COLUMBUS, Ohio — Playoff 1 for the 2026 Monster Energy SMX World Championship got underway amidst rainy conditions inside Historic Crew Stadium, which presented an unpredictable and challenging dynamic for the start of the postseason.
A passionate and enthusiastic sellout crowd braved the weather as a muddy afternoon of racing saw Monster Energy Yamaha Star Racing’s Haiden Deegan breakthrough for his first premier class victory in the 450SMX Class, while Monster Energy Pro Circuit Kawasaki’s Levi Kitchen came out on the winning end of a tiebreaker to prevail in the 250SMX Class.
Due to the weather and wet track conditions, the first motos for each class were shortened to 15 Minutes + 1 Lap, while the second motos were shortened to 12 Minutes + 1 Lap in an effort to help preserve the racing surface.
The opening moto for the 450SMX Class got underway with Red Bull KTM Factory Racing’s Jorge Prado leading the field to the holeshot with Deegan and Quad Lock Honda’s Joey Savatgy in tow. Further back in the field Honda HRC Progressive’s Hunter Lawrence, the top seed and newly crowned Pro Motocross Champion, went down and started last.
Deegan closed in on the Spaniard and made the pass right before the completion of the first full lap. Progressive Insurance Cycle Gear Suzuki’s Ken Roczen, the reigning Supercross Champion, soon followed into second. As the leaders settled in, Lawrence encountered more misfortune and found himself on the ground once more, which effectively eliminated him from contention for the afternoon. Back up front, Deegan opened a multi-second lead over the field. Roczen started to take significant chunks out of his deficit, but Deegan responded to end the threat and carried on to his first checkered flag in the premier class by 17.2 seconds over his Suzuki counterpart. Prado finished in third, with Troy Lee Designs Red Bull Ducati Factory Racing’s Dylan Ferrandis in fourth and Twisted Tea Suzuki Progressive’s Jason Anderson in fifth.
The second moto kicked off with Deegan leading the way to the holeshot ahead of Prado and Roczen. Deegan took advantage of the clear track and tried to inch away, but Roczen made the move on Prado and tracked down Deegan to begin a brief battle for the lead. Behind them, Monster Energy Yamaha Star Racing’s Cooper Webb made the pass around Prado for third. Out front, Deegan fended off Roczen’s early pressure to stabilize his advantage.
As Deegan took advantage of lapped riders to extend his lead over Roczen, Webb and Prado traded positions, with the Spaniard able to briefly reclaim the position before Webb overtook him once more. Deegan, meanwhile, continued to show impressive poise in the treacherous conditions and completed a wire-to-wire moto win to sweep the day by 17.1 seconds over Roczen, who overcame a fall late in the race. Webb finished third, just ahead of Prado.
Deegan’s 1-1 performance netted him the first premier class victory in his 12th career start. Roczen enjoyed a consistent afternoon to finish in the runner-up spot (2-2) in his first start since capturing the Supercross title in May, while Prado rounded out the podium (3-4) in his SMX Playoff debut.
With his third-place finish, Prado improved upon his second seed in the 450SMX Playoff to move atop the standings and grab possession of the red plate for the first time. He holds a two-point lead over Deegan, who climbed from seventh to second, while Webb remains third, four points back. Roczen moved up from 10th to fourth (-8), while Lawrence’s 15th-place finish saw him drop from first to sixth (-10).
The first moto for the 250SMX Class started with Monster Energy Yamaha Star Racing’s Cole Davies out front with the holeshot ahead of Rockstar Energy Husqvarna Factory Racing’s Daxton Bennick and Kitchen. Davies, the top seed and reigning Eastern Divisional Supercross Championship and Pro Motocross Champion, took full advantage of the clear track to open a significant lead over the field.
Davies dominated the first 12 minutes of the moto, opening an advantage of nearly 20 seconds and lapping up to 10th place. However, with just over three minutes left on the race clock Davies appeared to encounter issues with his Yamaha and eventually came to a stop on one of the track’s jumps, ending his race. That allowed Bennick to move into the lead as the Husqvarna rider kept it on two wheels and captured the moto win by 18.1 seconds over Kitchen, while Rockstar Energy Husqvarna Factory Racing’s Ryder DiFrancesco followed in third. ClubMX Yamaha’s Max Vohland finished fourth, with Monster Energy Yamaha Star Racing’s Caden Dudney in fifth. Davies’ DNF relegated him to 22nd place.
The second moto began with Bennick out front for the holeshot, but he was passed by Davies in the first rhythm section, while Honda HRC Progressive’s Chance Hymas slotted into third ahead of Kitchen. Much like the first moto, Davies stormed out to a healthy lead of more than 10 seconds, while Bennick asserted his hold of second. Behind them, the battle for third unfolded between Hymas and Kitchen, with the Kawasaki rider able to make the move.
As Davies continued to pull away, Bennick started to lose ground to Kitchen, who made a push over the second half of the race. He continued to inch closer to the Husqvarna and moved within striking distance coming to the white flag. Kitchen pulled the trigger on a quick and decisive pass to move into second, which had a significant impact on the overall classification.
Out front, Davies was in a class of his own and bounced back from the heartbreak of Moto 1 to take the second moto win by 16.5 seconds over Kitchen, with Bennick in third and DiFrancesco in fourth.
With his late pass and runner-up finish, Kitchen (2-2) and Bennick (1-3) finished the afternoon tied atop the overall classification with four points apiece. The second moto tiebreaker went in Kitchen’s favor to give him the first Playoff win of his career, while Bennick secured his fifth career SMX podium. DiFrancesco rounded out the overall podium in third (3-4), while Davies’ salvaged 11th overall (22-1).
Kitchen now sits atop the 250SMX Playoff standings after entering the weekend as the second seed. He holds a seven-point lead over DiFrancesco, who entered as the third seed, while Davies dropped to third, 10 points out of the lead.
