Two rounds into the 2026 AMA Pro Motocross Championship Series, the pattern has been set. Unless something changes dramatically, the picks for RMFantasyMX players will be straightforward. However, there is a wrinkle in the 2026 Thunder Valley National, so keep reading our 2026 Thunder Valley Motocross Fantasy Picks and Tips.
Jett Lawrence.
Jett Lawrence owns Thunder Valley Motocross Park. He has three overall 450MX wins in a row and has won five of the last six motos. Jett is on a personal four-round win streak at Thunder Valley, as he took the overall in 2022 in the 250MX class. It’s Jett for the win in Colorado.
Hunter Lawrence.
Hunter Lawrence has established himself as his younger brother’s most capable challenger. Hunter is such a good challenger that he leads the series by 6 points. Jett’s 1-1 performance at Hangtown last Saturday clearly established the pecking order in the Lawrence family and in National Motocross. Hunter is as good a choice for P2 as Jett is to win.
Jett Lawrence leads Hunter Lawrence.
Haiden Deegan is podium-bound. While he was nowhere near the Lawrence brothers at Hangtown, he was also not challenged for P3. Deegan in P3 is another lockdown choice.
Lucas Coenen. Photograph by Juan Pablo Acevedo.
MXGP ace Lucas Coenen is coming to visit. It’s impossible to know how well Coenen will do on the unfamiliar Thunder Valley circuit. Coenen is on a tear right now, with five moto victories in the last six MXGP races. This year, he has 11 moto wins in 16 races, so he is at peak performance. It’s hard to imagine he will be able to best the Lawrence brothers, so P3 should be his upside. Keep in mind that Deegan has won Thunder Valley as a 250 rider, so it won’t be easy for Coenen to stand on the podium. I have him for P4 only because of the strength of the riders ahead of him.
Jorge Prado.
P5 will come down to which Chase Sexton and Jorge Prado shows up. If they’re on their games, either can take P5. If it’s only one, then there’s your P5 finisher. If neither performs well, then Dylan Ferrandis will pick up the pieces, as he did last week. I think the presence of Coenen will boost Prado, as they’re teammates. So, I have Prado for P5, though Sexton and Ferrandis are good choices.
RJ Hampshire.
The Wild Card is P7, and that says RJ Hampshire to me. Hampshire has gone 6-7-5-7 this year, so he’s in the P7 hunt. Sexton isn’t a bad choice, as he’s on a 7-5-11-4 run. However, Sexton’s propensity to drop the motorcycle is troubling. I’ll go with Hampshire as my top pick for the P7 Wild Card, with Ferrandis as a strong alternate.
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In our first segment, Don Williams and Nic de Sena chat about the latest Yamaha MT-07. The amazing motor in the Yamaha is mostly unchanged, however just about everything else with this bike has changed. Don and Nic have extensive experience riding this beast and you’ll hear both their likes and a couple of dislikes too.
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Our guest for this episode is Nikolas Lazos, a 15-year old young man from Melbourne, Australia who starting racing in the Supersport 300 category in Australian Superbike last year. Nikolas had an awful crash at the tail end of last year that put him out of contention for the Championship. Teejay chats with Nikolas about his journey so far, and the physical and mental challenges he’s facing coming back from injury.
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Here’s quick reminder to check out our monthly digital magazine. It’s filled with everything you want to read on motorcycling, including some things you’ve probably not seen elsewhere. It’s absolutely free and you will find it on the Apple App Store and of course on Google Play as well.
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