ONGOING RECOVERY RULES AARON PLESSINGER OUT OF SMX FINALS SERIES
Red Bull KTM Factory Racing fan favorite Aaron Plessinger has unfortunately been ruled out of the 2025 SuperMotocross World Championship (SMX) Finals series, prioritizing his health while still working to regain 100 percent fitness.
Plessinger sat out the final four rounds of the Pro Motocross season while aiming to recover in time for SMX Playoff 1 scheduled for this Saturday, September 6, at zMAX Dragway in Concord, North Carolina, but the decision has now been made to focus on 2026.
After finishing sixth in the 450SX standings at the conclusion of Supercross, 'The Cowboy' went on to claim P8 in 450MX outdoors despite missing the final portion of the series. As a result, he earned his place in the playoffs as the eighth seed overall.
Although he will be unable to mount his KTM 450 SX-F FACTORY EDITION this weekend, Plessinger will be on location to meet fans alongside his Red Bull KTM Factory Racing teammates Chase Sexton, Tom Vialle and Julien Beaumer, who are all READY TO RACE and will be back on track for the playoffs.
Aaron Plessinger: "Unfortunate news, but as much as I would like to race these next few races in SMX, what I've been dealing with is taking a little bit longer than expected to come back around, so I'm sitting these next three out. I will be at Charlotte though, signing autographs and hanging out so come and see me, but as far as training and racing goes, I will be getting ready for 2026 once I am back on the bike. For myself and also my health heading into next season, this is the best move. I just wanted to say good luck to all my team and all of my teammates – go get 'em, boys!"
Ian Harrison, Red Bull KTM Factory Racing Team Manager: "As much as we love having Aaron at the races every weekend, recovery is the top priority and although he is on the mend he is still not one 100 percent just yet. With that, he will miss the three SMX rounds, but all is not lost for his race fans as The Cowboy will be in Charlotte this weekend to meet with fans and cheer on his teammates."
A consistent performance in Round 9 of the 2026 AMA Supercross Championship saw Red Bull KTM Factory Racing’s Eli Tomac finish second overall at tonight's Indianapolis Triple Crown, keeping him firmly in 450SX title contention at the midway point of the season. On the notoriously challenging Indiana track surface, Tomac and his KTM 450 SX-F FACTORY EDITION found comfort early during afternoon qualifying, topping the 450SX timesheets for the fourth time this year with a 45.434s lap-time. Starting outside the top 10 in the opening race of the dynamic Triple Crown format saw the 33-year-old mount an impressive charge through the field, crossing the line in a hard-fought third position as the checkered flag waved. Tomac recorded second-place finishes in Races 2 and 3, which saw the two-time Supercross Champion secure second overall and claim his seventh podium result of the 2026 season, including four race wins. Tomac now sits just four points out of the premier class lead entering the mid-season weekend off, with racing to resume in Birmingham, Alabama, on March 21. Eli Tomac: “It was a good night overall. I made one mistake in Race 3, which allowed Hunter [Lawrence] to pull out a second or two lead, which I just wasn’t able to bring back. I’m glad to get out of here in P2 because this place makes for a really tough night of racing with the Triple Crown format, as well as the soil, so I’m looking forward to the break now.” Red Bull KTM Factory Racing teammate Jorge Prado returned to competition after missing the previous two rounds due to a shoulder injury, with the four-time world champion qualifying a competitive fourth in the 450SX Class at the conclusion of the afternoon sessions. After capturing the holeshot in Race 1, the 25-year-old guided his KTM 450 SX-F FACTORY EDITION at the front of the field during the opening laps, negotiating the technical circuit to take a sixth-place finish. As the track continued to break down, Prado added a pair of P6 scores over the remaining races, securing sixth overall at Round 9 in what marked a successful return. Jorge Prado: "My first round back at Indianapolis was a very solid day – I’m happy with P6 overall with three sixth-place scores across the finals. I was also P4 in practice and had solid starts all night, so I’m obviously not 100 percent yet, but I think that given how I felt this weekend, I really optimized everything. It was important to gain experience in racing a track like this for the future. I’m happy to come out of here with a solid result and then get one weekend off where we will put in a lot of work, and then enter the next round way better.” Also equipped with the KTM 450 SX-F FACTORY EDITION, Aaron Plessinger charged to a measured P8 finish in Race 1, before a collision with another rider in the second outing resulted in an unfortunate DNF. The 30-year-old withdrew from Race 3, however, he has since been cleared of any major injury from the impact and will regroup across the break to come out strong in Birmingham. Aaron Plessinger: “My day was going alright in Indianapolis and I felt we made some steps forward throughout qualifying. I climbed up to eighth in the first race, which was good, given where I started – I felt I rode pretty well. And then in Race 2, I got a pretty good start inside the top-five before Kenny [Roczen] slid on one of the on-offs, then he went double while I tripled, which had me plough directly into his back tire on the next jump. It took me off the bike and now I have a pretty good bruise on my right arm where his tire hit me, but as bad as it was, I think I got pretty lucky to get away from that one with nothing broken. We didn’t do the third race, which was unfortunate, although now having a weekend off, we’ll keep up the work and keep grinding.” Next Race: March 21 – Birmingham, Alabama Results 450SX Class – Indianapolis 1. Hunter Lawrence (Honda) 2. Eli Tomac (Red Bull KTM Factory Racing) 3. Cooper Webb (Yamaha) 6. Jorge Prado (Red Bull KTM Factory Racing) 7. Malcolm Stewart (Husqvarna) 12. Justin Hill (KTM) 15. Grant Harlan (KTM) 18. Kevin Moranz (KTM) 19. Aaron Plessinger (Red Bull KTM Factory Racing) Standings 450SX Class 2026 after 9 of 17 rounds 1. Hunter Lawrence, 196 points 2. Eli Tomac, 192 3. Cooper Webb, 171 8. Aaron Plessinger, 98 9. Malcolm Stewart, 90 10. Jorge Prado, 89 19. RJ Hampshire, 38
Eli Tomac and Red Bull KTM Factory Racing earned a commanding victory in Round 8 of the 2026 AMA Supercross Championship at Daytona International Speedway tonight, as Tomac claimed a record eighth-career Daytona Supercross win in the premier class and his fourth of the SMX World Championship season. Entering Daytona already as the winningest rider in the event's history, Tomac carried confidence into Round 8, powering his KTM 450 SX-F FACTORY EDITION to the second-fastest qualifying time with a 1:15.020s lap on the technical, high-speed layout. A holeshot in 450SX Heat 1 saw the 33-year-old charge to a wire-to-wire victory, remaining unchallenged at the front of the field and crossing the line with a 5.092s winning margin. Making a top-five start in the Main Event, Tomac was immediately on the charge, surging to the front by Lap 6 with a series of decisive passes before holding strong at the head of the pack to deliver his fourth victory of the year and the 57th of his premier class career. With his Daytona Supercross success, the two-time Supercross title-winner now sits just one point outside of the 450SX points lead with nine rounds remaining. Eli Tomac: “Somehow I have won eight Daytona Supercrosses! I just go out there and roost the berms like I’m at my home track – I love this dirt and the way it develops. Of course, I had to work for it there tonight, I went through all my main competition and just had a great time on my motorcycle. I love spraying these sand turns, I’m so thankful to get it done with Red Bull KTM, and to make up some championship points this weekend.” Red Bull KTM Factory Racing 450SX teammate Aaron Plessinger made an encouraging start to the round onboard his KTM 450 SX-F FACTORY EDITION, posting the eighth-fastest qualifying time before racing to a P4 finish in his Heat Race despite a fall in the early stages. Plessinger completed the opening lap of the Main Event in position 10, before ‘The Cowboy’ delivered a determined ride, steadily working his way forward to record a season-best sixth-place result by race’s end, building upon his form as the season progresses. He is now eighth in the 450SX standings as the series approaches halfway. Aaron Plessinger: "Daytona was okay, I just need to focus on myself and continue to improve. Sixth place is not bad, but I expect more out of myself – I know the team expects more out of me and I would like to do better. So I need to go back to work this week and also work at putting myself in better positions. I chose the wrong gate tonight and I got the best jump that I could, although with the gate that I chose, it didn't do me any favors. I was in the top 10 after the first corner, and then just pushed and made a few passes, but I think if I were in a better position, I would have been fighting for either a podium or a smooth P5. The team is working hard for me – we'll look at bringing some momentum into Indy next weekend." Four-time world champion Jorge Prado remained sidelined for Round 8, with the 25-year-old continuing rehabilitation and recovery from a right shoulder injury sustained in Seattle. Next Race: March 7 – Indianapolis, Indiana Results 450SX Class – Daytona 1. Eli Tomac (Red Bull KTM Factory Racing) 2. Hunter Lawrence (Honda) 3. Ken Roczen (Suzuki) 6. Aaron Plessinger (Red Bull KTM Factory Racing) 9. Justin Hill (KTM) 10. Malcolm Stewart (Husqvarna) 15. Grant Harlan (KTM) Standings 450SX Class 2026 after 8 of 17 rounds 1. Hunter Lawrence, 171 points 2. Eli Tomac, 170 3. Ken Roczen, 151 8. Aaron Plessinger, 95 11. Malcolm Stewart, 75 12. Justin Hill, 74 13. Jorge Prado, 73 18. RJ Hampshire, 38
Eli Tomac and the Red Bull KTM Factory Racing team claimed a well-earned second-place finish at Arlington’s seventh round of the 2026 AMA Supercross Championship, recording his fifth podium of the season tonight in Texas. Equipped with the KTM 450 SX-F FACTORY EDITION – complete with a special livery for Military Appreciation Round – Tomac topped the premier class qualifying for the third time in 2026, posting a benchmark 47.688s lap during the second afternoon session at AT&T Stadium. Momentum continued for the 33-year-old with third-place in the opening 450SX Heat Race, as he showed consistent pace and gained a solid gate selection for the upcoming Main Event. Despite a difficult initial launch out of the gate, Tomac quickly recovered on the opening laps with a series of decisive passes, as the two-time 450SX Champion charged into fourth position during the race's early stages. From there, an intense, race-long battle unfolded, with Tomac advancing into second during the closing laps of the Main Event. Mounting a late charge, he continued to apply pressure at the front, ultimately finishing in P2 at Round 7. As the 2026 AMA Supercross Championship approaches its halfway point, Tomac sits just four points from the 450SX series lead, with the SMX World Championship season continuing at the annual Daytona Supercross next weekend. Eli Tomac: “Those first laps absolutely saved my race. I had to make some quick moves there and was able to find those openings to pass two-to-three riders at a time. By lap two or three, I could see the front of the race and thought, ‘I’m okay, I can work with this.’ What a difficult track [it was] tonight. Of course, I fought to the end as much as I could and second is what we had. Thank you to Red Bull KTM – we’ll come back swinging in Daytona.” Red Bull KTM Factory Racing 450SX teammate Aaron Plessinger made a positive start to the night aboard his KTM 450 SX-F FACTORY EDITION, claiming fifth place in his Heat Race to comfortably earn a direct transfer into the Main Event. Plessinger faced an intense opening few laps in fighting for early track position, as the 30-year-old battled inside the top-10 throughout Arlington’s entire Main Event. 'The Cowboy' eventually scored an eighth-place finish for the weekend. With the series moving to Daytona next weekend, ‘The Cowboy’ will turn his attention to the historic Florida speedway, where he landed on the podium – his first of the 2025 season – one year ago. Aaron Plessinger: "Dallas was better. I think we made some pretty good progress with the bike, but ultimately, I just need to be better. I need to put myself in better positions, and just overall, be better myself. The Heat Race, I got an average start and rode my way to fifth, and then for the Main, I went all the way inside gate, so got a better start. I was running good and then [Jason] Anderson ended up going down in front of me, so that put me back a little bit. And then I had a decent flow going there, but I ended up casing a jump pretty good and kind of ruined my momentum that I had going. I ended up eighth, but overall, it just needed to be better. We go to Daytona next week, so I am looking forward to that and, yeah, I've just got to focus on being better on race day." Four-time world champion Jorge Prado was sidelined for Round 7 after his incident during Seattle’s second qualifying session, with the 25-year-old prioritizing recovery on his right shoulder by taking a week off the bike at this time. Next Race: February 28 – Daytona, Florida Results 450SX Class – Arlington 1. Hunter Lawrence (Honda) 2. Eli Tomac (Red Bull KTM Factory Racing) 3. Cooper Webb (Yamaha) 8. Aaron Plessinger (Red Bull KTM Factory Racing) 11. Malcolm Stewart (Husqvarna) 12. Justin Hill (KTM) 17. Kevin Moranz (KTM) Standings 450SX Class 2026 after 7 of 17 rounds 1. Hunter Lawrence, 149 points 2. Eli Tomac, 145 3. Cooper Webb, 133 10. Aaron Plessinger, 79 11. Jorge Prado, 73 12. Malcolm Stewart, 63 13. Justin Hill, 61 17. RJ Hampshire, 38