Jett Lawrence at AMA Supercross Series Round 17 in Salt Lake City, UT
© Garth Milan / Red Bull Content Pool
Motocross

AMA Supercross Round 17 Report: Jett Lawrence crowned in Salt Lake City

The 20-year-old continues to rewrite the record books, adding a 450 AMA Supercross title to his resume.
By Chase Stallo
7 min readPublished on

Summary

  1. 1
    450SX Results
  2. 2
    250SX Showdown Results
  3. 3
    450SX Final Point Standings
  4. 4
    250SX West Region Final Point Standings
  5. 5
    250SX East Region Final Point Standings
It’s been less than a year since Honda HRC’s Jett Lawrence moved to the 450 Class. In that time, he became just the third rider in Pro Motocross history to complete a perfect season—as a rookie no less–he followed it up by winning the inaugural SuperMotocross Playoffs and quickly established himself as the rider to beat in AMA Supercross. There wasn’t much left for Jett to check off in his brief time in the class, aside from winning the 450SX title, a feat only two other riders—Jeremy McGrath and Ryan Dungey—had managed to do as rookies.
Jett Lawrence at AMA Supercross Series Round 17 in Salt Lake City

Jett Lawrence at AMA Supercross Series Round 17 in Salt Lake City

© Garth Milan / Red Bull Content Pool

Entering Saturday, the 450 AMA Supercross title had become more a formality than anything. Jett entered the season finale in Salt Lake City, UT, with a comfortable 20-point lead over Cooper Webb, who was dealing with a torn ligament in his thumb. Needing only a 17th place finish in the main event to clinch his first-ever 450SX championship, Jett was in cruise control much of the day.
In the main event, it was Red Bull KTM’s Chase Sexton jumping out to the early lead over Yamaha teammates Justin Cooper and Webb. Meanwhile, Jett was doing what he needed to do by getting a decent start and hanging around the back half of the top 10. Up front it was all Sexton as he led 24 of 24 laps en route to a 3.28 second win over Cooper and Webb. It was the second win of the season for the 2023 AMA Supercross champion, but his first since round 2 in San Francisco.
“It definitely means a lot,” said Sexton. “I had to kind of claw myself back to where I felt like I was riding good. It’s been a tough journey. The team and I have put a lot of work in. It’s taken us about, I don’t know, 16 rounds to get it good, but we’re in a good spot now. Today was a big day for me. I feel like I had really good speed and a really good start in that main event. I tried second gear [on the gate] for the first time all day and it paid off.”
Chase Sexton at AMA Supercross Series Round 17 in Salt Lake City, UT

Chase Sexton at AMA Supercross Series Round 17 in Salt Lake City, UT

© Garth Milan / Red Bull Content Pool

While Sexton was able to claim the win, it was Jett who was the big winner of the night. He cruised to a seventh-place finish to capture his first career 450SX title, cementing his rookie 450 career alongside some of the all-time greats. Afterward, he was still trying to process his recent accomplishments.
"I think it hasn’t fully sunk in yet, but, I mean, we had times when we sucked really bad this year then also times when we weren’t too bad, so, nah, [I’m] super happy for the team and doing it for them. They’ve been awesome. They’re family now and to give them another title is just the biggest ‘thank you’ to them, I feel like,” he said. “So thank you to them, to everyone around me… I couldn’t do it without the team around me, I’m just super happy… There are so many hard moments that we’ve had that you can’t even put it in an interview, it’s just so long. No, I’m just super happy just for my family and the team and yeah, I’m just going to leave it at that because it's too much."
While the 450SX championship was a foregone conclusion, Salt Lake City would also determine both the 250SX West and East Region championships, in just the second East/West Showdown of the season. In the 250SX East Region, Red Bull KTM’s Tom Vialle entered the finale needing an 11th or better to wrap up his first career title in the U.S. Meanwhile, in the 250SX West Region, Levi Kitchen and RJ Hampshire were tied in points setting up a winner take all scenario on Saturday.
Tom Vialle at AMA Supercross Series Round 17 in Salt Lake City, UT

Tom Vialle at AMA Supercross Series Round 17 in Salt Lake City, UT

© Garth Milan / Red Bull Content Pool

Up front early in the main event, it was Vialle’s title rival Haiden Deegan jumping out to the early lead over his teammate Jordon Smith. Vialle stayed clear of trouble early as he found himself inside the top 10 and in position to clinch the championship. As Deegan tried to stretch his lead over Smith, Hampshire had made his way through traffic to move up to third, giving him the buffer he needed over Kitchen.
Late in the main event, Smith tried to make a move for the lead on Deegan after the whoops and the two collided with Smith going down. Deegan was able to escape the collision with Smith and hold off a hard charging Hampshire to take the win. Smith would rebound to finish third.
Vialle ran a consistent, smart race to finish eighth and claim the 250SX East Region title in just his second season in the series. The two-time MX2 World Champion is now considered a favorite for the upcoming Pro Motocross Championship as well.
Tom Vialle at AMA Supercross Series Round 17 in Salt Lake City, UT

Tom Vialle at AMA Supercross Series Round 17 in Salt Lake City, UT

© Garth Milan / Red Bull Content Pool

"That's pretty amazing, to learn one year and then win this title in the second year,” said Vialle. “After I won Daytona and made it two in a row in Birmingham, I knew I could fight for the title. I made it to the end and I felt great all season. Going into Supercross this year, I enjoyed it even more and am very happy to win the championship. It's only my second year here and I feel like I have a lot to learn. I am still learning every race, but I'm really excited now to head outdoors in two weeks at Pala. Thank you to everybody that has been behind us for this championship."
Said Red Bull KTM team manager Ian Harrison: "Starting at the first race when Tom wrecked in the first turn and finished 18th, I literally thought the season was over and it was just going to be another learning year for him. And then he found his groove, started winning a couple of races, and was finishing on the podium, getting better and better. The next thing we knew, we were in the lead. Daytona was a special one for us, always tough to win, and I was really proud of him there. We had the points lead coming into the final round and I was quite confident until practice today, but then I felt a little bit nervous as the day went on because it seemed like some of the stress was maybe getting to Tom a little bit. I have to say, he handled himself really well in the main event, put himself in a good position, and finished where he needed to finish. I'm super proud, it's been a long time since we've won a 250 title and it feels really, really good."
AMA Supercross Series Round 17 at Rice Eccles Stadium in Salt Lake City, UT

AMA Supercross Series Round 17 at Rice Eccles Stadium in Salt Lake City, UT

© Garth Milan / Red Bull Content Pool

With his second-place finish, Hampshire clinched the 250SX West Region championship over Kitchen, a culmination of a 10-year pro journey.
"It's so special," said Hampshire. "Everybody has their own story and I was determined to write my own. To have an opportunity to win a championship, just to be a part of that, is truly special. I've had so many ups, so many downs, and still people who just believed in me. My group, I would not change, and a massive thanks to everybody who has been involved and a part of the story. I was the fastest guy all day today, had a decent start in the Main Event, and did what I needed to do – in the end, we finally did it and it was a good race to clinch the championship!"
The field now turns their focus to the 2024 Pro Motocross Championship which kicks off at Fox Raceway in Pala, CA, on Saturday, May 25.
01

450SX Results

  1. Chase Sexton
  2. Justin Cooper
  3. Cooper Webb
  4. Jason Anderson
  5. Justin Barcia
  6. Malcolm Stewart
  7. Jett Lawrence
  8. Dylan Ferrandis
  9. Mitchell Oldenburg
  10. Dean Wilson
02

250SX Showdown Results

  1. Haiden Deegan
  2. RJ Hampshire
  3. Jordon Smith
  4. Jo Shimoda
  5. Levi Kitchen
  6. Nate Thrasher
  7. Chance Hymas
  8. Tom Vialle
  9. Jalek Swoll
  10. Phil Nicoletti
03

450SX Final Point Standings

  1. Jett Lawrence 351
  2. Cooper Webb 336
  3. Chase Sexton 307
  4. Eli Tomac 282
  5. Jason Anderson 282
  6. Justin Cooper 227
  7. Ken Roczen 223
  8. Justin Barcia 217
  9. Hunter Lawrence 207
  10. Malcolm Stewart 200
04

250SX West Region Final Point Standings

  1. RJ Hampshire 208
  2. Levi Kitchen 203
  3. Jordon Smith 185
  4. Jo Shimoda 181
  5. Nate Thrasher 123
  6. Garrett Marchbanks 121
  7. Julien Beaumer 118
  8. Anthony Bourdon 106
  9. Phil Nicoletti 105
  10. Cole Thompson 89
05

250SX East Region Final Point Standings

  1. Tom Vialle 172
  2. Haiden Deegan 168
  3. Coty Schock 132
  4. Pierce Brown 131
  5. Max Anstie 125
  6. Cameron McAdoo 120
  7. Chance Hymas 116
  8. Jalek Swoll 116
  9. Daxton Bennick 111
  10. Seth Hammaker 95
Motocross