Lars Lindstrom on: Suspension, Searching | Transcript 1

Honda HRC Progressive's outlook for 2026 Monster Energy AMA Supercross appeared bleak on December 20, 2025, as Jett Lawrence withdrew with injury and Jo Shimoda already sat on the sidelines. Hunter Lawrence has appeared as an unlikely savior, nonetheless, ensuring that a CRF450R remains present atop of 450SX's hierarchy. A win in Indianapolis' Lucas Oil Stadium further cemented that position.

There's still consistent work with his steed, however, and team manager Lars Lindstrom provided perspective in a post-event discussion with Vital MX's Lewis Phillips. Lindstrom discussed the ever-present task of finding the perfect balance between front and rear suspension, the riders' quest for perfection and the evolution of supercross.

Vital MX: Another great night for the team. It's crazy to say Hunter proved himself again but every time he does it then I think, "Wow, he really is that guy."

Lars Lindstrom: Yeah, I know what you are talking about. Last weekend, too, he was there at the end, but he got caught and passed by Eli during the race. Then he was close again at the end, but it was the last lap and Eli may had slowed down a bit. Tonight, it was really mano a mano. It came down to him and Eli, especially in that last main. Eli was on him the whole time, and he proved that he could run with and beat him Yeah, those two have really separated themselves from third now. It will be a battle.

Hunter has been a little vague lately but mentioned struggling with the bike. It is never too specific. From what I gather it is suspension related, but what exactly is he tinkering with? It cannot be major, based on his results.

I think the main thing is trying to get the fork right. It's mainly fork-related, but it's also about the balance between the front and the rear – not putting too much weight on the front, adjusting it so there's a little more on the rear but not too much there either. You try to avoid a harsh feeling while also making sure it does not bottom when you overjump or land in a hole. It's a lot of small things that are difficult to dial in.

It's really hard to build suspension that won't bottom in those situations but still feels good to the rider. Back in the day, with riders like Kevin Windham and Andrew Short, when I would ride their bikes it felt like there were two-by-fours in the fork – but you could smash anything.

The new generation of riders don't accept that. They want it to feel really plush while still holding up everywhere and finding that balance is really tough. That's basically what we are still working through, although we made some improvements this week for sure.

That's the thing about us – and probably the Lawrences as well – they are never really satisfied. We test all the time. We tested this week, the week before, and the week before that. This week we just happened to be in Florida and had a big test with everyone there.

Yeah, he is happier. They push us hard to make improvements. If the rider believes in the bike and feels good, he's usually going to be fast. That's what I rely on. If there is something he wants, I would rather give it to him – or at least try whatever he thinks we need to do – so he is confident and comfortable. It sounds simple, but sometimes it isn't. We'll just keep pushing and keep trying to find ways to be a little better.

Is this issue – if you want to call it that – consistent with Jett as well? I remember him talking about working with Showa and that being a priority, so is it a team-wide thing or are they slightly different situations?

I guess we'll find out when Jett comes back. I will say Hunter is probably more… picky. I don't know if that is the best word, but he and Darren would probably say the same thing. He really wants the bike to be absolutely perfect for him – or at least really, really close all the time. We are always adjusting, because of that. Every race we make changes to try to get it in the ballpark for that specific track, since every track is a little different. That makes things a bit more challenging. We'll learn more when Jett comes back, but I don't know if I could narrow it down to one specific item. The target moves a bit as well. You fix one thing and it's better, but now something else shows up. That's just the nature of dirt bikes.

Is it almost a situation where you have accepted that 'perfect' does not exist? You are always chasing this moving target and you'll never get to the point where a test ends and you say, "Right guys, we have nailed it. Let's move on."

Yeah, exactly. Those days seem to be gone. Hunter would admit he's not looking for perfection – he's just looking for a feeling. It's the same thing your buddy Chase [Sexton] is looking for. Riders chase that feeling, and it's really hard to consistently find it. You are always trying different things to get there.

If it were easy, everyone would do it.

Eli and Cooper [Webb] went off in the press conference about the Triple Crown format here in Indianapolis, the backmarkers and whatnot. What's your opinion on all that?

I don't disagree with them. It does make things difficult right now, because we have a lot of riders out – [Jason] Anderson, Chase and others – so that opens the door for riders who might not have made the main event before. No offense to those riders, but a technical track like this really separates the good from the great. Riders like Hunter, Eli, Cooper and Kenny [Roczen] can go incredibly fast on a track like that, and it shows just how good they are. That also means some riders are six or seven seconds a lap slower, so you catch them very quickly. That makes things dangerous.

My opinion is similar to Eli's – we probably need fewer riders in the main event. I've actually been a proponent of going back to twenty riders instead of twenty-two. It's only two fewer, but that's two fewer riders tearing up the track and two fewer riders getting lapped. That's how supercross operated for decades. It might be a solution.

It is a problem, though. Both Hunter and Eli could have easily been taken out tonight. Watching Hunter's incident from another angle was gnarly – it could have been a lot worse. Same with Eli. Yeah, I understand why they are upset. Hunter feels the same way. It's dangerous.

I was just talking to Ian and he mentioned the new bike for 2027 and that they are already working around it a little. When does that process start for you guys?

You know what, I'm not really sure yet. The MXGP guys run prototypes because they are allowed to, so that's part of their process. Over here we tend to follow their lead a little bit. We focus on the production side and try to do the best we can with what we have, while working closely with them. Luckily, we do get to be involved in some production testing, but I'm not sure exactly when that whole process will start.