1. Another Close Call for Tomac
Last week in Houston, Red Bull KTM's Eli Tomac was able to avoid injury and a massive points loss, salvaging fourth overall despite a big crash in race two of the triple crown. Tomac was on rails all day in Glendale and the momentum was rolling in his direction. Until it was not.
After getting pinched off out of the gate, Tomac got caught up with Christian Craig when Craig washed the front coming into the first turn. Eli had nowhere to go but into the back of the #28 Quad Lock Honda. He found himself on the ground and slow to get up. Even when he did get going again, it took him a lap or so to get back up to speed.
We all feared the worst: that the points leader may have just gotten injured. Thankfully for Eli, KTM, and fans alike, he eventually got up to speed and made his way up to 12th. Tomac was the fastest rider on track at certain times throughout the main event, but without the triple crown format to bail him out, the poor finish dropped him to third in the standings, eight behind Hunter Lawrence.
After the race, Red Bull KTM team manager Ian Harrison mentioned that Eli will be ready to go for next weekend. While fortunate not to be facing a much larger points deficit, the frustration must be building. He needs a bounce back in Seattle to reassert himself as the championship favorite.
2. Red Bike, Red Plate
HRC Honda may not have 2024 Monster Energy AMA Supercross Champion Jett Lawrence to compete for the 2026 title, but they have the next best thing: his brother. Hunter Lawrence has filled the void to the highest level by leaving Glendale with the 450SX points lead. Hunter's ability to put himself in good position on a regular basis has allowed him to string together four runner-up finishes in a row and a five-point lead in the series.
This is not the first time we have seen a string of results like this put a rider in the points lead at this point in the season. In 2010, Josh Hill strung together four consecutive runner-up finishes to grab a share of the points lead after round 6. Unfortunately, Hill was never able to snag a win, and his championship run came unraveled in the latter part of the season. It seems like a matter of time before Hunter wins one of these, but how long can he stay in this championship battle without one?
3. Chase Sexton Mystery
Monster Energy Kawasaki's Chase Sexton was invisible in Glendale. Sexton qualified a mediocre fifth overall, and in the main event, Chase struggled out of the gate once again, starting 13th and only getting up to 7th. Arguably, the most surprising part of Chase's night was that he only had the 10th fastest lap of the main event. His A2 win is keeping the panic button in the drawer for now, but one podium in five races is not what he's looking for. Luckily for Sexton, Tomac's misfortune over the last couple of weeks allowed him to stay in the championship conversation, just 17 points off the lead.
There were whispers of Chase being sick in Glendale, but he did not use that as an excuse in his post-race Instagram post. Instead, Sexton owned his mediocre performance, saying, "Rode the best I could last night, which is frustrating to be where I was. See ya in Seattle!" It is still too early in the season and in this Kawasaki/Sexton relationship to make any judgments, but there is room for improvement in several areas of Sexton's game right now.
4. Huge Win for Roczen and Suzuki
Progressive Insurance Cycle Gear Suzuki's Ken Roczen dominated the Main Event in Glendale. Kenny passed Hunter Lawrence early in the race, pulled out a comfortable gap, and never looked back. It was Roczen's 24th career win, growing his record of most 450SX wins without a championship. However, the win certainly has Ken in a great position to erase that record from his resume. He sits second in points, just five behind Hunter Lawrence.
This win was a little extra special for Ken and the team, though. On Friday, the team announced that team manager Larry Brooks had recently been diagnosed with stage two colon cancer and would be away from the races while he focuses on his recovery. While the prognosis seems positive given the circumstances, this will be a big blow to the team and to Roczen, who has stated that he looks to Brooks as a father figure of sorts. Kenny dedicated the win to Larry on the podium, and while he may not be attending the races for a while, Brooks plans to remain heavily involved behind the scenes.
5. Deegan Decimating the Competition
There is not much to say about Haiden Deegan that has not been said over the last couple of weeks. As Jason Thomas alluded to on the broadcast over the weekend, Deegan has identified all his weaknesses from the past (primarily starts and whoops), worked on them, and drastically improved them. Glendale marked his fourth win in a row, the first person to accomplish that in 250 SX since Hunter Lawrence in 2023. The biggest question at this point is how Haiden is going to go about taunting the competition each week. Unfortunately for Levi Kitchen, he seems to be the fall guy for most of Deegan's antics, and this week he took a shot from Haiden's bow and arrow.
6. Prado Continues Checking off Boxes
Red Bull KTM's Jorge Prado continues to tick off boxes in Supercross. In Glendale, he earned the honor of fastest qualifier for the first time in his Supercross career. The second qualifying session was extremely intense, with several guys taking a share of the top spot, but when the time expired, it was Prado at the top of the board. He backed that up with his third heat win of the season and a top-five finish in the main event. It may not have been as impressive as his podium finish at A1, but it was damn close. In just 12 career Supercross races, Prado has proven capable of competing with the best of the best. Could he sneak out a win by the end of the season?
7. Justin Cooper's First Top Five
Monster Energy Yamaha Star Racing's Justin Cooper has had an underwhelming start to the 2026 season. Most noticeably, his starts have not been what we have come to expect. The team has been working with J-Coop to improve his starts, and last weekend in Houston, he showed up with a new ARC hydro master cylinder on his bike. While his inconsistent starts hurt his overall last weekend, he did manage one top-five start that led to a fourth in race two. This weekend in Glendale, Cooper got off to another top-five start, and it led to his best finish of the season in fourth. If he and the team are onto something with this new clutch setup, we could see Justin at the front of the field much more often in the coming weeks.
8. The Chef is Cooking
Monster Energy Pro Circuit Kawasaki's Levi Kitchen has strung together two consecutive runner-up finishes after his horrid start to the season. Glendale was Kitchen's most impressive ride of the year, coming through turn one in 19th and charging back to that second-place position. Levi was the fastest guy in the second half of the race, but if he wants any shot of giving Haiden Deegan a challenge, he needs to be better out of the gate. Kitchen has been working closely with his friend Ken Roczen, essentially reinventing the wheel with his starting technique. Maybe that work will pay off next weekend in front of Kitchen's hometown crowd in Seattle.
9. Max Anstie?????
The biggest mystery in the 250SX Western division right now must be Monster Energy Yamaha Star Racing's Max Anstie. Anstie's season has completely fallen apart since the get-together with his teammate Deegan while leading in San Diego. Let's hope Glendale was rock bottom for the A1 winner. Anstie could only muster up a tenth in qualifying, and in the main event, he finished a season-worst eighth, with the ninth fastest lap of the race. He has gone from arguably the best starter in the class to the worst of the factory riders over the past few weekends. It has been a bizarre turn of events for Max, and it is critical he turns it around ASAP, not just to salvage his season, but to secure his future
10. First Timers
The 250SX West Division is not the deepest 250 division we have seen. There are just six factory riders, and with injuries to Hymas, Schwartz, and Bourdon to name a few, it has opened the door for some new names in the main events. Last weekend in Houston, Keegan Rowley made his first career main event, and in Glendale, it was Colby Copp and Reven Gordon making the cut for the first time. Reven Gordon, brother of Star Racing's amateur star Landen Gordon, was a Team Green rider for a bit of his amateur career but has found a home in the pro ranks with the Grindstone Friesen Group Kawasaki Team. Meanwhile, Copp has been chasing his first main event for several seasons and has been close many times. It's always cool to see the raw emotion of somebody who has been chasing their first main for so long finally get it done. Congrats!
