Watch Video: Hunter Lawrence's Costly Crash in the Whoops at Detroit SX
Just when we thought Hunter Lawrence could continue his strong run and open up his championship lead to double digits over Eli Tomac, disaster struck in Michigan tonight at the Detroit SX.
Lawrence was ninth on the first lap of the main event, a much worse start than normal for the Honda HRC Progressive rider but had managed to get all the way up to third by the third lap. He was closing in on Chase Sexton, who was running second, when disaster struck for the #96.
Watch Lawrence's costly crash in the whoops while running third that resulted in his front wheel locking up on him a few times and an eventual 18th-place finish. It was also a 13-point swing in Eli Tomac's direction, as Lawrence entered up nine points and left down four points.
Here’s another look at what happened to Hunter 🫣 @MonsterEnergy 450 main event LIVE fueled by @Kroger 🎥 #SupercrossLIVE #SMX pic.twitter.com/ATJTlHIy6V
— Supercross LIVE! (@SupercrossLIVE) March 29, 2026
Watch the 450SX highlights below, with Lawrence's crash (and team manager Lars Lindstrom's reaction) starting at the 1:44 mark.
Lawrence also had a crash in qualifying when he went over the berm and into the net on the endzone rhythm section. He escaped injury in that incident but unfortunately used all his luck, as the whoop crash later would bit him big time.
The #96’s consistency this year has been why he was in the championship lead. After 13 top-five consecutive finishes, Lawrence landed his first double-digit finish since the 2025 Anaheim 1 SX.
Hunter Lawrence's 18th tonight, is his:
— Mitch Kendra (@mitch_kendra) March 29, 2026
-worst since his 11th at 2025 Anaheim 1.
-first finish outside the top five since that '25 Anaheim 1, too!
After that '25 A1 race (11th), he had 13 straight top-five finishes until tonight.#Supercross #SX2026 #SuperMotocross #SMX #SMX2026
After the race, Lawrence rode off through the tunnel with his mechanic, as he was not asked to do any TV interviews. As we know, Lawrence is not one to get too high or too low, but this one had to sting. How will he respond next weekend in St. Louis? With six rounds left to go in the championship, he can still right the ship to get this title. Can he rebound next weekend and retake the points lead again?
| Position | Rider | Hometown | Points |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 |  Eli Tomac | Cortez, CO  | 229 |
| 2 |  Hunter Lawrence | Landsborough, Australia  | 225 |
| 3 |  Ken Roczen | Mattstedt, Germany  | 215 |
| 4 |  Cooper Webb | Newport, NC | 203 |
| 5 |  Justin Cooper | Cold Spring Harbor, NY | 176 |
Update: Lindstrom Post-Race Quote
Honda HRC Progressive team manager Lars Lindstrom said the following to our Tom Journet after the race.
“I mean, it's like one of those things where you gotta look at, in all the negative things going on, you gotta look at the positives and he was moving forward after not getting a good start. He made passes, got up on Chase, who was riding good, and Kenny, and they were both kind of reeling Kenny in. So, I think, you know, Hunter was, was starting to reel off some really good laps. He had the best lap of the race and just saw the wind there and all those extra points that we were gonna be able to grab, and, just, you know, those whoops were gnarly. They were, they were super edgy and I mean you saw the 250 race. …It just could have been one of those nights. I mean, yeah, we got 18th, not good, but Eli got fifth. We didn't lose as many points. We're only four points down and all that, so. And, he didn't get injured, dude. I mean, that's probably the one thing. He had a huge crash and got up and wasn't injured. So, it could be so much worse. So, you know, you gotta look at the positives, and that's what we're gonna do. Come back next week, try to win.”
