Welcome to the Race Day Feed, coming to you from Fox Raceway at Pala in Pala, California. From practice reports to the blow-by-blow from this afternoon’s points-paying motos, you’ll find it all right here on the Racer X Race Day Feed. Updates are posted in chronological order, so be sure to scroll down for the latest info. For even more updates be sure to follow us on X: @Racerxonline.
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Morning Report
Good morning, race fans! Welcome to the great outdoors. After an epic Monster Energy AMA Supercross season, we are kicking off the 11-round AMA Pro Motocross Championship. We should be set for a fun, wild, exciting, and unpredictable summer of racing. We should set up for a beautiful, sunny day at the racetrack, with a high of about 81° F.
You know most of the big storylines: how will Jett Lawrence do after his injury, how will Hunter Lawrence do after his agonizing defeat in supercross, how will Haiden Deegan’s first 450 Pro Motocross race go, will Eli Tomac land on the podium, how about Jorge Prado, which Chase Sexton shows up this summer, etc. Well, today, we will learn the answer to some of those questions. Everyone said on Friday they were feeling great and ready to go, but today we will truly find out. The hay is in the barn; it is time to go racing.
As for the 250 Class, we will crown a first-time Pro Motocross Champion by season’s end. So, who will it be? We have an idea of who might be in the conversation of title favorites—Jo Shimoda, Chance Hymas, and Levi Kitchen seem to be the leading names at the moment—but it really does seem like this title fight is wide open for the taking. Could we see a handful of different winners emerge in the first few rounds? Yes. Could one rider step up and run away with this thing? Also, yes, although we cannot who will win the title today but instead who could lose it today. Give us your race winner and season champion predictions in the comments section below!
Watch our press day recap below.
As always, riders' meeting starts at 7:15 a.m. with Pastor Jake, then bikes on are track at 8 a.m. Here we go!
First Qualifying Sessions
250 Class
And just like that, bikes are on the track here in California. Pro Motocross is underway! The track is the usual wet (from early watering) and tilled deep but so far so good. Riders will pack in the track with their lines and the sun will harden the track up a ton by the time the afternoon motos are racing. Ideal conditions today, really!
Jace Allred topped the 250 B group in the first session on track.
In 250 A, it was Lux Turner who had the early fast lap—a 2:25.075. Then, Julien Beaumer and Levi Kitchen put in hot laps to pass the BarX Yamaha rider. Kitchen’s 2:23.678 was the top time as Dudney slotted into third with a 2:24.070 ahead of Turner as Chance Hymas’ 2:26.430 rounded out the top five. Kitchen bested his time down to a 2:22.717 on the final lap! Jo Shimoda was 17th fastest in the session. Nate Thrasher was 24th in the session, his positioning nearly matching his ’26 national number.
| Rider | Time | Interval | Best Lap | Hometown | Bike | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Levi Kitchen | 2:22.717 | Washougal, WA | Kawasaki KX250 | ||
| 2 | Julien Beaumer | 2:23.782 | Lake Havasu City, AZ | KTM 250 SX-F Factory Edition | ||
| 3 | Caden Dudney | 2:24.070 | Des Moines, IA | Yamaha YZ250F | ||
| 4 | Lux Turner | 2:25.075 | Gardnerville, NV | Yamaha YZ250F | ||
| 5 | Chance Hymas | 2:26.430 | Pocatello, ID | Honda CRF250R Works Edition |
| Rider | Time | Interval | Best Lap | Hometown | Bike | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 2:27.069 | Riverton, UT | KTM 250 SX-F | |||
| 2 | 2:28.156 | San Diego | Triumph TF 250-X | |||
| 3 | Aden Keefer | 2:29.001 | California | Honda CRF250R | ||
| 4 | 2:29.006 | Old Town, FL | Husqvarna FC 250 Factory Edition | |||
| 5 | Jeremy Fappani | 2:29.684 | Scottsdale, AZ | KTM 250 SX-F |
450 Class
Once the first 450 session got underway, Haiden Deegan led the field off the starting straight... and he led the field on the results page! Deegan's 2:22 was the fast time early on. Chase Sexton, Jorge Prado, and Hunter Lawrence all put in great laps of their own to move ahead of Deegan. At the checkered flag, it was Hunter Lawrence's 2:19.540 that topped the session. Deegan was fourth fastest, followed by Justin Cooper. Prado's 2:19.724. Jett Lawrence looked fast on the eye test, but his best full lap was a 2:25.785 ,which was 14th. Have to imagine he will move up in the second session.
| Rider | Time | Interval | Best Lap | Hometown | Bike | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Levi Kitchen | 2:22.717 | Washougal, WA | Kawasaki KX250 | ||
| 2 | Julien Beaumer | 2:23.782 | Lake Havasu City, AZ | KTM 250 SX-F Factory Edition | ||
| 3 | Caden Dudney | 2:24.070 | Des Moines, IA | Yamaha YZ250F | ||
| 4 | Lux Turner | 2:25.075 | Gardnerville, NV | Yamaha YZ250F | ||
| 5 | Chance Hymas | 2:26.430 | Pocatello, ID | Honda CRF250R Works Edition |



