We’re four races into the 2026 AMA Pro Motocross Championship, and after the High Point National on Saturday, the season still hasn’t started leaning in any one rider’s favor, especially in the 250 Class. Full of questions about the action over the weekend, we tapped former pro and NBC on-track analyst, Jason Thomas, for some answers.
High Point is a uniquely different track with much different dirt than the riders saw at the first three rounds. Talk about how differently riders had to approach the motos over the weekend.
It does mark a change. Although the sawdust/mulch additions have been consistent, the way the tracks shape up change. High Point has long, deep ruts that begin on corner entry and don’t end until long past the apex. Riders have to focus much more on balance, momentum, and smooth input on both throttle and braking. Any interruption on those and there will be a price paid in the lap time category. I spoke often on Saturday about how patience is rewarded at High Point. That remains true but you can’t just lackadaisically ride around the track, either. It’s a tightrope walk between remaining patient but also carrying forward momentum. The momentum allows riders to be patient with input. A stop/start approach doesn’t work well with ruts that are often 30-40 feet long.
Hailing from Arizona, Julien Beaumer isn’t exactly known for excelling on tracks like High Point, but he was on fire over the weekend. He went 2-2 for second and even led the first moto before going down. Now he’s only two points out of the championship lead! Why do you think he was so good?
This is just more of what we have seen in this Pro Motocross campaign. The main question was whether or not he could keep this up as the series shifted east but so far, so good. For a rider that some questioned if he would ever race again, this has been a revelation. He’s not just hanging in there, he’s thriving. This might be the best he’s ever been which is just a crazy thing to say given the severity of his injury last September.
On the other end of the spectrum was Levi Kitchen, who didn’t seem like he had the same speed on tap as he did at the first three rounds. What do you think he was struggling with?
He mentioned that he was just uncomfortable in the motos and he looked it, too. I couldn’t figure it out mid-race. He just didn’t have the pace he needed and wasn’t able to push forward even when some passed him and went on without him. Still, he’s the sole holder of the red plate now (even if barely), so he will surely regroup and come out firing at RedBud. He has a real chance to win this title and won’t want to let the opportunity slip without a fight.
It’s not often you see riders at this level loop out, but it happened to Seth Hammaker in the second 250 moto, which resulted in a DNF. How did that whole situation unfold?
That was an example of a top tier racer being surprised by the track. This was very similar to Ryan Villopoto’s crash at Trentino in 2015. Seth landed with his rear tire down first, hoping to accelerate hard past the mechanics and go for a pass. This is a new-ish technique that riders have mastered. It’s almost an “Excitebike” video game type maneuver and is usually executed without issue. The traction caught him off guard and things happened very fast from there. The crash is one thing, the points are another, but if this is a significant shoulder injury for Seth, that would be awful on a much different level.
Jo Shimoda and Kayden Minear had a long, never ending battle in the second 250 moto. Shimoda had the speed advantage, but still couldn’t get by Minear. Is this a lack of aggressiveness from Shimoda, outstanding defensive riding from Minear, or a combination of both?
This has been a consistent theme for Shimoda and in the worst way. He has shown difficulty in making moves that seem inevitable. Nick Romano had him flummoxed earlier in the season multiple times and Minear was able to actually win a chess match where he seemed to be destined to give in. I’m not sure how Shimoda can improve this area but it’s sorely needed. There’s a hesitation to make an assertive move in the moment. It could just be remnants from injury and a lack of aggressiveness showing up in real time. Subconsciously, there could just be a split second hesitation wanting to avoid something negative happening. That’s purely speculation on my part but it’s a possibility.
We saw Jett Lawrence and Haiden Deegan exchange some words after Deegan appeared to get in Lawrence’s way in the first 450 qualifying session. What’s your take on this situation? Do you think Deegan was playing games, or was it just one of those things that happens and it’s getting blown out of proportion because of who it was?
This has been brewing for a long time and we are just beginning what this could be. Haiden desperately wants to disrupt Jett’s rhythm and focus. It’s a strength for him and he’s used it against every opponent he’s ever faced. Up to that point, Jett had not acknowledged the tomfoolery but everyone has a breaking point. Deegs doesn’t hold back and will get very personal if needed. I wondered when Jett would say enough is enough, even if remaining oblivious is more prudent. There is a collision course here that may last years. I believe that Jett and Hunter just want to keep winning and pretend Haiden doesn’t exist. That flies in the face of Haiden’s plans. It has to go one way or another eventually. My bet would be much more drama coming to a racetrack near you.
We shouldn’t be surprised by Hunter Lawrence’s 1-1 at High Point—we’ve seen plenty of amazing rides from him. But still, any time anyone beats Jett straight up, especially in both motos, it’s jaw dropping! What was Hunter doing that made him so good?
Hunter is and has been great at this race track. Go back and watch the 2022 rendition of this race and see how competitive Hunter was. He gave Jett fits at a time where he wasn’t quite on his level most of the time. The patience mentioned above works well for what Hunter does. No sudden moves, maintain momentum, and take a cerebral approach to how to go fast at this track. Hunter was built to go fast on tracks like this and it was not a surprise for me to see him win.
Cooper Webb and Jorge Prado had a battle in the first 450 moto. Would it be fair to say Webb had a little extra motivation to fight Prado longer because of the disagreements they had during supercross?
I think that’s fair, yes. They don’t care for each other and deep down, Webb knows he’s unlikely to beat Prado in motocross. Still, if he can hold him back and make his life more difficult, he will do so. These two are alphas in the sport and stubborn beyond reproach, too. Prado made things difficult for Webb (fairly so) when Webb needed relief so the favor is being returned now.
Aaron Plessinger looked better than we’ve seen him look in quite a while! Was there something about High Point that played to his skills, or is he simply back on the upswing after a difficult period?
This was a huge weekend for AP! I wasn’t sure if we would see a ride like this anytime soon but this was real progress. He has had a horrific 2026 after a possibly worse end to 2025. He is likely parting ways with Red Bull KTM in 2027 so putting in some solid results here would go a long way toward leaving on the right foot.
What was going on with Lotte Van Drunen on the line after the red flag? It looked like she had all kinds of mechanical problems.
Her holeshot device malfunctioned, which is not a rarity, and she caught a break with the red flag (at Mayla Herrick’s expense). Then, they noticed that the drain bolt went missing and the engine had lost the entirety of its oil. That would have been a guaranteed DNF a few laps later so it could be argued she caught another break there. On the difficulty side, she was unable to utilize the broken starting device in the restart, basically guaranteeing a poor start. Perhaps if she had grown up without that device things could have gone marginally better but it was an uphill fight no matter what. What a wild turn of events for the Dutch champ.
