New Zealand rider Cole Davies has come away from Cleveland, Ohio, with a hard-earned podium in the 2026 SMX World Championship 250SX East class, salvaging strong points on a night that threw plenty at the field.
Davies described it as a “really rough night,” but one where he kept pushing and managed to limit the damage in the championship.
Heading into the round, he was expecting muddy conditions, and while early work from the track crew helped, incoming rain ensured the main events still turned into a tough, changing surface throughout the night.
Qualifying started on the front foot. In Q1, Davies went quickest early with a 47.662 before being pushed back to second. He then dealt with some interference on a flying lap but responded late, putting together a strong 46.690 to top the session.
In Q2, conditions had changed again as the track dried out. Davies immediately found speed, going fastest with a 45.868 despite a couple of close calls in the whoops. That put him top overall in qualifying and earned him first gate pick for the Triple Crown format.
Race 1 got off to a decent start with Davies settling into third before making a pass on Seth Hammaker. He then focused on chasing the leaders, but a mistake after the finish line cost him heavily, sending him down and dropping positions. He recovered to finish fifth.
“Really not happy with that one, but I had to reset and move on to the next two,” he said.
Race 2 was the chaos race. Heavy rain made conditions brutal, and Davies was caught up in an early incident with Cullin Park that sent both riders down. He remounted in 14th and started working his way forward before the race was red-flagged after Hammaker’s crash.
At the restart, he came back in fifth and quickly moved into third. A back-and-forth fight with Hammaker followed, with Davies eventually finishing fourth after a last-lap pass the other way. Given the conditions, he played it smart and avoided taking unnecessary risks.
In Race 3, Davies responded strongly. He grabbed the holeshot and controlled the race from the front, managing the difficult conditions well to take the win and secure third overall for the round.
“Getting that Race 3 win was important. I just focused on doing my job and keeping it clean,” he said.
The result sees Davies extend his 250SX East Championship lead to 21 points over Seth Hammaker, sitting on 181 points heading into the next round in Philadelphia.
Despite a difficult night, Davies leaves Cleveland with a podium, valuable points, and an increased buffer in the title fight.
Header Image: SMX World Championship/Cole Davies
