Rockstar Energy Husqvarna SMX Team To Cease Operations in 2027

Husqvarna has declared its factory AMA Supercross, Pro Motocross, and SuperMotocross (SMX) team will cease to exist after the 2026 season. The Austrian brand says that in 2027 and beyond, it will instead focus on supporting independent SMX teams with factory materials and technical expertise to ensure its presence continues at the highest levels of dirt bike racing. Rockstar Energy Husqvarna Factory Racing is the second factory effort under KTM ownership to disappear from the SMX paddock in recent years—the other being Rockstar Energy GasGas Factory Racing, which closed up shop at the end of the 2025 season.

Husqvarna has two 450 riders (Malcolm Stewart and RJ Hampshire) and a trio of 250 pilots (Daxton Bennick, Casey Cochran, and Ryder DiFrancesco) in 2026. One or more of the athletes in the quarter-liter division could find homes at Red Bull KTM Factory Racing, as it only has one rider aboard a 250 SX-F Factory Edition in the form of Julien Beaumer. However, the 450 riders may not have the opportunity to go orange as KTM already fields three racers in the premier class, which is one more than most factory SMX teams.