Rider Reflections: 2026 Salt Lake City Supercross
Catch the latest reactions from top riders after an action-packed AMA Supercross weekend in Salt Lake City.
450
Ken Roczen: “I was an emotional wreck today. It was not an easy task by any means. I’ve been exhausted, physically and mentally, over these past few weeks, but I’ve dreamed of this since I was a little kid. This is just a testament of you never give up. Anybody, at any age, whenever you’re competing and you feel anxiety, you feel strange emotions that rob your energy, you’re not alone. I feel those too, but I don’t give up. I work on it daily, and [the championship] is how it pays off. You can do it too.”
Chase Sexton: “I’ve known Kenny [Roczen] a long time. He was like a big brother to me growing up. It’s obviously a bit different now that we race each other, but I’m really proud of him. Hunter [Lawrence] was [also] great all year. Great competitors. I was watching their race from the back and didn’t know what to do, then stuff happened. I started riding better and got to the front. It means a lot for me, personally, to get a win. It’s been a really tough year, but this hopefully is a good omen for the outdoors."
Justin Cooper: “I didn’t get off the gate great. I tried second gear and dropped the front. I need a little more gas, but it’s tough at elevation because we’re fighting between first or second gear. That didn’t pay off, but I was able to work my way through. I had to trust my pace and wait for guys to wear down a little bit. Everything tightened up at the end, and it was a tough last couple minutes, but we got close [to the win] there.”
Jorge Prado: “My main goal was to get a good start. I did that and was running third, and at one point, I was faster than the guys in front of me [Roczen and Lawrence]. I knew they were battling for the championship, so I didn’t want to interfere. I could have made a pass, but I wanted to stay there. Then Hunter [Lawrence] made a mistake, and I fell a little bit off rhythm. It was a great day of racing for me.”
250
Cole Davies: “That was a great race. I didn’t get off to a great start, but I made it happen. The pressure is off [with the championship] so I could come out here and ride full out. It was fun racing like that, going back and forth, cat and mouse. I enjoyed it.”
Levi Kitchen: “I got another okay start, but I made moves early. I’m proud of that. I was really aggressive. I could see the leaders and felt like I could get up there, then both of my teammates went down. I had to nearly stop to avoid them and had to make it all back up. It was chaos, but I’m just so stoked to be up here battling with these guys.”
Max Anstie: “It’s been a tough year. I had my appendix taken out and a lot of things in between the races, but the whole team has been amazing sticking behind me. Awesome season. Congrats to my two teammates [on their championships]. It was awesome to be a part of that this year. Hopefully we can be up here again next year and in the title hunt.”
Haiden Deegan: “What an amazing 250 career. I’ve got to give it up to Cole. That was a dog fight. We were giving the fans the best show possible. We were hitting each other, it was awesome. Even though I came out in fourth, that was one of the funnest races I’ve had. It’s a little sad we’re hanging it up, but ready to move on to the 450 Class.”
Image: AMA Supercross
