Jett Lawrence Suffers Thumb Injury in Practice Crash, Out for Remainder of Pro Motocross

During the week leading into the RedBud National, it was announced Jett Lawrence, the 2023 450 Class AMA Pro Motocross Champion and recently crowned 2024 450SX Champion, would be out for the remainder of the AMA Pro Motocross Championship due to a thumb injury. A practice crash left the Honda HRC rider with a torn ligament in his thumb that required surgery, which was really his first big injury as a pro (yes, he broke his collarbone early in the 2020 supercross season as a rookie, but with the way the schedule worked out with COVID-19 he still raced all three 250SX West Region rounds in Utah that year).

Banged up from his Hangtown Motocross Classic crash, Lawrence was still giving it his all and well in the championship fight. Heading into the RedBud National (round six), Lawrence sat second in the 450 Class standings, only three points behind his brother Hunter Lawrence. The thumb injury knocked the #1 out of his title defense as the championship became a two-horse race between rookie Hunter Lawrence and Chase Sexton.

Haiden Deegan Fined for Yelling at Hammaker, Going to Kawasaki Pit After Heat Race

As goes with Jett Lawrence, Haiden Deegan’s name brings lots of attention, both good and bad. This article noted a penalty the American Motorcyclist Association (AMA) announced on the Yamaha rider. Deegan and Seth Hammaker were two riders down in both the Detroit SX 250SX main event start AND their Birmingham SX heat race, which clearly caused some frustration from the #38. A 17th for Deegan and a 20th for Hammaker forced both to the LCQ and after the race, Deegan was caught by a TV broadcast camera going to the Monster Energy/Pro Circuit Kawasaki pits yelling at Hammaker, although he was stopped by Kawasaki personnel and family members. 

The AMA was unhappy with both Deegan cutting the track in the main event (which cost him two positions) but he also received a code of conduct violation. Racer X learned the fine was a $1,000 for his unsportsmanlike conduct both during the heat race and afterwards when he approached the Kawasaki team truck.

Sexton, Roczen, Marchbanks Injury Updates After Nashville SX

Unfortunately, for the second straight year, the Nashville SX round saw some heavy carnage. Garrett Marchbanks, Chase Sexton, and Ken Roczen all had big crashes, as did championship leading teammates Cameron McAdoo and Levi Kitchen. In this post, we dug into updates on Marchbanks (slammed hard in his heat race), Sexton (had an odd a crash—later explained as a rock stuck in his throttle body), and Roczen (took one wild ride through the whoops on a bike where the shock malfunctioned and blew out). Roczen’s crash resulted in injuries that sidelined him for the remainder of the supercross season.

Watch Roczen’s wild ride in slow motion.

Austin Forkner Undergoes Brain Surgery, Out for Remainder of 2024

While no injury update is fun to report on, this one was extra difficult to write. In a ten-minute video posted to his Instagram page, Austin Forkner explained he had to undergo brain surgery. Long story short, Forkner was getting tests done after his Arlington SX crash (more on that below) and doctors found an arteriovenous malformation (AVM), something he said he was born with and knew of since 2017. He got the issue fixed and said he would be cleared to ride after a recovery process of a few months.

Just four months prior, Forkner was emotional in another Instagram video as he shed some light on what he was going through when he crashed in Texas. Props to Forkner for his honesty and openness to the fans.

Eli Tomac Sidelined for Supercross Finale and Pro Motocross Opening Rounds

While this news received less views than the Jett Lawrence thumb injury above, this post was from May 9. Yamaha announced Eli Tomac—who had just signed to race all of Pro Motocross after starting the year on an SX-only deal—had suffered a thumb injury that would keep him out for at least half of Pro Motocross. So, before the season started, Tomac was out with a thumb injury and Webb would be out for the start of Pro Motocross with a thumb injury from the end of supercross as well. Then, Jett Lawrence’s thumb injury was announced two months later, mid-season. Two thumbs down for all the thumb injuries this year.

KTM Parent Company Pierer Mobility Declares Itself Insolvent

Since the spring, we had heard there might be some changes coming to Pierer Mobility (the parent company of the KTM, Husqvarna, and GasGas brands). Steve Matthes’ report from May: Changes Coming to the Troy Lee Designs/Red Bull/GasGas Team? Then, right around Thanksgiving, the company announced itself insolvent. While the company is restructuring, Jason Weigandt did get confirmation that KTM, GasGas, and Husqvarna all would keep racing in 2025. We will continue to watch this space over the next few months.

Suzuki Names 2024 Pro Motocross Squads

While Roczen was sidelined with injuries from his Nashville SX crash, Suzuki confirmed H.E.P. Motorsports and BarX Suzuki would have several riders competing in Pro Motocross. The hope from fans was Roczen would be healthy for the full series but that was not the case. He did get healthy enough to race two rounds of outdoors—the Unadilla National on his RM-Z450 (seventh overall) and the Ironman National finale on an RM-Z250 (ninth overall)—before focusing on the SuperMotocross World Championship (SMX) Playoffs that followed.

Evan Ferry and Triumph Racing Part Ways

Ahead of the aforementioned Nashville SX carnage, there was some breaking news early on race day morning. Although out with an injury, Aaron Plessinger had signed an extension with KTM for 2025. Plus, Triumph Racing announced they had parted ways with Evan Ferry. Ferry, one of the three riders for the brand in their debut SMX season in the United States, made one start and got to the first turn in Detroit’s Ford Field before the wild, dozen-rider crash landed him into the Tuff Blox. His DNF in Michigan was his only start of the season and suddenly by late April he was off the team.

This interview Matthes did with Ferry the following week also made this list, although maybe some NDAs were signed because he did not go into much detail…

Note that right before the SMX Playoffs started, Joey Savatgy split from Triumph, too.

Austin Forkner: Back and Shoulder Injuries after Brutal Crash

Again, injury updates are never easy to do, especially after the crash we all saw Austin Forkner have at AT&T Stadium just moments away from starting his season with two straight wins. Miraculously, Forkner was helped to his feet and walked to the Alpinestars medical cart after his brutal get-off that will from now on be synonymous with hard crashes in this sport. This update was short but provided fans some positive insight from the Forkner camp.

Insight: All 17 2025 Supercross Cities and Dates Announced

Look, we all know this post got so many views because Steve Matthes CANNOT wait to get to Acrisure Stadium for the long-awaited return of the Pittsburgh Supercross. (Total kidding) But in all honesty, fans truly cannot wait to see which venues/cities will host which races for the upcoming season and which race will be closest to them.

Watch: 2024 WSX Canada GP Race Video Highlights

This post probably got lots of clicks because no one knew what was going on with the FIM World Supercross Championship (WSX) opener. And even though the series posted these highlights TWO WEEKS after the first round, big names like Eli Tomac, Ken Roczen, and Joey Savatgy will bring in some views.

Apologies from Jett Lawrence and Chase Sexton

Another night filled with drama in the Lawrence camp, he got into on the track with 2018 450SX Champion Jason Anderson. The incident then turned into an altercation after the race, where the two were seen yelling at one another and grabbing the other’s helmet with aggression. Then, Lawrence put out an interesting note on his Instagram story about the incident.

Aaron Plessinger snuck away with the race win as his buddy Cooper Webb was accidently blocked by lapper Chase Sexton. It seemed like a wrong-place, wrong-time situation, but in the moment, the #2 was pissed.

Ducati Desmo450 MX Revealed

While the San Diego SX chaos above was happening, our boss Davey Coombs was attending an event in Italy as Ducati revealed their all-new motocross model, the Desmo450 MX. DC’s report overseas was the bike sure looked good upon presentation and he noted in Racerhead #4 at the end of the week: “Let me say here that Ducati means business with their whole entry into the supercross/motocross/off-road world.” We might see Ducati some in the U.S. in 2025 before their full-time debut in the States in 2026.

Ken Roczen Out for Remainder of Supercross Following Nashville SX Crash

Pretty self-explanatory here as it was announced Roczen would miss the final few rounds of supercross after his bucking bronco ride in Tennessee.

Adam Cianciarulo to Retire from Racing Following Conclusion of Supercross

This post kinda came up quickly as the supercross season started to wind down, as Adam Cianciarulo announced he would be retiring at the final SX event of the season (about a month away from the day this was posted). Through the ups and downs of his career, Cianciarulo grew as an individual (literally and figuratively) and became a fan favorite. Luckily, the long-time Kawasaki rider will still be in the sport.

Related: Brayton, Cianciarulo New Hosts of Race Day Live

Suzuki Announces 2025 Models

After Kyle Chisholm and Ken Roczen teased of having electric starts on their Suzuki RM-Z450 models, fans flooded this post hoping to see the same e-start technology the other OEMs have. Unfortunately, all they read about was BNG (bold new graphics).

What Happened at the 2024 Motocross of Nations

Sometimes off-season or overseas events can be more difficult to keep track of. But, with the help of on-site reporter Jason Weigandt, fans were kept in the know of exactly what was going on at the Monster Energy FIM Motocross of Nations over in the United Kingdom. 

The List: On Number Plates and Colors

You want a history lesson? Whether moto or U.S. history, Davey Coombs is your guy! In this early January post ahead of the ’24 season, DC explained the number plate changes and trends throughout the history of AMA Supercross and Motocross.