It was a historic night inside The World Center of Racing for Round 8 of the 2026 Monster Energy SMX World Championship, as Red Bull KTM Factory Racing’s Eli Tomac cemented his place atop the all-time greatest racers at Daytona International Speedway with a record breaking eighth Monster Energy AMA Supercross Championship win at the iconic venue. The Colorado native broke a three-year tie with NASCAR legend Richard Petty, owner of seven Daytona 500 victories, to become the most decorated athlete of the speedway’s celebrated 67-year history.
Words and Images by Feld Motorsports
It wasn’t an easy path to victory for Tomac, as he began the 450SMX Class Main Event in fourth, behind each of his primary competitors in the championship. Honda HRC Progressive’s Hunter Lawrence, last week’s winner and current points leader, opened the 20 Minute + 1 Lap race with the holeshot, but was quickly passed by Progressive Insurance Cycle Gear Suzuki’s Ken Roczen. Monster Energy Yamaha Star Racing’s Cooper Webb, the defending series champion, slotted into third ahead of Tomac, which set the stage for a thrilling battle between the best in the class. As Roczen and Lawrence settled in out front, Tomac started his pursuit of the lead with an early pass on Webb for third. The top three continuously searched for faster lines on the ever-changing rutty, technical, sandy racetrack and sat within 1.5 seconds of one another with around 14 minutes remaining.
As the race approached the halfway point Tomac elected to make his push and took advantage of a couple sections on the track where he excelled to attack his rivals. He first made an assertive pass on Lawrence for second and on the ensuing lap railed the outside of an option lane to shoot past Roczen as they sprinted to the finish line jump. Tomac seized control of the lead with about 12:30 left on the race clock and quickly opened up a multi-second margin. Roczen held strong in second until the race closed in on the final five minutes, when Lawrence’s patience and persistence paid off and allowed the Australian to take over second. About three seconds separated Tomac from Lawrence, but the championship leader was unable to make significant inroads on his deficit as the race drew to a close.
Tomac was never challenged once he moved into the lead and carried on to take his fourth win of the season and the 57th victory of his career by 1.3 seconds over Lawrence. Roczen finished in a distant third while Webb was largely on his own en route to fourth, with Quad Lock Honda’s Joey Savatgy in fifth.
Tomac closed to within a single point of Lawrence in the championship standings, while Roczen and Webb now sit tied for third, 20 points out of the lead.
Eli Tomac – 1st Place – 450SMX Class
“[The wins] are all awesome, but somehow, I’ve won eight of these. I don’t want to think about how old I am. I just go out there and roost the berms like I’m at my home track [in Colorado]. I love this dirt and just love how this track develops. Of course, I had to work for it there and went through all my main competition. I just had a great time on my motorcycle and happy to make up points this weekend.”
Hunter Lawrence – 2nd Place – 450SMX Class
“It was a tough [Main Event] on a really tough track. I was figuring out where to compensate with the bike and it just took me too long to do that. In the end I was kind of making it work, but it was too late and Eli [Tomac] got his eighth win here. I really wanted to stop that tonight, but I couldn’t make up the difference.”
Ken Roczen – 3rd Place – 450SMX Class
“I gave it my best out there and led for a bunch. I had a really good start too and in the Main Event that really counts. I was searching a little bit in the beginning, it was a tricky track and a lot faster than what we’ve seen the past few years here. Once I got passed, I knew those guys were maybe a little bit faster, so I tried to hang on and follow some lines. I was right there until the end and just got messed up by some lappers and those guys got away a little bit. I just wasn’t the best tonight, but I’m happy with a podium.”
The Monster Energy SMX World Championship and Monster Energy AMA Supercross Championship will continue next Saturday, March 7, for the ninth race of the season from Indianapolis’ Lucas Oil Stadium, which will signify the second Triple Crown race of the 2026 season.
450 Results
450 Standings
450 champs Day
