Hunter Lawrence confirmed the competitiveness of Honda’s 2025 CRF450R during its AMA Pro Motocross debut at Unadilla MX in Upstate New York, racing the new machine to 1-2 moto finishes for a second-place overall result. It was an impressive showing by Team Honda HRC that helped make up for the squad’s final 250 results; despite strong riding by Chance Hymas and Jo Shimoda (the former topping qualifying and leading most of the first moto, and the latter challenging for the lead in the second moto), both riders suffered crashes that ended their days early. Words: HRC
Lawrence put his new ride into second place in its first AMA Pro Motocross start, and although he lost a spot to Chase Sexton, he muscled his way back by and then powered by Aaron Plessinger to take over the lead on lap 1. Sexton was able to close up toward the end of the race, even getting by momentarily, but Lawrence made an impressive pass back and held on for an exciting win.
The gate was held for a long time on the moto 2 start, and after it dropped, Lawrence found himself in 10th place out of turn 1. He was up to sixth after one lap, and into fourth by the midway point. Feeling strong in the moto’s latter stages, Lawrence charged to second by the finish, earning the same position overall. Also impressive was Phoenix Racing Honda’s Dylan Ferrandis, taking fourth overall with 6-3 moto scores.
The first 250 moto saw Hymas cross the holeshot line in seventh place, but it was immediately clear that he was the fastest rider on the track, which he had shown earlier by qualifying almost 2 seconds faster than P2. He made multiple early passes (including overtaking two riders in one turn) to secure the lead on lap 1. Once in front, the Idaho native began building a cushion that eventually grew to over 5 seconds, only for a violent crash on a downhill to take him out with just five laps remaining (He was credited with a 32nd-place result). Meanwhile, Shimoda was back in 10th place after lap 1, but he worked his way through the pack to finish the moto in fourth.
Shimoda snared a fourth-place start and was quickly up to second. He rode in that position—regularly challenging for the lead—for much of the race, until he went down in a corner with just four laps remaining. Although it was essentially a tip-over, the incident was awkward enough that it resulted in a broken collarbone for the Japanese rider, who was forced to withdraw. Meanwhile, Hymas started the second moto, but the effects of his moto 1 crash were such that he pulled out at about the one-third mark.
NOTES
- All three active Team Honda HRC riders attended Unadilla’s Media Day on Friday, although the track time was canceled due to precipitation.
- Amsterdam, New York, dealership Outdoor Motor Sports staffed a pop-up activation booth in the Team Honda HRC pits at Unadilla.
- Chance Hymas was the fastest 250 rider during the morning qualifying sessions, with Jo Shimoda sixth-best. Hunter Lawrence was fourth-fastest on the 450 timesheets.
- Hymas turned the fastest lap time during the first 250 moto, and Shimoda did likewise in the second moto.
- SLR Honda fielded several riders making their AMA Pro Motocross debuts at Unadilla. Parker Ross and Jace Allred campaigned the 250 class, finishing 24th and 28th overall, respectively, and Jaxon Pascal entered the 450 class but didn’t qualify for the motos.
- Next up for Team Honda HRC is the penultimate round of AMA Pro Motocross, to be held in Budds Creek, Maryland.
Hunter Lawrence: “It was a pretty good day for a debut on the ’25. We made some good changes throughout the day that absolutely helped out for the motos. Shoutout to the team and everyone involved at Honda for pushing everything through so we could race the new bike. I know how hard everyone worked to get us here, so I want to say thank you to everyone.”
Chance Hymas: “That’s not the way I thought my day was going to end. I’m a bit disappointed in myself because it was the best I’ve felt all year, but it just wasn’t my day. I’m sorry to the team for letting that one get away, but big thanks for sticking behind me through all the ups and downs. Luckily, I’m just bruised and beat up, but blessed to be walking away from that one.”
Jo Shimoda: “It felt great to be up front and battling for the lead, but unfortunately the battle didn’t end the way we wanted it to. I ended up with a broken collarbone, and I’ll have to get a plate put in. Obviously, that’s not how we wanted the day to go, but we’ll come back stronger once I’m healed.”
Lars Lindstrom – Team Manager: “We were all stoked that the track was so good after the amount of rain that we received Friday; the track crew did an incredible job. It was exciting to race the new 2025 450, and it was awesome to prove what we believed, that it’s an improvement over an already-great bike. Beating Chase Sexton straight up in a moto was another milestone for Hunter, and something very impressive. Hopefully we can keep improving and get an overall win before the season ends. Chance was on another level today, first with his incredible qualifying speed, and it was super fun to see him blitz his way through some fast guys on the first lap. With how big his crash was, we’re all very happy that he seems to be physically okay, and hopefully can be back for the next race. I’m really bummed for Jo; he was riding really good, and I have no doubt he was going to win that second moto. On a positive note, his break is relatively simple, and he should be able to heal relatively quickly.”
Image: HRC
