・450SX rookie delivers Honda a record 18^th premier-class win at the legendary venue
・Crash ends Hunter Lawrence’s night prematurely
・Falls and misfortune limit Chance Hymas to 15^th in 250SX East

As the AMA Supercross series approached its midway point at the unique Daytona, Florida, round, Jett Lawrence put in a statement ride, making solid passes before pulling ahead to a convincing victory. Given the venue’s rich history and challenging track, Daytona wins are meaningful; this one was particularly impressive, as Jett earned it in his first year as a premier-class rider, indicating that he learned an important lesson following last week’s final-lap crash out of the lead in Arlington. The 20-year-old Australian also became the year’s first three-time winner, and he expanded his lead in the title chase to 10 points.

Following a tense moment before the start when there was a delay in the removal of his rear-tire cover, Jett was sixth out of turn 1, just behind brother and teammate Hunter Lawrence. When lap 1 was finished, Jett was up to third, where he stayed through lap 4. At that point, Lawrence used a quad jump through a rhythm section to move by Eli Tomac, then snuck by Chase Sexton in the following turn. From there, Jett went about establishing a cushion, running lap times a couple of seconds lower than his competitors. In the end, Jett won by nearly six seconds, though he led by more than 10 seconds at times. Phoenix Racing Honda rider Dylan Ferrandis ended the night eighth, while Hunter Lawrence suffered a hard fall early on and withdrew with a sore shoulder. (At the time this was published, Hunter was awaiting results of an MRI to determine the gravity of the injury.)

Hymas was just inside the top 10 off the 250SX East main-event start, then up to seventh by the end of lap 1. He moved up one position on each of the next two laps to assume fifth, but a fall and getting stuck on a Tuff Block dropped the Idaho native back in the pack, resulting in an eventual 15^th-place result. Meanwhile, Fire Power Honda rider Max Anstie recovered from 10^th after lap 1 to finish eighth, good enough to maintain a narrow lead in the championship battle.

NOTES

・All three participating Team Honda HRC riders—Jett Lawrence, Hunter Lawrence and Chance Hymas—took part in Friday’s media-day activities, participating in interviews and getting in some laps on the challenging Daytona track.
・Pro Honda sponsored a “Team Member of the Weekend” award for Daytona, with co-winners Mike Spraker and Tom Poage (the Team Honda HRC truck drivers) taking home JBL Flip 6 portable Bluetooth speakers.
・With Daytona being a home race for the Lawrence family, Tate Lawrence (the middle brother, who is autistic) was on hand. Team Honda HRC manager Lars Lindstrom took the opportunity to re-sign Tate to a new two-year deal as a team ambassador, and Tate participated in the rider-autograph session at the team rig, signing his own custom posters. “I’m excited to have Tate back in our truck for another two years,” Lars said. “He was highly sought after by the other teams, but after intense negotiations, we were able to get the deal done.”
・The second timed qualifying session was canceled due to rain, which meant only the times from the first session counted. Jett ended up fifth-fastest in the 450SX division, with Hunter 10^th. In the 250SX East ranks, Chance Hymas had the eighth-best time (one behind Fire Power Honda’s Max Anstie).
・Daytona was a 250SX Futures round, pitting top amateur racers against one another. The top-finishing Red Rider was SLR Honda’s Parker Ross, in sixth, with teammate Alvin Hillan taking 19^th
・Chance Hymas was slotted in the first 250SX East heat race, and after sitting fourth off the start, he slipped to seventh before recovering a spot later on lap 1. He was fifth at the end of the following lap and third on lap 3. He maintained that position to the finish, and then Fire Power Honda’s Max Anstie earned his first-ever heat-race win in the second heat. Other Red Riders to advance from heat 2 were TiLube Honda’s Henry Miller, RRG privateer Tyler Stepek and Lasting Impressions-backed Izaih Clark.
・Hunter and Jett Lawrence were in 450SX heat races 1 and 2, respectively. Hunter was sixth after one lap and moved up to fifth on lap 3. A last-lap mistake dropped him to seventh at the finish.
・Jett was fifth out of turn 1 in heat 2, and the first lap saw him move by Jason Anderson and Phoenix Racing Honda’s Dylan Ferrandis. Two laps later, he passed Justin Cooper and Eli Tomac on the same straightaway, and he then powered ahead to a 6.269-second win. Ferrandis held on for fourth, two ahead of Fire Power Honda’s Dean Wilson. Valley Automotive Group-backed Red Rider Jeremy Hand made it through the last-chance qualifier.
・Jett notched the fastest lap time in the 450SX main event, 1.665 seconds quicker than the next-best rider’s top time.
・The day after the race, Rick Johnson published an Instagram post about a text message he had received from fellow Team Honda legend David Bailey: “Young guy with talent and fight and bold confidence takes on an older guy who already won the title and Daytona and beats him in the heat and the main event and goes on to win the title!,” Bailey wrote. “Statement wins in ’86 and ’24.” (Johnson bested ’84 winner Bailey in ’86, then went on to take his first SX crown.)
・Jett’s victory gave Honda sole ownership of the premier-class Daytona win record, at 18. Other Red Riders to have topped the top class at the venue include Marty Tripes, Darrell Shultz, Bob Hannah (twice), David Bailey, Rick Johnson (twice), Rick Ryan, Jeff Stanton (four times), Jeremy McGrath, Ricky Carmichael (twice), Kevin Windham and Justin Brayton (the previous Honda-mounted Daytona premier-class winner, in 2018).
・This was actually Jett’s second win at Daytona, as he topped the 250SX East race in 2022. Hunter won that class at last year’s Daytona race.
・Unfortunately, Fire Power Honda’s Dean Wilson suffered a broken scapula during a crash in the Daytona 450SX main event.
・Jett Lawrence and Max Anstie both retained their red number plates, signifying their leads in the 450SX and 250SX East title chases leaving Daytona. Jett extended his lead from three to 10 points, while Anstie holds a one-point advantage.
・AMA Supercross now proceeds to Birmingham, Alabama, this weekend, when round 9 will be held at Protective Stadium (a new venue on the schedule).