The 2026 Monster Energy SMX World Championship postseason opened in anything but ordinary fashion.
Rain transformed Historic Crew Stadium in Columbus into a muddy, unpredictable battleground on 12 September, forcing shortened motos and putting a premium on patience, traction and staying upright. In those conditions, Haiden Deegan delivered a statement performance to claim his first 450SMX Class victory, while Levi Kitchen emerged victorious in a dramatic 250SMX tiebreaker.
The opening Playoff round was less about outright speed and more about who could manage the chaos.
Deegan Finds Another Gear in the Mud
The 450SMX opener immediately exposed the difficulty of the conditions.
Jorge Prado launched from the gate with the holeshot, but Deegan wasted little time moving forward. The Yamaha Star Racing rider made his move before the completion of the opening lap and quickly established control.
Behind him, Ken Roczen began cutting into the deficit, while Hunter Lawrence‘s afternoon unravelled after multiple crashes.
Deegan, however, remained composed.
The rookie premier-class winner never allowed the pressure or conditions to dictate his race.
Roczen’s charge ultimately stalled as Deegan responded by rebuilding his advantage. He crossed the line 17.2 seconds ahead of Roczen, with Prado third.
The second moto offered another test.
Deegan again grabbed the holeshot and initially attempted to break clear. Roczen eventually closed in, creating a brief battle for the lead, but Deegan absorbed the pressure and found another level once lapped traffic entered the equation.
He eventually opened the gap again and completed a wire-to-wire victory.
The result was a perfect 1-1 sweep and Deegan’s first premier-class victory in just his 12th career start.
“I just won a 450 race. This is crazy,”.
Deegan said after the victory, describing the result as a weight off his shoulders
Prado Leaves Columbus With the Red Plate
While Deegan took the headlines, Prado quietly produced one of the day’s most significant championship results.
The Ducati rider’s 3-4 moto score was enough to put him on the podium and move him into the 450SMX Playoff points lead.
Prado now holds a two-point advantage over Deegan, with Cooper Webb four points further back. Roczen’s consistent 2-2 performance moved him from 10th to fourth.
For Hunter Lawrence, the opening Playoff round was considerably more difficult. His 15th-place overall finish dropped him from the top of the standings to sixth.
The championship has already tightened considerably after just one round.
Kitchen Wins a 250SMX Thriller
The 250SMX Class produced an entirely different kind of drama.
Cole Davies looked unstoppable in Moto 1, building an advantage of almost 20 seconds before mechanical problems brought his Yamaha to a halt with just minutes remaining.
Daxton Bennick inherited the lead and converted the opportunity into a moto victory, finishing 18.1 seconds ahead of Kitchen.
Davies returned in Moto 2 and immediately showed what might have been possible, racing away from the field for another dominant win.
The battle behind him became the key to the overall classification.
Kitchen hunted down Bennick during the closing stages and made his move coming to the white flag. That single pass transformed the afternoon.
Kitchen finished second, giving both riders four points overall from their respective moto results. The second-moto tiebreaker went Kitchen’s way, handing him his first SMX Playoff victory.
Bennick settled for second overall, while Ryder DiFrancesco completed the podium.
Kitchen now leads the 250SMX Playoff standings by seven points over DiFrancesco, with Davies third.
SMX Next Adds Another Chapter
The younger SMX Next World All-Stars riders faced their own shortened six-minute-plus-one-lap Main Event.
Kade Johnson handled the pressure best.
After an early battle with Ryder Malinoski, Johnson regained the lead and kept the Yamaha rider behind him. Malinoski’s crashes eventually opened the door for Wyatt Thurman and Vincent Wey to join Johnson on the podium.
Johnson’s victory was his second SMX Next win and extended his podium streak to four races.
More importantly, he now carries a two-point championship advantage into the final All-Stars race.
For Johnson, the objective is bigger than one race win: he is chasing the opportunity to earn a professional contract.
Mud Has Changed the Championship Picture
Columbus showed why the SMX Playoffs can punish even the fastest riders.
With shortened motos, slippery terrain and limited room for error, consistency became just as important as raw pace. Deegan mastered the conditions in the premier class, Kitchen capitalised on a crucial late-race opportunity in the 250SMX Class, and Johnson kept his championship push alive.
The next Playoff round will arrive with championship pressure already building.
And after a mud-soaked opening round, there is little room left for mistakes.
