It’s coming down to the wire in the 2026 AMA Pro Motocross Championship Series. After Hunter Lawrence’s crash in Moto 2 at last week’s Unadilla National, defending 450MX champion Jett Lawrence leads Hunter by 10 points in the standings. No one else is close. That’s only part of the story, so let’s get into our 2026 Budds Creek Motocross fantasy picks and tips.
Jett Lawrence
Both of the Lawrence Brothers are highly motivated to win at Budds Creek Motocross Park in Mechanicsville, Maryland. Hunter still controls his own destiny, and will likely have to win the last four motos to take the championship. Jett knows that by winning either Budds Creek moto, he takes Hunter’s sweep off the table going into the finale at Ironman Raceway the following week in Crawfordsville, Indiana.
Hunter Lawrence.
The pressure is far heavier on Hunter. Even if Jett goes 2-2 at Budds Creek behind Hunter, Jett still leaves with a four-point lead with two motos remaining. Jett has won at least one 450MX moto in six of the nine rounds, and Hunter has gone 1-1 three times this year. Still, it’s easy to see them go 1-2 and 2-1. That leaves RMFantasyMX players to decide which rider will win Moto 2.
Jett has four Moto 1 wins and four Moto 2 wins; Hunter has five Moto 1 wins and five Moto 2 wins. That’s no help! They’ve even swapped Moto 1 and Moto 2 wins the last two rounds. It will likely come down to the start, so it’s truly a toss-up. I’m going with Jett to win the Budds Creek National, but feel free to flip your own coin.
Jorge Prado.
Haiden Deegan could come under heavy fire from Jorge Prado at Budds Creek. Although Deegan has been a solid P3 choice this season, had Hunter not fallen, Deegan would have finished in P4 at Unadilla, as Prado beat him twice. There’s likely to be significant rain at Budds Creek, so I’m putting Prado in P3 due to his European experience, and Deegan in P4.
Haiden Deegan.
Garrett Marchbanks and RJ Hampshire will battle it out for P5. This is a tough one, though Marchbanks leads the top-five battle with Hampshire by a 5-3 margin. That’s enough to make Marchbanks the P5 pick at Budds Creek.
Garrett Marchbanks.
The P8 Wild Card will be hard-fought. Leading contenders are Justin Barcia, Jed Beaton, and Dylan Ferrandis. Again, your best bet is to pick one of the three names out of a hat. Beaton was P7 in his 2026 Pro Motocross debut, so he may do even better this Saturday. Ferrandis is a bit more consistent than Barcia, so I’m going with Ferrandis.
The modern superbike class is an arms race fought on several fronts. There’s still the battle for horsepower supremacy, that fuels endless spec-sheet skirmishes on internet forums. But what has caused more than a few designers to burn the midnight oil is the bold new frontier of MotoGP-inspired aerodynamics, and the challenge of integrating those into the already exceedingly complex superbike. Nic de Sena rode the new Kawasaki Ninja ZX-10R at a recent Laguna Seca track day with Volant Vivere and he tells us all about what he discovered and what it takes to go fast.
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Now here’s a rally you absolutely cannot miss—yes, we’re rapidly approaching the 34th Annual Biketoberfest Rally in Daytona Beach, sunny Florida.Biketoberfest this year runs October 15th through the 18th. Biketoberfest is all about the beautiful Florida weather, live music, the industry’s top vendors, bike shows, and motorcycle racing at Daytona International Speedway. And don’t forget, there are miles of spectacular rides along the famous A1A, the historic Main Street and the Ormond Beach Scenic Loop. There really is something for everyone here, and almost every event and attraction is free to attend. So, if you want a fun few days out in the Florida sunshine, Biketoberfest really is the place to be. Make sure you download the Biketoberfest mobile App from Apple or Google Play or visit www.biketoberfest.orgfor more details.
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Austin and Ellie got married in 2022 and recently returned from a four-year trip around the world riding their Ural sidecar. The epic trip is documented on their Instagram page @sidebysidecar. In this second segment, Teejay Adams chats with them about the challenges and effort it took to make it all happen, and some of the adventures they had along the way.
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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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