supercross Today
Hunter Lawrence tightened the 450SX Class title race to one point going into supercross today in Salt Lake City after winning his fifth race of the season. That puts him within striking distance of Ken Roczen before the final round, where the championship can still swing on finishing order.
Lawrence’s win was his fifth in the 450SX Class this season and the fifth of his career in the division. It also gave him his 29th career SMX League victory and his 14th career 450SX Class podium, with 12 of those coming this season.
Lawrence and Roczen at Salt Lake City
Roczen’s runner-up finish stretched his career-long podium streak to seven and lifted him to 88 career 450SX Class podiums, moving him past Ricky Carmichael for fifth all-time. The title race entering the finale is the third-closest in the sport’s 53-year history, and both riders still control the outcome with one race left.
A tie is still mathematically possible, but it would take both Lawrence and Roczen finishing outside the podium with Lawrence one place ahead of Roczen. If they finished level on points, Lawrence’s five wins would be part of the tiebreak picture, and a championship has never finished tied in 450SX Class history.
450SX podium pressure
The race behind them kept the top end crowded. Eli Tomac’s 111th 450SX Class podium tied James McGrath for second on the all-time list, and if he starts the final he will end the season with 199 career 450SX Class starts.
Malcolm Stewart collected his third top-five finish of the season, Chase Sexton posted his 69th 450SX Class top-five finish, and Garrett Marchbanks tied his career-best 450SX Class result in his 15th start. Those results kept the final round from becoming a two-rider formality, even with the title gap down to one point.
Deegan’s Yamaha run
Haiden Deegan added another milestone in the 250SX Class, scoring his seventh win of the season and his 14th career victory in the class. That moved him alone into second on the all-time 250SX Class wins list, while his 25th 250SX Class podium pushed him to sixth all-time.
Yamaha now owns the winningest season in 250SX Class history with two championships and 15 victories. For the 450SX riders, the focus stays on Salt Lake City: Lawrence is one point back, Roczen leads, and the title can still be decided by the order they finish in the final race.
