Jorge Prado, 2026 SMX World Champion: counter-overtake on Deegan seals the title and a $1 million prize

Jorge Prado is the new 2026 SuperMotocross world champion. The Spanish rider from the Red Bull KTM team clinched the title at the third and decisive SMX Playoff in Ridgedale, Missouri, where triple points and a one-million prize were up for grabs. A nail-biting evening, decided only in the final moto with a wheel-to-wheel duel against Haiden Deegan.

The factory Yamaha rider arrived in Ridgedale highly motivated and proved it right away. Deegan took pole position with a 1:13.296, putting more than four tenths into Motocross champion Hunter Lawrence (Honda). Prado ended combined qualifying in third place, 0.640 back, ahead of Ken Roczen (Suzuki), R.J. Hampshire (Husqvarna), and Cooper Webb (Yamaha).

Deegan also nailed the start of the first moto, taking the holeshot. Prado, however, got a poor jump out of the gate and found himself in the pack. The Spaniard fought back with grit, attacking lap after lap until he climbed to fifth place.

Up front, Roczen piled pressure on the leader, forcing several mistakes, but Deegan saved every wobble while the German lost ground in lapped traffic. In the end Deegan won by 3.1 seconds over Roczen, Lawrence, and Webb. With Prado only fifth, the title was suddenly on the line.

Prado came into the race with a 16-point lead, an advantage that, with triple points in the third Playoff, remained within reach for his rivals. If the Spaniard finished outside the top four, Lawrence and Roczen could still have fought for the title.

The KTM rider kept his cool and delivered one of his trademark lightning starts. Roczen, by contrast, launched terribly and was only fifteenth at the first corner. Up front a small group immediately formed with Prado ahead of Deegan, Lawrence, and Hampshire: the two title contenders nose to tail for the season’s final showdown.

Deegan chose to risk it all, while Prado stayed focused and made almost no mistakes. In the closing laps the American closed to 0.4 seconds and tried a block pass that seemed to have worked. Prado, however, squared up the corner with a smart move, cutting underneath to retake the lead.

Deegan tried again on the final lap, but the Spaniard held a flawless pace and won the second moto by 1.7 seconds. A victory that earns him the 2026 SMX crown and the one-million prize: the perfect way to wrap up the season with Red Bull KTM.

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