Deacon Denno Wins SMX Next SX Title, Set for Pro Debut—and Full Season—in Pro Motocross

Deacon Denno is the 2026 SMX Next — Supercross AMA National Champion. The Triumph rider took his second race win of ‘26, with the second win coming in the winner-takes-all championship finale.

It was a muddy mess during the night show main program at the Philadelphia Supercross and the SMX Next kids were right in the thick of it. Chaos happened right away off the start as Kayden Minear, one of the title favorites, went down in turn one. Out front, Denno got the holeshot and early race lead and would check out, leading all six laps to take the main event win and the #1 plate. Denno landed his third podium of the season (in five races) in his second year of racing the program.

“It was huge to have the confidence from all the other rounds, and obviously, those podiums were great, and also the win in Daytona,” Denno said. “And then to show that I can do it in the mud and in the dry is good confidence for what's next. It was great.”

“I think it's a great program for everyone that's coming up to the pros,” Denno added on the SMX Next program. “It gets you ready or as close as you can to be ready for the pros. Obviously, it's a little bit different with the championship part where you don't have a point system in the SMX Next. It's a single race for everything. But, the mud, the dry, Daytona was rutted, it's a good program for everyone.”

It still felt surreal for the 18-year-old, not having sunk in yet still two hours after the race when he spoke to the media.

“No, I don't think so,” he said after the race. “But after I sleep tonight and I wake up in the morning, it'll probably sink in then. But right now, it's just kind of surreal. Just going with the flow.”