Australian rising star Kayden Minear capped off an impressive season by claiming the 2025 SMX World Championship after a strong performance in the two-day double header at St. Louis’ Dome at America’s Center.
The event had its challenges, with Charlotte’s Playoff 1 Main Event cancelled due to lightning. On Friday’s make-up race, Minear dominated from the start, riding unchallenged to victory while Carson Wood made an incredible charge from 14th to claim second, and Tiger Wood held third. Saturday’s Final, which paid double points, saw Ryder Malinoski storm to a wire-to-wire win, with Minear recovering from eighth to take second and secure the championship. Yamaha’s Kade Johnson completed the podium in third.
Reflecting on his championship-winning weekend, Minear said on the podium: “I felt good out there all weekend. The bike is performing unbelievably. Shout out to the whole team. Shout out to my trainer, Swanie [Gareth Swanepoel], Wil [Hahn], and Ms. Jeannie Carmichael at home. We’ve been putting in so much effort and so much overtime, so I’m happy it pays off.”
Minear made his professional debut in the AMA Pro Motocross Championship at Thunder Valley in 2025. He also dominated the Hangtown Motocross Classic SMX Next Scouting Moto Combine with 1-1 moto finishes, which helped secure his AMA Pro Motocross series opportunities. The season wasn’t plain sailing, with Minear sidelined for much of the Pro Motocross campaign after suffering a thumb UCL tear at the High Point National, but he returned to the track in St. Louis, ultimatly finishing his season on a high.
| 2025 SMX Next Championship Final Standings | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Pos | # | Rider | Points | ||
| 1 | 66 | Kayden Minear | 69 Points | ||
| 2 | 177 | Kade Johnson | 56 Points | ||
| 3 | 43 | Tiger Wood | 52 Points | ||
| 4 | 981 | Ryder Malinoski | 50 Points | ||
| 5 | 400 | Caden Dudney | 49 Points | ||
| 6 | 21 | Enzo Temmerman | 43 Points | ||
| 7 | 524 | Diesel Thomas | 42 Points | ||
| 8 | 10 | Wyatt Thurman | 40 Points | ||
| 9 | 23 | Landon Gibson | 40 Points | ||
| 10 | 24 | Owen Covell | 33 Points | ||
| 11 | 492 | Landon Hartz | 32 Points | ||
| 12 | 22 | Jayce Wolf | 29 Points | ||
| 13 | 79 | Max Shane | 28 Points | ||
| 14 | 49 | Brennon Harrison | 27 Points | ||
| 15 | 260 | Carson Wood | 24 Points | ||
| 16 | 29 | McKayden Fitch | 22 Points | ||
| 17 | 48 | Trinnytie Batchelor | 20 Points | ||
| 18 | 50 | Chace Lawton | 19 Points | ||
| 19 | 404 | Riley Busse | 19 Points | ||
| 20 | 27 | Vincent Wey | 8 Points | ||
| 21 | 2 | Jeremy Fappani | 6 Points | ||
| 22 | 14 | Kane Bollasina | 3 Points | ||
| 23 | 77 | Jayden Wolf | 2 Points | ||
| 24 | 34 | Christian Merman | 1 Point | ||
| 25 | 361 | Austin Schafer | 0 Points | ||
