AMA Pro Motocross 2025
Race Round 6   Buchanan

Fireworks for Honda HRC Progressive at RedBud MX

  • Jett Lawrence overcomes adversity to earn his sixth-straight 450 overall win
  • Second overall for Hunter Lawrence, with consistent 2-3 moto finishes
  • Jo Shimoda rules 250 class with 1-1 scores for first overall victory of 2025

 The Honda RedBud National delivered pyrotechnics both on and off the track for Honda HRC Progressive over the Fourth of July Weekend. With special HRC guests visiting from Japan and Spain, and Honda serving as title sponsor of the popular Independence Day Weekend event, the riders did their part, sweeping the moto wins in a performance that was nothing short of dominant. In the 450 ranks, Jett Lawrence overcame a moto 2 mid-pack start and a small fall to secure his sixth consecutive overall win (and his fourth moto-sweep). Hunter Lawrence posted consistent 2-3 finishes for second overall, marking the fourth double-podium for the Lawrence brothers this season. Meanwhile, Jo Shimoda swept both motos in the 250 class, earning his first overall win of the year and gaining a large amount of points in the championship fight.

In the first 450 moto, Hunter grabbed the holeshot aboard his CRF450RWE, with Jett completing the first lap in third. The brothers quickly asserted control of the race, with Jett moving into second by lap 2 and taking over the lead three laps later. From there, the duo maintained their positions unchallenged, crossing the finish line in first and second, respectively.

Moto 2 was more eventful, as both Lawrences suffered rare poor starts, with Jett then having an early tip-over; at the end of lap 1, Hunter and Jett sat eighth and 18th, respectively, and they began charging forward. By lap 3, Hunter was into third, with Jett eighth. The reigning SMX champ passed his brother on lap 6 to take over third, and he moved by Jorge Prado at around the midway point. He took over the lead on lap 11 (with five laps still remaining!) to cap off an incredible comeback, winning by over eight seconds. Hunter fought with Chase Sexton over third, with the Australian taking control of the position and growing his cushion over fourth to 10 seconds by the finish.

Shimoda grabbed the first 250 holeshot aboard his CRF250RWE and settled into second behind Tom Vialle. The Japanese racer kept the pressure on and reclaimed the lead by lap 10, maintaining his pace to earn the moto win by over eight seconds. In moto 2, Shimoda got a close second-place start and lost a spot early on, but he regained it by the end of lap 1. He rode strong and took over the lead just past the halfway point, putting in smooth and consistent laps to take the victory and clinch the overall win.

NOTES

  • All three active Honda HRC Progressive riders—Jett Lawrence, Hunter Lawrence and Jo Shimoda—took part in Friday’s media activities at RedBud, including interviews and on-track riding sessions.
  • Honda served as the official title sponsor of the Honda RedBud National, reinforcing the brand’s longstanding commitment to American motocross and the Pro Motocross Championship.
  • Honda’s globally dominant trials duo—37-time FIM World Champion Toni Bou and Repsol Honda teammate Gabriel Marcelli—were on hand at RedBud. Bou served as the event’s Grand Marshal, appearing on the podium during the opening ceremony and trophy presentation. In addition, the Spanish duo put on a pair of riding exhibitions on a specially designed course, showcasing their incredible balance and technical skill in front of the motocross crowd. This coming weekend, Bou and Marcelli will compete aboard their factory HRC Montesa Cota machines at the U.S. round of the TrialGP World Championship, in Exeter, Rhode Island.
  • Executives from Honda Racing Corporation in Japan—including Executive Director Yuzuru Ishikawa, General Manager Taichi Honda and Off-Road Racing Manager Yasuhiro Yokoyama—were in attendance at RedBud, underscoring the brand’s strong global support for the team and the AMA Pro Motocross Championship.
  • As is typical for Honda HRC Progressive for the RedBud event, Throttle Jockey prepared special bike graphics with an Independence Day theme. The squad’s race bikes sported an American flag-wielding bald eagle, whose wing was based on the old-school Honda wing logo.
  • As was the case at the High Point National, Jamie and Kayla Irvine and Jay Winter cooked for the crew on race day. The group, which owns several great restaurants in Pennsylvania, are longtime friends of the Honda HRC Progressive team.
  • Kendallville Powersports, based in Kendallville, Indiana, joined Honda HRC Progressive in the team pits at RedBud, showcasing a CRF110F, a Montesa Cota 301RR, and a Talon 1000R. The dealership engaged with fans throughout the day, proudly representing Honda’s diverse powersports lineup.
  • RedBud hosted a round of the SMX Next Motocross Combine series, featuring some of the country’s top amateur motocross racers. Among them were a trio of Red Riders: SLR Honda’s Leum Oehlhof (who finished 10th overall despite a crash-affected second moto), privateer Brock Walker (22nd overall) and Phoenix Racing Honda’s Tiger Wood (24th).
  • In the 450 combined qualifying times, Jett and Hunter set the pace, going 1-2 (Jett’s time in the first session was nearly two seconds better than the next-best rider!). Joey Savatgy (Quad Lock Honda Racing) was 11th in combined times, followed by Cornelius Tondel (JWR Honda Racing) in 12th. Other Red Riders included Jeremy Hand (Valley Motorsports) in 25th, John Short (McGinley Clinic) in 32nd, and Henry Miller (Mx6 Racing) in 33rd. Justin Rodbell (Rodbell Racing) earned his spot on the gate by finishing fourth in the 450 LCQ.
  • In the 250 class, Shimoda logged the fourth-best time in combined qualifying. He was followed by Mark Fineis (TiLube Honda Racing) in 21st, Izaih Clark (TiLube Honda Racing) in 24th, Jace Allred (SLR Honda) in 27th, and Lance Kobusch (SPR Honda) in 28th. TJ Albright (Phoenix Racing Honda) secured his place in the motos with a third-place finish in the 250 LCQ.
  • Honda is the first manufacturer since 2008 to sweep both classes at RedBud.
  • As he had done at the Southwick National, Norwegian rider Cornelius Tondel competed at RedBud, basing out of the Honda HRC Progressive pit footprint for the weekend. The JWR Honda Racing rider went 35-20 for 26th
  • Jett posted the fastest lap time in both 450 motos, continuing his trend of outright speed. Shimoda set the fastest lap in the second 250 moto.
  • With his RedBud victory, Jett Lawrence now holds 21 career AMA Pro Motocross premier-class overall wins in just 22 attempts, moving him into sole possession of eighth place on the all-time list—now ahead of James Stewart and Jeff Stanton.
  • With Jett’s RedBud win this weekend, Honda grew its premier-class tally at the venue to 13 overall wins, one ahead of the next-closest manufacturer. Red Riders to have earned overall victories at RedBud include Marty Tripes, Steve Wise, David Bailey, Jeff Stanton, Jeremy McGrath, Kevin Windham, Sebastien Tortelli, Ricky Carmichael (three times), Chad Reed and Jett Lawrence (twice).
  • Jo’s win this weekend was Honda’s 12th in the support division at RedBud, as he joins fellow Red Riders Johnny O’Mara, Ron Lechien, Micky Dymond (twice), Guy Cooper, George Holland, Steve Lamson (twice), Trey Canard, Jeremy Martin and Chance Hymas.
  • Jett now leads the 450 title chase by a commanding 51 points over teammate Hunter, who has advanced to second place in the standings. Shimoda remains second in the 250 points race, although he reduced his gap by 20, from 58 to 38.
  • Next, the AMA Pro Motocross Championship heads to Millville, Minnesota, for round 7 at Spring Creek MX Park, taking place Saturday, July 12.

Media contact:

Tati Ziemer // Jonnum Media // tati@jonnummedia.com // +1 (707) 888-9418

450 Overall Results

  1. Jett Lawrence (Hon)
  2. Hunter Lawrence (Hon)
  3. Justin Cooper (Yam)
  4. R.J. Hampshire (Hus)
  5. Chase Sexton (KTM)
  6. Jorge Prado (Kaw)
  7. Justin Barcia (Gas)
  8. Malcolm Stewart (Hus)
  9. Cooper Webb (Yam)
  10. Harri Kullas (Hus)

—

18. Henry Miller (Hon)

21. Joey Savatgy (Hon)

23. John Short (Hon)

26. Cornelius Tondel (Hon)

32. Jeremy Hand (Hon)

38. Justin Rodbell (Hon)

450 Championship Points (after 6 of 11 rounds)

  1. Jett Lawrence (290)
  2. Hunter Lawrence (239)
  3. Justin Cooper (221)
  4. Eli Tomac (217)
  5. Aaron Plessinger (204)
  6. R.J. Hampshire (185)
  7. Cooper Webb (151)
  8. Jorge Prado (147)
  9. Joey Savatgy (124)
  10. Jason Anderson (111)

—

250 Overall Results

  1. Jo Shimoda (Hon)
  2. Jalek Swoll (Tri)
  3. Michael Mosiman (Yam)
  4. Mikkel Haarup (Tri)
  5. Haiden Deegan (Yam)
  6. Ryder DiFrancesco (Gas)
  7. Levi Kitchen (Kaw)
  8. Parker Ross (Yam)
  9. Seth Hammaker (Kaw)
  10. Garrett Marchbanks (Kaw)

—

22. Mark Fineis (Hon)

27. Lance Kobusch (Hon)

33. Izaiah Clark (Hon)

34. TJ Albright (Hon)

35. Jace Allred (Hon)

250 Championship Points (after 6 of 11 rounds)

  1. Haiden Deegan (274)
  2. Jo Shimoda (236)
  3. Levi Kitchen (189)
  4. Tom Vialle (186)
  5. Garrett Marchbanks (184)
  6. Michael Mosiman (149)
  7. Mikkel Haarup (144)
  8. Chance Hymas (132)
  9. Maximus Vohland (124)
  10. Seth Hammaker (122)

—

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Jett Lawrence 1

“The big bosses were in town, so you’ve got to lock in and ride well—you want to look good for
them! Jo also rode unreal in the 250 class; he dropped the rest of the guys, and it was great to
see him riding like himself again. When the higher-ups are here, you just want to do that little bit
extra to make them proud.”

Hunter Lawrence 96

“Good weekend—1-2 in the premier class, and obviously Jo had an amazing day in the 250s, so
that was cool. The big bosses made a trip over, and we also had Toni Bou and Gabriel Marcelli,
two of the best trials riders in the world, fly in for a demo. It was definitely a special day for
Honda.”

Jo Shimoda 30

“I think I needed that. I’m actually more stoked about getting two good starts than even winning
a moto! Going 1-1 and getting my first overall win with Honda feels really good. I’m just excited
for the next couple of rounds—we just have to keep it going.”

Lars Lindstrom

Team Manager

“What an absolute dream weekend for the team, and for Honda! This is our second sweep of the summer, and to do it with Ishikawa-san and company here from HRC was really special. It was a busy weekend, with a lot of moving parts, like having the HRC Trials team here and preparing everything for that; it all went off without a hitch really, and I want to thank Jeff Weiner [Assistant Manager of Racing] for making that happen. It was a true honor to have Toni Bou and Gabriel Marcelli here, and it was awesome to have them integrated into the team for the weekend. We put our heads together to help Jo get better starts, and I have to say a big thanks to Grant Hutcheson [450 Crew Chief] for helping understand what Jo needed, and to Jo himself for trusting in us to change his style within a week, with the goal of getting better starts. With Deegan having misfortune, someone needed to capitalize, and I’m so stoked Jo did that. I honestly can’t say enough about Hunter and Jett; it’s such a privilege to have them on the team, and I feel so lucky to be in the position that I’m in.”

Location Information

Buchanan, MI, United States - View in Google Maps

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