Jorge Prado can win a title this weekend. Third in Columbus before winning in Los Angeles, the Spaniard still holds the SMX red plate. As a result, the Red Bull KTM rider heads into the SMX Championship finale with the title firmly in his sights. It is a position that the four-time world champion knows well and particularly enjoys.
“I’ve already been in this position, so I think I’m capable of handling the pressure,” explains Prado. “And for one reason or another, every time I have the red plate, whether it’s here in the United States or back when I was racing in the World Championship, I simply feel better. I have more confidence and I ride better, without there being any particular reason for it. Let’s just say that having the red plate suits me pretty well.”
Second in the opening race after being caught and passed by Ken Roczen, Jorge Prado was again running second in the second moto before making a mistake and crashing. Rejoining in fourth position, the Spaniard was quick to respond, first passing Ken Roczen and then Haiden Deegan to ultimately claim the overall victory.
“I was telling myself that I was in a good position for the overall win. Then when I crashed, I knew that was no longer the case. From there, I really had to give it everything. I had to attack and go after the riders who had passed me. Usually, I need some time to get back into it after a crash, but this time I got back into it quickly. I put in some good lap times and quickly caught back up to the others. Physically, I felt good, so I attacked to try to get the win. I knew Hunter was too far ahead, but my goal was to get second place. I didn’t need to do any complicated calculations to know what I had to do to win the overall. I went after second place, but it wasn’t easy. My heart rate was at its maximum for a few laps.”
Heading into the final round of the American season, Jorge Prado has a 16-point advantage over Haiden Deegan and Hunter Lawrence. With the Ridgedale finale awarding triple points, the Spanish rider can secure the championship with a top-three finish. However, Prado does not intend to ride conservatively and calculate his way to the title. The goal will also be to win the final round.
“Getting on the podium is already difficult. So you can’t show up to the next race thinking that a podium would be good enough. If you go into it with that mentality, you might not even make it onto the podium. Everyone is very fast. My goal for the finale remains the same: to try to win. I know that if I win, I will be champion. That’s the only certainty I have, so that’s what I’m sticking to.”
A first victory on American soil at Ironman, followed by a second in Los Angeles, means Jorge Prado is gradually ticking off the goals he set himself after moving to the United States. The Spaniard insists that he is not trying to prove anything, but simply achieve what he came across the Atlantic to accomplish. After conquering the World Championship, it is now time to conquer the West.
“I came to the United States with the goal of accomplishing certain things,” continues Prado. “I don’t need to try to show anyone that I’m better than the others. No, I’m doing all of this for myself, and myself only. My dream was to become MXGP World Champion, and I did that. The next step is to become champion in Supercross and Motocross in the USA. And hopefully, also become SMX champion next weekend. I’m happy to have the best team alongside me. As we’ve been able to see, the progress has been really significant throughout the year. It started with Supercross, with a few poles in qualifying, which isn’t easy when you’ve never raced Supercross in your life. Then I started winning qualifying races and getting podiums. From there, we moved to the outdoors and I got a win, as well as podiums. Now we’re in SMX and I’ve got another win. We’re in a stadium, so it’s more like Supercross where they’ve removed the whoops — my strong point.”
Jorge Prado also admits that his move to the United States came later than he had originally planned, having imagined making the move much earlier in his career. The four-time world champion acknowledges that adapting to the American championship has proved more demanding than expected, particularly after spending so many years racing on European circuits. Despite the difficulty of the challenge, the Spaniard says he is now really enjoying racing in the United States, something that was not particularly the case last season with Kawasaki.
“To be honest, I thought I would have come to the United States earlier. But things worked out differently and I spent more time racing in the World Championship, and I only ended up coming to the USA in 2025. When I was younger, I really imagined that I would come here earlier than that. And coming here isn’t easy. I don’t remember seeing an MXGP World Champion come to the USA, win races and carry the red plate. What I’m doing right now isn’t easy. I raced Motocross for so many years, and getting used to these types of tracks isn’t something that is easy to do. I thought it would be easier, but honestly, it really takes a lot of time. But I’m happy and I’m really enjoying riding Supercross, outdoor and on the SMX Championship tracks.”
This Saturday, Jorge Prado will therefore meet his destiny with a potential first AMA championship title on the line. Should he achieve it, he would become the first Spanish rider ever to win a championship title in the United States.
