The sun shone over Ironman Raceway in the USA as a massive crowd showed up to soak in the 78th Edition of the Monster Energy FIM Motocross of Nations.
By all accounts, the latest Nations venue delivered a fantastic event for MX fans from across the globe.
SA’s boys, Camden Mclellan (Triumph), Cameron Durow (KTM) and Slade Smith (Honda) put up a mighty fight and ended in a very respectable 14th position out of 37 countries.
Interesting fact: They beat some big MX countries – Germany who were headed up by the mighty Ken Roczen… And The Netherlands with names like Kay de Wolf and our own Calvin Vlaanderin.
Defending Champions Team Australia dominated the event with all three race wins collected by the dynamic Lawrence brothers. They also won the MXGP and Open classes. A brilliant display from the riders in green-and-gold.
Team USA eventually defeated Team France for second place. They actually finished on equal points with the best result tie-breaker going to the USA with a second place for Eli Tomac in Race 3.
Kay de Wolf from the Netherlands took some consolation by claiming an individual victory in the MX2 class for the second year. The team lost an injured Glenn Coldenhoff during a crash on Saturday.
Ahead of the three main races, the B-Final was won by Team Estonia. Canadian Jess Pettis took the race win, but his teammate was only able to finish in ninth.
The day began with a fantastic Opening Ceremony. Nobody does it quite like the ‘Mericans. A massive crowd filled the venue with dignitaries saying hello and welcoming the nations, teams, and riders to the world’s most prestigious motocross event. US Singer Luke Menard delivered a great rendition of the United States National Anthem before the roar of engines kicked things off.
Jett Lawrence was unstoppable with the top time in his morning Warm-up group, over 1.4 seconds from fellow Honda HRC pilot Tim Gajser. The other group saw MXGP World Champion Romain Febvre as fastest for Kawasaki Racing Team MXGP, with Kay de Wolf second on his 250 ahead of Maxime Renaux.
Lucas Coenen took the Fox Holeshot Award in Race 1, and put his Red Bull KTM Factory Racing bike ahead of the Honda HRC duo. Ken Roczen on his Progressive Suzuki, crashed out of the top four on turn three. That was the end of Team Germany’s podium chances.
Febvre passed Isak Gifting’s JK Racing Yamaha to take fourth,when Lawrence put in a pretty spectacular sprint to take the lead from Coenen.He was never caught
This one was a real treat for MX fans from across the globe. The madness returns to Ernée in 2026!
The Lawrence brothers are a force of nature.
Jett Lawrence took top honours in individual classifications in the MXGP class. His brother Hunter took the Open category and sealed Australia’s overall victory in style. In MX2, Kay de Wolf was in top form. He won the class for the second consecutive time.
Nations Classification – Top 10:
- Australia – 19 pts
- USA – 33 pts
- France – 33 pts
- Belgium – 43 pts
- Slovenia – 57 pts
- Italy – 58 pts
- Sweden – 84 pts
- Switzerland – 86 pts
- Latvia – 88 pts
- Spain – 89 pts
Jett Lawrence – Team Australia: “The first moto was tough, I was on the ground way too much, more than I have been all year, but we cleaned it up in the last one. It feels amazing. I’m so thankful for everyone behind us, for the incredible support from Australia and the fans here in America. My boys, Kyle [Webster] and Jett [Lawrence] were unreal all weekend. I’m beyond stoked, so proud, and just grateful to share this moment with everyone.”
