Hunter Lawrence Wins Fox Raceway Opener as Eli Tomac Crashes

Hunter Lawrence won the first moto of the 2026 Pro Motocross Championship at Fox Raceway in Pala, California, and eli tomac’s race ended on Lap 1 after a crash with Garrett Marchbanks sent him to a local hospital. Lawrence took control early and finished more than eight seconds ahead of Jorge Prado.

Fox Raceway Pace

Mikkel Haarup led first in his debut on a 450 Triumph, but Lawrence got by him on Lap 1 and never gave the lead back. Prado chased him to the finish, while Lawrence kept stretching the gap in the second half of the moto.

That margin mattered because it left Prado second and set the tone for the opening race of 2026. Justin Cooper moved past Chase Sexton on Lap 4 and finished fifth, adding another change near the front as the field settled into order.

Jett Lawrence And Deegan

Jett Lawrence recovered from a poor start to finish fourth. Haiden Deegan, in his 450 Motocross debut, finished fifth after finding Jett on Lap 2 and briefly passing him in the first half of the race.

Those top-five results gave the opener two more notable outcomes beyond the winner. Jett Lawrence and Deegan both left Fox Raceway in the lead group, even as the race kept shifting behind Lawrence.

Tomac And Sexton

Tomac’s crash with Marchbanks on Lap 1 was the most serious incident in the moto. He needed assistance off the track, was awake and alert afterward, and was transferred to a local hospital.

Sexton’s race changed later, when he crashed on Lap 12 and fell to seventh. For riders and teams leaving Pala, the opener already split clean results from costly mistakes, and the first points race of 2026 carried both for the front-runners and the riders trying to recover from the early damage.