Daytona SMX and RCSX 2026: Continued learning and Podium finish

Daytona was a dual-event weekend for us—SMX Next on Saturday and the RCSX Amateur National throughout the weekend. We had Will Canaguier (#95) and Chace Lawton (#50) competing in both events. This was Will’s first SMX Next race, and Chace delivered a podium finish in the premier amateur race of the weekend.

Daytona International Speedway hosted Round 8 of the Monster Energy AMA Supercross Championship, featuring Ricky Carmichael’s unique track design. The layout is always challenging, with big jumps and technical sections that test riders’ skills. The dual-event format meant our guys were racing Saturday night in SMX Next and then competing in amateur classes throughout the weekend.

SMX Next Saturday

Both Will and Chace struggled to learn the track fast enough, which was evidenced by their poor gate picks. They had the outside gates in the main event, which made things tougher from the start.

Will Canaguier

Will’s weekend got off to a rough start when he over-jumped one of the bigger doubles during practice and gave himself whiplash. That affected his performance for the rest of the weekend—he could barely hold his head up at times. Despite that, he rode pretty solid in the main for his first attempt at an SMX Next event, moving forward one position for a 12th place finish.

Will started 13th and finished 12th with +1 net pass. His best lap was 1:25.777 and his average was 1:26.791 with a variance of 0.804s—remarkably consistent for a first SMX Next race. He left knowing the pace, which will definitely help at Birmingham and Spring-A-Ding.

Chace Lawton

Chace had a bad start in the main and didn’t really get up to full pace. We’re working on intensity in the early parts of the race. Chace was fast in sections of the track, with a 6th fastest in Sector 1, 8th fastest in S7, and 10th fastest in S3—the speed is there, but we need to put it together from the start.

Chace started 17th and finished 18th with -1 net pass. His best lap was 1:26.266 and his average was 1:28.391 with a variance of 3.785s. The sector data shows where his speed is—we just need to work on that early race intensity.

After Saturday’s SMX Next race, Chace and the team spent some time dialing in the bike setup. As Chace put it:

“After Saturday’s racing we spent some time dialing in the bike setup. A few small adjustments made the bike a lot more comfortable, and that really helped improve my riding going into the next couple days.

Fighting bike setup on a track like Daytona is definitely not ideal but we made some critical gains we can document and use moving forward.”

Those adjustments clearly paid off—Chace’s podium finish in 250 Pro Sport on Sunday showed the progress.

Trinnytie Batchelor

Trinnytie Batchelor was slated to compete in SMX Next and B classes on Sunday, but was injured at the Reno Arenacross round and had to undergo surgery to repair his shoulder. He is doing his best to rehab and be ready for the Regional Qualifier and Loretta Lynns. We wish him a speedy recovery and we’ll be posting on socials about his progress.

SMX Next Main Event Results

Deacon Denno won the SMX Next main, leading 7 of 8 laps after getting the holeshot. Full lap data and the complete field are available on MotoPivot.

SMX Next Photos

Photo Credit: Align Media

RCSX Amateur National

The RCSX Amateur National ran throughout the weekend alongside the professional program, giving our riders additional track time and competition.

250 Pro Sport (Road to SX Futures Class)

This was the premier amateur race of the weekend, and Chace delivered a strong performance.

Chace Lawton finished 5th in his heat race and then put together a very solid 3rd in the main event, capping an all Kawasaki podium. That’s a big result—the 250 Pro Sport class is stacked with talent, and Chace showed he belongs at the front.

Will Canaguier finished 3rd in his heat race, showing good speed. In the main event, he got the holeshot but went down on the first lap. He recovered to finish 10th, but his neck issue became a problem—it was affecting his balance on the bike because of how tight his neck muscles were. Toward the end of amateur racing, we made the collective decision to pull him out for the final Open A moto. It was the right call—he needed to rest that neck.

Open A Moto

Chace Lawton finished 9th in the Open A moto. He struggled with a bad start and couldn’t move forward enough to challenge for the top 5 again. Still, a solid result in a competitive class.

RCSX Amateur Photos

Photo Credit: Cody Darr

Closing

Overall, it was a reasonably successful outing. Will’s 12th in SMX Next was solid for his first attempt—he definitely learned a ton and left knowing the pace, which will help at Birmingham and Spring-A-Ding. Chace’s podium in 250 Pro Sport was the highlight—that’s the premier amateur race of the weekend, and finishing 3rd in an all Kawasaki podium is a big result.

Both riders are healthy—Will’s neck will recover, and we’ll be ready for the next events. Thanks to our sponsors for their continued support—we wouldn’t be able to do this without them.

Next up: Birmingham and Spring-A-Ding. We’re looking forward to building on what we learned at Daytona.

Links

• MotoPivot – SMX Next Main Event, Daytona — lap data and complete field

Stay tuned for more race reports and team updates as Hunter Racing continues the 2026 SMX Next season.