Pro Motocross Season Predictions
May 22, 2025
Image from MX Sports Pro Racing, Inc.
The 2025 Pro Motocross season is upon us! So excited for 11 rounds outdoors. Here are our season predictions.
450 Class
1. Jett Lawrence -- Title Favorite
It's hard to not imagine Jett winning this title. Barring injury, he hasn't been beaten in a championship since... 2021. Wow. Yes, he's coming back from injury, but he has proven that he can come back and immediately be at race-pace. Even if it takes him a few weeks, I expect him to figure it out and be the guy to beat by at least the 5th round. It's a long season, and no one is better than Jett. However, I don't think he gets even close to a perfect season... he'll be smart and ride consistently with seconds and podiums.
2. Chase Sexton -- Title Contender
Despite losing the 450 SX title, Sexton has the momentum going in his favor. The problem? He hasn't proven that he can beat Jett. I think Sexton gets a few overalls this season, but ultimately can't get the starts and can't match Jett's pace consistently. Regardless, he'll be the 2nd best guy.
3. Eli Tomac -- Title Contender
It's been 2022 since Eli has competed in a full round of outdoors... so despite being a beast (especially in motocross) there are a lot of unknowns. I think Eli is fast and gets moto wins, but I also think he struggles a bit with bike setup and doesn't feel fully comfortable.
4. Jorge Prado -- Title Contender
The reigning MXGP champ is here! He'll no doubt be super fast, but I think it'll be a learning curve with the new bike, new tracks, new race day formats, etc. He'll win motos and get good starts, but I also expect him to crash and make some mistakes.
5. Hunter Lawrence -- Moto Winning Potential
Hunter is also coming back from an injury but has had A LOT of time on the bike to prepare. However, I do think he'll start the season slowly and struggle a bit to match the pace of those in front of him. He can win motos, but it'll take some luck. Yes, he did keep up with Sexton last year, but I expect Sexton to be even better and Hunter to be about the same. Prove me wrong!
6. Justin Cooper -- Moto Winning Potential
Cooper has a ton of momentum from SX and I think he'll be good this season. He needs to get good starts, and given so, I think he can sneak a moto win if a bit lucky. He'll be around the top 5 all season though.
7. Aaron Plessinger -- Podium Potential
On the right day and with a good start, I think Plessinger can hold on for a podium finish in a moto. But mostly, he'll be pushing just to get into the top 5.
8. Cooper Webb -- Top 5 Potential
It's hard to imagine the current SX champ as being "just top 5" worthy, but do you see him beating any of the guys above him in this list? Webb is fiery, but I think he'll enter the season slightly lacking motivation and consequently will be around the 7-9 range most motos.
9. Malcom Stewart -- Top 5 Potential
Stewart didn't race outdoors for a LONG time, and this is his 2nd season back. He'll be better than last season by a lot in my opinion, but with such a stacked field he should be happy with consistent top 10s. Given a good start and a track he gels with, I think he could get a top 5 but it'll be tough.
10. Jason Anderson -- Top 5 Potential
Just like Stewart, Anderson can get a top 5 if everything clicks. But it'll be really difficult. He'll be around the top 10 most motos.
250 Class
1. Haiden Deegan -- Title Favorite
No duhhh.... Deegan is clearly the title favorite. I think he has the potential to make this season a snooze fest in the 250 class. He could easily win 20+ motos. It all depends on if he's more likely to ride safe for points or go for it with moto wins. But regardless, it's really tough to imagine anyone straight up beating him all season.
1. Haiden Deegan -- Title Favorite
No duhhh.... Deegan is clearly the title favorite. I think he has the potential to make this season a snooze fest in the 250 class. He could easily win 20+ motos. It all depends on if he's more likely to ride safe for points or go for it with moto wins. But regardless, it's really tough to imagine anyone straight up beating him all season.
2. Tom Vialle -- Title Contender
Tom is a 2x SX champ and a previous MX2 champ in the GPs, so he has what it takes to win titles. I expected him to be a lot better outdoors last year than he was... so I kinda think he'll pick it up for more consistent and better finishes this year? But I don't see him beating Deegan outright. I also don't think he has the outright speed to necessarily beat Hymas or Kitchen, but he'll beat them in the season with pure consistency.
3. Levi Kitchen -- Title Contender
Levi's goal should be to win the title... but it's hard against Deegan. He needs to find consistency and speed at all tracks. I think he'll be on the podium more times than not and is a good pick for top 3 in the points. But he'll also have the odd bad round.
4. Chance Hymas -- Moto Winning Potential
Hymas improved A LOT last year and should be even better this year. But it's a tough class and I think he'll struggle somewhat with consistency... he does tend to crash every now and then. Outside of the top 3 though, he's the next best guy.
5. Jo Shimoda -- Moto Winning Potential
Shimoda has been a top 5 guy for a few years now... it's time for him to take a step up but I just don't see it this year. He didn't end the SX season strongly, and he struggles to find the top end speed that the other guys in front of him have. But give him a good start (especially at Southwick), and he can win motos.
So many other guys not even mentioned in this article, but that makes it so much more exciting! Let's go racing!
Our Opinions
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