Hampshire receives early title boost with win in the 250SX West Class
It may have been the opening round of the 2024 AMA Supercross season, but it didn’t take long for Team Honda HRC’s Jett Lawrence to show that he was up to the challenge of racing in the 450SX Class.
In the main event, Lawrence got the holeshot on the first turn and led all 20 laps en route to a dominant season-opening victory on Saturday at Anaheim 1. With the win, Lawrence became the first racer in AMA Supercross history to win his 450SX Class debut, outpacing Monster Energy Kawasaki’s Jason Anderson and Red Bull KTM’s Chase Sexton — the defending 450SX Class Champion — to claim the top spot on the podium.
“It’s an unreal thing to kind of grasp,” Lawrence said after his historic victory, “because you just think with how many years this sport’s been around you’d have thought someone has done it before. But it’s cool that it took that many years for someone to do it. I’m definitely grateful and I’m happy to do it for Honda and Red Bull. They’ve been behind me for a very long time now so it’s good to give back in that type of way and get up in the history books for them.”
Lawrence’s debut victory secured him 25 points to open the season, while Anderson and Sexton left the weekend with 22 and 20 points, respectively.
In the 250SX West main event, Rockstar Energy Husqvarna’s R.J. Hampshire beat out Monster Energy Star Yamaha Racing’s Jordon Smith and Monster Energy Kawasaki’s Levi Kitchen for the season-opening win.
“A1 was awesome for me and it was a dream of mine to win Anaheim 1 and leave with the red plate,” Hampshire said. “[I’m] super happy with the day, felt awesome on my Husqvarna and am thankful for the whole team, they’ve been crushing it for me and it shows tonight. I took what the night gave me and it gave me a win, so I’m happy with where we are at.”
Hampshire — who finished second behind Lawrence last season in the 250SX West title race — brought home 25 points, while Smith and Kitchen claimed 22 and 20 points, respectively.
The AMA Supercross season continues Jan. 13 with the second round taking place at Oracle Park in San Francisco. Round Two Opening Ceremonies are set to start at 8:00 p.m. EST and will be streamed on Peacock.