3. Dynasty Downloading

Team Honda HRC Progressive and Australia came into Ironman Raceway the heavy favorite to win the Chamberlain Trophy for the second consecutive year, and they did just that. The Lawrence brothers each won their class, but it was Hunter getting the better of Jett in race three and going 1-1 on the day. Jett dealt with a little bit of drama when he came together with Sweden’s Isak Gifting, taking them both down early in the race. Jettson was as far back as 16^th but methodically worked all the way back to third. Despite Lawrence domination, it was their MX2 rider who may have been the Aussie team’s MVP. Kyle Webster was down in the first turn of both moto’s and fought back to 15-13 moto scores. The Lawrence’s, HRC, and Webster have put together a great program for this race the last couple of years, and it is paying off. Kyle was riding Chance Hymas’ HRC CRF250R and claimed that he left it exactly how it was when he first rode it. He did not even move the lever position! There is no denying that this team is going to be a genuine problem at this event for as long as Jett and Hunter are racing.

4. The Coenen Experience

American fans have been hearing about Red Bull KTM’s Coenen brothers for some time now, and Ironman was the first opportunity to see them compete on American soil. They lived up to the hype, showing impressive speed, but also showing their youth with crashes that hindered their results. Sacha sprinted away with an impressive win in the MX2 qualifying race on Saturday. Sunday, he flirted with a top five finish for much of race one. He lost a few positions late but was running inside the top ten, until a brake failure caused him to crash in a blind spot where Justin Cooper could not see him and landed on Sacha’s bike and wrist. The crash ruined any chance of a good result for the smaller of the twin brothers. Lucas went down in the first turn of Saturday’s MXGP qualifier but put on an impressive charge to get back to sixth. He finished a lonely second to Jett Lawrence in race one on Sunday and was second again in race three until he crashed. He was able to finish the race in tenth, but any chance at a Belgium podium was down the tubes. The Coenen’s alongside teammate Liam Everts’ made for one of the youngest teams in the event and will surely be one of the favorites to challenge Team Australia for years to come.

Related: Coenen Brothers and Everts Show Speed, Fight for Young Team Belgium

5. Shimoda 450 debut

Honda HRC Progressive’s Jo Shimoda made his 450 debut (excluding a Japanese National appearance) at Ironman. Jo crushed it, going 2-6 in his motos for second overall in the Open class. He lost a couple positions late in moto two and later admitted the 450 tired him out a bit, but it was an impressive performance regardless. Shimoda showed that he is more than capable of making the transition to the bigger bike when the time comes. His performance led team Japan to an 11^th Overall; their best MXoN showing since Budds Creek in 2007.

6. Isak Who?

Isak Gifting made a name for himself at his home GP in Sweden when he made a last lap pass for the lead only to crash it away with just a few turns left to go. Gifting put himself back on the map at Ironman, going 7-8 for sixth overall in the MXGP class. The eighth in moto three came after a tangle with Jett Lawrence left both riders on the ground. Privateers are not as common in MXGP as they are in America, but Gifting is one of the few guys grinding it out on the world stage with hopes of landing a factory ride. His MXoN performance was a fantastic way to cap off an impressive season. Do not be surprised to see Gifting stateside for some AMA Pro Motocross Championship rounds in 2026.

7. Germany Down Bad

Team Germany’s hopes of landing on the podium were dashed in the first turn of the first moto on Sunday. Newly crowned MX2 World Champion, Simon Laengenfelder went down in the first turn breaking his scapula and a few ribs. Meanwhile, his teammate Ken Roczen went down in turn two and within 20 seconds of the first gate drop, team Germany was in shambles. Roczen went down in the same spot on lap one of moto three and was forced to charge through the field once again. Roczen was only able to salvage 18-12 scores, while the third member of the team, Max Spies, went 22-30 on the day. It was a disastrous day for team Germany to say the least.

8. RJ goes…. RJ?

When it was announced that Rockstar Energy Husqvarna’s RJ Hampshire would fill in for Chase Sexton on team USA, you knew you were going to get 100 percent effort from him at the very least. Hampshire gave 100 percent effort and then some, but it ultimately ended up in SEVEN crashes on Sunday. RJ was running second in the MX2/Open moto (race two), crashed, caught back up to Jan Pancar for third, ran into the back of him and crashed again. He was charging back up after getting together with Pancar but went down again and ultimately ended up seventh. In the MXGP/Open moto (race three), Hampshire was making his way through the field until he crashed into a camera tower! The crash damaged his fuel tank, and he was forced to retire from the moto. Afterwards RJ talked about how he had a practice crash leading to the race that nearly kept him out of the event and affected how he rode throughout the weekend. Turns out he spent the weekend racing with his ribs off the fascia and cracking a couple of them. After a relatively calm summer on the 450, RJ went all out for his country. You have to respect the effort, and at the end of the day it was good enough to get Team USA on the podium.