450 Class Recap: Unadilla
Chase Sexton: Needed a tiebreaker at Unadilla to earn his fifth win of the season, fourth in a row, and 11th of his 450 Class career, which moved him into 16th on the all-time list tied with Mike LaRocco. He also climbed into the top 25 in all-time SMX wins, tied with Jeremy Martin and Ron Lechien. With a 28-point lead heading into the penultimate round, Sexton is moving towards his first 450 Class title.
Hunter Lawrence: Captured his first moto victory since Round 3 at Thunder Valley. He now has 8 podiums and 9 top 5’s during an impressive rookie season. An overall win has eluded him this far, but with a 250 Class victory under his belt at Budds Creek from last season, he’s poised to leverage that experience this weekend in Southern Maryland.
Aaron Plessinger: Another impressive effort has pushed Plessinger beyond Justin Cooper for 3rd in the championship. Plessinger has beaten the rookie for 4 straight motos to move into the podium spot by 2 points. He did so with his 11th career 450 Class podium. The podium was also the 50th of his SMX career, which has tied him for 50th all-time with Mike Brown and Ivan Tedesco. Plessinger will also make his 50th 450 Class start at Budds Creek. His top-5 finish at Unadilla was the 90th of his SMX career.
Notes:
Dylan Ferrandis (4th): Narrowly missed out on his 24th career 450 Class podium but did equal his best finish of the season from the opening round.
Jason Anderson (5th) Moved into the top-20 in all-time 450 Class top-10 finishes with his 58th, tied with Michael Byrne and Mike Alessi.
Ken Roczen (7th): Made his first start of season and earned his 83rd 450 Class top-10 finish (10th all-time).
Christian Craig (8th): Made his 180th career SMX start.
Grant Harlan (10th): Earned his first top-10 finish of the season in his 70th career SMX start.
Henry Jacobi (20th) German-born MXGP veteran made first SMX start and earned 5 points.
Jack Rogers (36th) Made his first 450 Class start.
450 Class: Budds Creek Historical Notes
History Lesson: The first 450 Class race at Budds Creek was on May 22, 1994, when Mike LaRocco swept aboard a Kawasaki during his championship-winning season. LaRocco also won the first moto in 1995 before Jeremy McGrath won the second moto and the overall. The 1995 event was also when Doug Henry soared through the Maryland stratosphere and crash landed at the bottom of a large hill in what is known as one of the most memorable crashes in the sport’s history. The jump is now known as Henry Hill and is one of the many difficult obstacles riders have maneuvered at Budds Creek for over 30 years.
30 Years of History: The 2024 event will be the landmark 30th 450 Class round at Budds Creek. However, from 1989-1992 Budds Creek hosted 125cc & 500cc rounds. After no Budds Creek stop in 1993, and following the disbandment of the 500cc division, the series returned in 1994 with the first 450 Class round. Jeff Ward, Jeff Stanton (x2), and Jean Michel-Bayle were the 4 overall winners in the 500cc class at Budds creek from 1989-1992.
Rare Budds Feats: Jason Anderson scored his second career 450 Class victory in 2022 when he went 2-2 for the win at Budds Creek. Athletes have won earned overall wins without scoring a moto victory in Pro Motocross, but it had never happened at Budds Creek dating back to 1989. That was a combined 66 rounds of racing at Budds Creek with this happening just once. Last season, Jett Lawrence became the first Honda rider to sweep the 450 Class motos at Budds Creek since Ricky Carmichael in 2004.
Championship %: The winner of the 450 Class at Budds Creek has won the 450 Class title in 19 of 29 seasons (66%), and in 4 of the previous 5 attempts.
450 Manufacturer Overall Wins at Budds Creek (Last Overall Win)
- Kawasaki: 8 (2022)
- Honda: 7 (2023)
- Suzuki: 7 (2017)
- Yamaha: 4 (2021)
- KTM: 3 (2014)
450 Manufacturer Moto-Wins at Budds Creek
- Kawasaki: 17
- Honda: 16
- Suzuki: 12
- Yamaha: 7
- KTM: 6
450 Top Overall Winners at Budds Creek (Years Won)
- 1) Ricky Carmichael: 8 (2000-2007)
- 2) Ryan Dungey: 4 (2010, 2012-2014)
- 3) Jeremy McGrath: 2 (1995-1996)
- 3) Chad Reed: 2 (2009 & 2011)
- 3) Eli Tomac: 2 (2018-2019)
450 Top Moto Winners at Budds Creek
- 1) Ricky Carmichael: 14
- 2) Ryan Dungey: 6
- 3) Ken Roczen: 5
- 3) Eli Tomac: 5
- 5) Kevin Windham: 4
450 Class: First Time Overall Winners at Budds Creek
- 1997: Ezra Lusk, Yamaha
- 2015: Justin Barcia, Honda
- 2017: Justin Bogle, Suzuki
250 Class Recap: Unadilla
Levi Kitchen: A tiebreaker secured his second career 250 Class victory and the sixth of his SMX career with a 2-1 effort at Unadilla. He sits 77 points behind Haiden Deegan in the championship, but surpassed Tom Vialle for second in the standings. Pro Circuit now has 302 victories, with 125 of them coming in Pro Motocross. With 560 total rounds of 250 Class racing in the books, the team has won 22% of them.
Haiden Deegan: Will look to clinch the title at the penultimate round after taking a 70-point lead in the championship battle. He won Moto 1 at Unadilla but fell just shy of his sixth win of the season. He settled for his 25th career SMX podium, which is already good for 91st all-time. He also earned his 30th SMX top-5 finish and is looking to make his 45th career start at Budds Creek. Deegan has amassed 15 podiums in his first 22 starts in the 250 Class.
Jalek Swoll: Gave Triumph its maiden SMX podium and Swoll’s second career 250 Class podium. Swoll now has 80 career SMX starts and 3 podiums, and also earned his 50th SMX top-10 finish and 22nd 250 Class top-10 finish. He is battling Pierce Brown for 6th in points.
Notes:
Garrett Marchbanks (4th): Made his first 250 Class start of season after moving to Pro Circuit and earned his second career 250 Class top-5 finish. Made his 95th SMX start and now has 22 top-5 finishes.
Jo Shimoda (12th): Made his 100th career SMX start and finished outside of the top-10 for only the 14th time.
Coty Schock (18th): Made his 75th SMX start in his return from injury.
Parker Ross (24th), Charlie Heyman (26th), & Jace Allred (28th) Each made their first career SMX starts.
250 Class: Budds Creek Historical Notes
History Lesson: The first 250 Class race at Budds Creek was on October 8, 1989, when Mike Kiedrowski won on a Honda en route to his first of 2 titles. It was the penultimate round of the 125cc season and Damon Bradshaw’s 8th overall propelled Kiedrowski into the points lead, where he clinched shortly thereafter.
33 Seasons of History: The 250 Class has a longer history at Budds Creek than the 450 Class having competed in Southern Maryland since 1989. The 2024 event will be the 34th 250 Class round held at Budds Creek, which will once again serve as the penultimate round.
Henry Hill: Doug Henry’s namesake jump is located at Budds Creek. In 1995 he launched the jump beyond its limits and broke both of his wrists, ending his season after back-to-back 125cc titles.
Championship %: The winner of the 250 Class at Budds Creek has won the title in 15 of 33 seasons (45%), but just twice in the previous 14 seasons (Blake Baggett in 2012 & Hunter Lawrence in 2023). Combined with the other 2 classes, the Budds Creek winner has won the title 36 times in 66 total races (55%).
250 Manufacturer Overall Wins at Budds Creek (Last Overall Win)
- Kawasaki: 17 (2017)
- Honda: 8 (2023)
- Yamaha: 3 (2021)
- KTM: 2 (2019)
- Husqvarna: 2 (2022)
- Suzuki: 1 (1991)
250 Manufacturer Moto-Wins at Budds Creek
- Kawasaki: 32
- Honda: 13
- Yamaha: 11
- KTM: 4
- Husqvarna: 3
- Suzuki: 3
250 Top Overall Winners at Budds Creek (Years Won)
- 1) Blake Baggett: 3 (2012-2014)
- 1) Steve Lamson: 3 (1993, 1995-1996)
- 1) James Stewart: 3 (2002-2004)
- 1) Ryan Villopoto: 3 (2006-2008)
- 5) Mike Brown: 2 (2001 & 2005)
- 5) Ricky Carmichael: 2 (1997-1998)
- 5) RJ Hampshire: 2 (2018 & 2022)
- 5) Mike Kiedrowski: 2 (1989-1990)
250 Top Moto Winners at Budds Creek
- 1) Ricky Carmichael: 6
- 1) James Stewart: 6
- 1) Ryan Villopoto: 6
- 4) Mike Kiedrowski: 4
- 4) Steve Lamson: 4
250 Class: First Time Overall Winners at Budds Creek
- 1999: Tallon Vohland, Honda
- 2010: Dean Wilson, Kawasaki
- 2016: Zach Osborne, Husqvarna
- 2017: Adam Cianciarulo, Kawasaki
- 2018: RJ Hampshire, Husqvarna
