Story and photos from promotocross.com

Jett Lawrence Rebounds to Capture Second Pro Motocross Championship Win of the Season
at Thunder Valley

Haiden Deegan Grabs Third Straight 250 Class Victory

The Pro Motocross Championship, sanctioned by AMA Pro Racing, traveled to the Rocky Mountains for Round 3 of the 2024 season, with an early test in the mile-high altitude of Thunder Valley Motocross Park, which sits mere minutes from downtown Denver. The landmark 20th running of the Toyota Thunder Valley National saw a variety of weather conditions, from abundant sunshine to rain and wind gusts, which resulted in another captivating afternoon of action. One week after a big crash ended his undefeated 450 Class record, Team Honda HRC’s Jett Lawrence outdueled his brother Hunter to capture a bounce-back win and re-establish himself in the early season title fight. In the 250 Class, Monster Energy Yamaha Star Racing’s Haiden Deegan continued his winning ways and emerged triumphant once again to open the summer with three straight victories.

450 Class

Moto 1

The first moto of the afternoon got underway with the Monster Energy Yamaha Star Racing machine of Justin Cooper leading the field out of the first turn for the MotoSport.com Holeshot, closely followed by Troy Lee Designs/Red Bull/GASGAS Factory Racing’s Justin Barcia and Monster Energy Kawasaki’s Jason Anderson. Also giving charge was Red Bull KTM Factory Racing’s Aaron Plessinger from fourth, followed by the Lawrences in fifth and sixth, respectively, with entering point leader Chase Sexton in seventh aboard his Red Bull KTM.

After the first 10 minutes Cooper had opened up a lead of nearly eight seconds over the field, which saw a lot of jockeying for position. Anderson and Hunter Lawrence settled into second and third, respectively, while Jett Lawrence made his way into fourth and kept his rivals within reach. Hunter Lawrence took control of second just before the halfway point of the moto and Jett Lawrence soon followed his brother into third. Behind them, Sexton soon made his way around Anderson into fourth.

The Australian siblings started to increase their pace entering the final 10 minutes of the moto, which allowed them to chip away at the deficit to Cooper. The Yamaha rider responded and picked up his pace, which helped stabilize the lead, but the Honda duo didn’t relent. With five minutes to go, Hunter Lawrence initiated a battle for the lead, as Jett Lawrence lurked in third. Hunter acted on the first opportunity that presented itself and took advantage of some lapped riders to seize the lead with three minutes to go. Jett followed into second just a few turns later. For there the brothers quickly distanced themselves from the rest of the field, with Hunter asserting his hold on the top spot in the final stages.

The elder Lawrence captured the first moto win of his 450 Class career by eight seconds over Jett, while Cooper followed in a distant third. Barcia parlayed his strong start into a fourth-place effort, with Plessinger fifth. Sexton finished just outside the top five in sixth after late misfortune in the moto.

Moto 2

The second and deciding moto started the same at Moto 1, with Cooper leading the field through the first turn to sweep the MotoSport.com Holeshots for the afternoon. Hunter Lawrence slotted into second but it was Sexton who was on a determined move forward. The points leader was able to make a pass on both Jett and Hunter Lawrence to claw his way up to second, which dropped Hunter to third and Jett into fourth, while Anderson lurked in fifth.

Sexton then set his sights on Cooper out front, but the Yamaha rider fended off the pressure. From there the field settled in and the pace slowed through the opening 10 minutes. Sexton mounted another attack and looked to attempt a pass on Cooper, but a misjudgment put the KTM on the ground and caused Sexton to lose multiple positions. Hunter Lawrence assumed second, while Jett Lawrence moved into third. Sexton remounted in sixth.

At the halfway point of the moto the top three were separated by just two seconds, with all three riders showing patience. Each rider traded momentum as the moto entered its final 10 minutes, with Hunter Lawrence closing to within a few bike lengths of Cooper at times. However, the Yamaha rider never wavered and sustained his advantage. As the moto wore on, Hunter Lawrence started to lose ground and lost his hold of second to Jett Lawrence. The reigning series champion continued his push forward and began to apply pressure on Cooper for the lead with less than five minutes to go. As they navigated lapped riders all three riders sat within a second of one another, which forced Jett Lawrence to make the move and grab the lead with just under two minutes to go. Hunter Lawrence followed suit and dropped Cooper down to third.

The brothers went head-to-head for the win once more, this time in opposite positions. A half second separated the siblings as they took the white flag. Jett Lawrence dug deep and carried on to his third moto win of the season by a margin of 1.2 seconds. Cooper finished in third.

Overall

With identical moto finishes the Lawrences finished tied atop the overall classification, but Jett’s second moto triumph (2-1) was the difference maker as it gave him the tiebreaker over Hunter (1-2). It resulted in the second 1-2 finish for the pair through the first three rounds of the season and signified Jett’s 13th career win. Thanks to his incredible starts in each moto, Cooper captured his first career podium result in the premier class in third (3-3).

With his third straight podium finish to open his 450 Class career Hunter Lawrence moved atop the 450 Class standings, highlighted by his distinction as the lone rider in the division to finish inside the top five in every moto. His lead sits at six points over Sexton, who finished fifth overall (6-5), while Jett Lawrence climbed from sixth to third by virtue of his win, 16 points behind Hunter.

Jett Lawrence, Team Honda HRC
“Going into that second moto my legs were shot, but I dug deep and just kept telling myself to stay there [with the leaders]. I capitalized on a mistake by Hunter [Lawrence] and kept going after JCoop [Cooper]. I didn’t necessarily expect to be up here [in first], but it feels awesome after last weekend.”

Hunter Lawrence, Team Honda HRC
“That little [expletive] got me [laughs]. It was a good run. It was cool to go down to the wire. We made a big change over the week and I think it paid off for both of us [Jett and I].”

Justin Cooper, Monster Energy Yamaha Star Racing
“It was an awesome day. I got both holeshots and led for 25 minutes. I tried my best, but they [the Lawrences] were riding too good. I gave it everything I had and I’m really happy with today’s performance.”

250 Class

Moto 1

The opening moto began with Deegan at the front of the pack to grab the MotoSport.com Holeshot, with pressure coming from Red Bull KTM Factory Racing’s Tom Vialle in second and Team Honda HRC’s Chance Hymas in third. The lead trio eventually settled into their respective positions as the field started to spread out through the opening 10 minutes.

Deegan and Vialle traded momentum early on as the lead hovered around two seconds, but as the moto approached the halfway point Deegan’s consistency allowed him to inch away and build his advantage up to almost four seconds. With their exceptional pace, Deegan and Vialle pulled away from Hymas and the rest of the field to make it a two-rider battle. As they entered the final five minutes, both riders picked up the pace as they tactfully navigated lapped riders. That saw the distance between them fluctuate, which worked to Deegan’s advantage as the lead grew to more than three seconds. However, Deegan slid out and went down briefly, which allowed Vialle to make the pass for the lead. Deegan recovered quickly and remained within striking distance for the win.

A fierce battle ensued over the final stages of the moto as Deegan searched for alternate lines. As they came to the white flag Deegan took advantage of an inside line to push Vialle wide and reclaim the lead. Vialle battled back and made one final pass attempt that saw the two riders make contact and put Vialle on the ground. That allowed Deegan to bring home his fourth moto win of the season by 5.8 seconds over Vialle, who remounted quickly, while Monster Energy Pro Circuit Kawasaki’s Levi Kitchen followed in third. Hymas was fourth, with his Team Honda HRC teammate Jo Shimoda fifth.

Moto 2

The final moto of the day began with Hymas and Deegan side by side coming out of the first turn, from which Hymas earned the MotoSport.com Holeshot and grabbed the early lead. Deegan slotted into second while Kitchen began the moto in third. Vialle started in fifth.

With the clear track ahead, Hymas seized the moment and was able to open a lead of more than five seconds over the rest of the field through the opening 10 minutes. Deegan settled into second while Kitchen suffered a tip over that caused him to drop from third to sixth. That allowed Triumph Racing’s Jalek Swoll to move into third, until Vialle made the pass to join the top three just before the halfway point of the moto. Shortly after, Vialle had a brief crash that saw him drop from third to fifth, which moved Swoll back into podium position.

While the lead pair enjoyed a comfortable margin over the field, the battle for third intensified between Swoll and Shimoda, from which the Japanese rider prevailed with the position. From there the top three went unchanged.

Hymas stormed to his first career moto win with a wire-to-wire victory by a margin of 3.8 seconds over Deegan, with Shimoda in third. Vialle recovered to finish fourth.

Overall

Deegan’s 1-2 effort easily secured his third straight overall win and extended his points lead. Hymas’ moto win capped off a career-best performance in the runner-up spot (4-1) for his first ever podium, while Vialle rounded out the top three (2-4).

With his win streak, Deegan enjoys a 23-point lead over Vialle and Hymas, who both moved up the championship standings and now sit tied for second.

Haiden Deegan, Monster Energy Yamaha Star Racing
“I got a good start [in Moto 2] but Chance [Hymas] was ripping. I had to look at the big picture. We had the overall and now we have three [wins] in a row. The hard work is paying off.”

Chance Hymas, Team Honda HRC
“I’m speechless right now. I went over the finish line and just broke down. There was a point in time where I didn’t think this was possible. I’m just grateful to be here.”

Tom Vialle, Red Bull KTM Factory Racing
“Overall the speed was good. Just too many mistakes today. Sometimes that’s racing. The track was really good today and I’m looking forward to next weekend.”