First Qualifying Sessions

250SX

The morning started at 7:30 with group C on the track followed by group B where Landen Gordon was fastest in his very first supercross on his Monster Energy Yamaha Star machine. Landen raced SMX Next a few weeks ago in Birmingham where he had a huge crash in the first turn, he went 2-3-2 at the other three Next rounds this year.

In the A group the local boy Drew Adams came out early to get an early time on the board. Riders kept shuffling around but it did not take long before Cole Davies [52:8] took the top spot with Seth Hammaker [52.9] close behind in second. The sand section is back this weekend and it already claimed multiple riders and they tried to decide if inside over the rollers was better than going all the way outside. The track is slick and getting some ruts, as the weather today is supposed to be in the 80’s and sunny with an open stadium. While they all tried no one was able to top Davies early time.

450SX

When the riders took off it was Eli Tomac who was first on track but when the clocked got turned on it was Hunter Lawrence who went to the top of the board first. The first few laps as the riders learn the track, riders play musical chairs with the top of the board, all taking their turn. It may be too early in the day to tell but Tomac looks to have a little more intensity than weeks past as he was the first rider to break into the 51’s with a 51:59. Hunter was next to get into the 51’s but was unable to top Tomac’s time. The sand proved to be difficult for the 450 riders as well, though tripling into the sand and making the inside is incredibly fast. Christian Craig, Chase Sexton and Eli Tomac all went down in the sand section, though they all got up and continued. By the end Jorge Prado also got into the 51 second range and came in third. Afterwards Tomac commented on his ride saying, “I think we’re back!” Tonight should be interesting if he carries this speed into the main event.

In 450 B Dean Willson is back for 2026, going to the top right away. Deano proved he still has it as he logged the 12^th fastest time even on a deteriorating track.

Second Qualifying Sessions

250SX

In between sessions track work was performed with significant changes to the sand section to make the outside line work. This was done by making the roller on the inside much larger. Though by 250 B qualifying most guys were still favoring the inside. Gavin Towers topped Group B qualifying and Evan Ferry did not ride session two after finishing second in session one.

In Group A it was Seth Hammaker off the practice start though it only took until the whoop section for Cole Davies to get around. Two turns later Seth, who said he is feeling the pressure and needs to take more chances ran into the back of Davies and went down. Not to be discouraged, Hammaker regrouped to set the fastest time. Soon he was bettered by both Cole Davies and Nate Thrasher though as the track is much dryer than the first session and riders are starting to find their flow. In the end though it was Hammaker who had two times that were faster than everyone else. Davies second, Thrasher third and Landen Gordon who was fastest in Group B session one was moved to the A Group for the second session and finished sixth.

450SX

Off the practice start for Group A and it was Justin Cooper with the lead on track, though it was Ken Roczen who struck first with the first heater lap of the session. The sand continued to be treacherous as multiple riders were going down, sometimes two at a time. A good lap meant being able to get through there without a downed rider in your way. Around the six-minute mark Tomac found a clear track a made his way to the top. In the end it was Tomac with the fastest time again though Hunter Lawrence was not far behind and the top five were all within 0.4 of each other.

Update

After finishing second in the first 250 B Group qualifier, Evan Ferry did not go out for the second. Turns out he was at the local hospital getting his leg evaluated as his team Pheonix Racing Honda posted on Instagram:

Night Day Show

250 Heat One

Finally time for racing and it was Drew Adams and Cole Davies side by side down the first rhythm, with Davies taking the advantage. Rookie Landen Gordon was hanging close in third. Adams was impressive on his first gate drop since breaking his thumb in Daytona, keeping the gap behind Davies around that 2 second mark. Gordon was able to finish out the heat where he started, in third proving he has some serious speed. Further back Kyle Peters took the last transfer spot.

250 Heat Two

Second heat of the night and it was Nate Thrasher with the holeshot, with a pair of Kawasaki’s behind him, Seth Hammaker and Nick Romano. Thrasher, who is also a Tennessee native, started the season with a hurt shoulder and has been racing back to speed, showing more promise in the last couple of weeks. Three minutes in and Hammaker started to pressure Thrasher as Daxton Bennick started to pull up on Romano in third, eventually making the pass. Finally with only 28 seconds on the clock Hammaker made the pass for the lead and held on till the finish. It was a heavy battle further back with Derek Kelley grabbing the final transfer position.

450 Heat One

Justin Cooper has fixed his starts from earlier this year and shot out to the early lead followed by Hunter Lawrence. Much further back Chase Sexton was well without of qualifying position off the start and finally made his way there with about 2 minutes to go. Near the end Hunter put on a charge to pull up to the back of Cooper but as the two got into lapped traffic Cooper was able to pull back away to win the heat. Cooper Webb kept the top two honest in third. Further back it was Vince Friese with the final transfer position. The track that was wet and rutted earlier in the day is starting to get baked out in the hot sun.

450 Heat Two

Surprise, it was Jorge Prado with the holeshot in 450 Heat 2, followed by Malcolm Stewart, Eli Tomac and Ken Roczen who was not even mid-pack coming through the first turn. Ken then went down in the sand while trying to get around Tomac, luckily picking up his Suzuki without stalling his bike. Upfront it was a three-way battle for the lead with Tomac pressuring Stewart and Stewart pressuring Prado, until Stewart messed up in the sand section allowing Tomac by. Tomac, who had the fastest time of the race so far started pressuring Prado, who then made a mistake going off the track in the long rhythm after the finish, allowing both Tomac and Stewart by. Further back there was an incredible battle involving Jordon Smith, Christian Craig, Dean Wilson, and Cot Nichols, with Nichols taking the final transfer spot.

250 LCQ

In the 250 LCQ it was Marcus Phelps out front early but then Landon Hartz quickly took over the lead. Jace Kessler was in third followed by Carter Malcolm, but the race behind them was coming in hot. Ryder Floyd asserted himself into that final transfer position on lap four and set his sights on Kessler. Positions 3-7 were close on the last lap, but not close enough for any passes to be made as Floyd came through in the final transfer position.

450 LCQ

Last chance to make it into the main event and it was Cornelius Tondel with the holeshot and early lead. By lap three Freddie Noren was applying the pressure for the lead and made the pass. Next it was Kevin Moranz to pressure Tondel, while Tristan Lane got around Zack Williams for fourth. After the early lead Tondel could not hang with the pace and started to drop back allowing Williams to get back into fourth. The top four were close at the finish but they all played it safe to get across the finish.

250 Main Event

Technical difficulties delayed the start of the 250 main event as timing and scoring was down. Eighteen minutes later and riders were surely “warmed up” sitting in the hot sun on the starting line. However, it was Daxton Bennick hot of the line with the holeshot though Nate Thrasher quickly made his way to the lead. Drew Adams was in third followed by Davies and Hammaker. Davies flew by Adams in the whoops and then Hammaker knew he had no time to waste and got around Adams in the sand. Davies proved doubling to the inside in the sand is faster than tripling and going outside as he passed for second. Adams down in the whoops while Davies fights Thrasher for the lead. Thrasher messed up the turn before the whoops and Davies went by, then Bennick went by Thrasher and finally Seth put Thrasher from first to fourth in less than a lap. Seth was able to triple to the inside of the sand to pass Bennick for second but then went down hard in the rhythm before the whoops, remounting in fourth. Further back Henry Miller and Devin Simonson were having great rides in fifth and sixth, with Nick Romano and Coty Schock trailing them. With three minutes to go Hammaker started closing on Thrasher and Bennick. All of a sudden, it was another race for second! Lap 15 Seth made the pass into third and is closing on Bennick. Unfortunately, the two came together and went down hard in front of the mechanics area, though they both remounted. Davies was able to come away with the win, Thrasher second, and Hammaker got third. Simonson was able to get around Bennick at the end for fourth.

Update: After the race Seth Hammaker was docked two positions after missing a corner marker and passing someone upon getting up from a crash, putting him in 5^th overall and moving Devin Simonson up to third, earning his first podium.

450 Main Event

Justin Hill pulled the start in the 450 main Prado was in second for a split second until Kenny Roczen snuck his way through, passing for second and then taking over the lead. Tomac who looked good all day was way back not even in the top ten. Hunter Lawrence started to work his way up getting around Prado for third, then making his way around Hill for second the next lap. Kenny had a 2.5 second lead when Hunter got into second. Lawrence went for a pass on lap six but it didn’t stick. Further back Webb was making moves as he got around Justin Cooper for fifth. Meanwhile Hill was still hanging tough in third. And Chase Sexton and Tomac were in an intense battle for 9^th and 10^th. Up front Hunter and Kenny kept yo-yoing between 1-2 seconds. Prado went down somewhere around lap 10 making it easier for that right behind him. Finally with 8 minutes left Lawrence was able to make the pass on Kenny. Dylan Ferrandis was also riding very well making his way forward and passing Justin Cooper for fifth. Then disaster struck as Ken Roczen went down before the finish and had to restart his bike going back to fourth. That means Hill took over second though Webb and Kenny were closing. It was a great three way battle for second and Ferrandis was also wanting to join! Four minutes to go and Tomac went down, going back to 12^th. Webb finally got around Hill for second. Ferrandis messed up in the sand allowing Chase Sexton to go by, and there is really so much going on it is hard to keep up! Kenny finally got Hill and Sexton snuck by as well. It was an intense battle between Kenny and Chase down to the wire. In the end it was Hunter over Webb, then Kenny Sexton and Ferrandis with a great ride in fifth.

250 East Points

450SX Points