Jorge Prado's Anaheim 1 Podium: But 3 Points Lost to Sound Check Penalty (2026)

Jorge Prado Faces a Three-Point Championship Deduction Due to Post-Race Sound Check Failure – Racer X

January 11, 2026, 12:45 am

Anaheim, CA – The opening round of the 2026 Monster Energy AMA Supercross Championship in Anaheim (A1) was an eventful night for Jorge Prado. He started strong in his heat race, quickly positioning himself among the leading riders. As fate would have it, a collision between Cooper Webb and Aaron Plessinger resulted in both falling, clearing the way for Prado to surge into the lead. He demonstrated impressive speed and skill, fending off late challenges from Eli Tomac to clinch victory in the heat—marking only the second time in his career he has won a 450SX heat race, with his previous win being during the challenging conditions at the 2024 San Francisco SX mudder.

After a red flag and subsequent restart triggered by a serious crash involving Justin Barcia and Malcolm Stewart—of which we hope both riders are recovering well—Prado quickly seized the holeshot and established an early advantage. Despite this promising start, he was eventually overtaken by his teammate Tomac. However, Prado's performance remained commendable as he engaged in a battle with Ken Roczen before Roczen passed him to secure second place. Ultimately, Prado finished third, marking his first podium appearance in the 450SX category in just his third main event. This was a stellar night for Red Bull KTM, highlighted by Tomac’s inaugural win on a KTM and Prado’s significant achievement on the podium.

However, post-race developments took a surprising turn when the SuperMotocross League announced on their Instagram that Prado had failed his post-race sound check, resulting in a deduction of three championship points. While he retained his third-place finish, instead of earning the full 20 points for the night, he ended up with only 17 points. This places him in a tie for fourth in the 450SX standings alongside Jason Anderson, who also has 17 points, while Hunter Lawrence, who finished fourth that night, leads with 18 points. The official post stated:

"Jorge Prado has been docked 3 championship points for failing the post-race sound check."

Looking at the broader picture, even though this was just a single race, it's clear that Prado has shown significant improvement compared to his performance in 2025. He expressed his excitement about returning to ride for KTM, but the question remains: Was this impressive performance merely a one-off, or can he sustain this momentum throughout the season? Only time will reveal the answer.

Complete Results

Complete Standings