Chase Sexton and Kawasaki Split With A1 Less Than Three Months Away

Chase Sexton is a free agent with Anaheim 1 less than three months away. Monster Energy Kawasaki and the 2023 450SX champion have split, effective immediately, ending a three-year contract after a single season. Kawasaki confirmed it late on Friday, October 23, in a short statement that Racer X published in full, and Cycle News had the story the same night.

Where Sexton goes next hasn't been announced. Nobody has made anything official, and as of Saturday morning there is no new team, no new bike and no new number plate to talk about. What we do know is that one of the fastest riders in the sport is untethered right before the off-season boot camp starts, and that Kawasaki has now lost two big-name 450 signings in two years.

What Kawasaki and Sexton said

The team's statement is brief and polite: "Kawasaki Motors Corp., U.S.A. and Chase Sexton have mutually agreed to part ways effective October 23rd, 2026. The 2026 season together was highlighted by achieving two 450 Supercross wins in Anaheim and Salt Lake City, adding Sexton to the long list of Supercross winners with Kawasaki. Kawasaki wishes him the best for the 2027 season."

Sexton answered in an Instagram post: "Just want to say thank you Kawasaki. Very appreciative for all the effort by every person involved and I wish the team and all the staff the best going forward. See you at the races!"

That last line matters. "See you at the races" isn't how a rider sounds when he's stepping away. Racer X made the same point, noting that Sexton probably isn't leaving a factory team unless he has something good lined up.

Which Anaheim was it?

Kawasaki's statement just says "Anaheim," which could mean either of the two Angel Stadium rounds. It was Anaheim 2. Sexton finished eighth at the season opener, then won Round 3 on January 24, 2026, beating Hunter Lawrence by 3.370 seconds with Eli Tomac third, per the official SuperMotocross results. That was his first win on the KX450SR and, according to the series race report carried by Racer X, Kawasaki's first 450SX main-event win since 2022. Cycle News has it right as A2.

The second win came at the finale in Salt Lake City on May 9. Sexton ran down Ken Roczen late in the main and won by 2.096 seconds over Justin Cooper, his fourth straight win at Rice-Eccles Stadium, per the official results and the series recap. Roczen still did enough that night to take the title.

A rough year that never really clicked

Between those two wins, it was a grind. NBC Sports counts only one other podium before Salt Lake City. Outdoors he went sixth at Fox Raceway and seventh at Hangtown. Then came Thunder Valley. During Friday's open practice, Sexton had to bail off the bike before landing on the track's biggest jump, and Pro Motocross later confirmed a torn ACL that ended his season. Cycle News points to that knee injury as the end of his 2026.

Cycle News also says Sexton "spoke throughout the year how he was unhappy," and his own words back that up. Even after winning at Salt Lake City, he told Monster Energy he just hadn't had "a lot of comfort" on the bike, and the series recap quoted him calling it "a really tough year."

It's a sharp turn from November 2025, when Sexton told the PulpMX Show he'd signed for three years because "I really don't want to switch teams anymore" and wanted to "really find a home." Kawasaki's 2026 roster release billed him as the 2023 Monster Energy Supercross champion and 2024 Pro Motocross champion. He has now left Honda, KTM and Kawasaki in the space of three seasons.

What it does to Kawasaki's 2027 450 team

Here's the strange part for Team Green: it saw this coming. Back in August, Steve Matthes reported at Racer X that Malcolm Stewart had signed with Monster Energy Kawasaki for the full 2027 SMX season, and wondered then whether that signing was a precursor to letting the number 4 out of his deal. By mid-October, Racer X's Racerhead was reporting that Kawasaki had extended Garrett Marchbanks for another year and that Stewart was coming, though neither move had been announced officially.

Cycle News now expects Stewart to take a slot and says the three-rider 450 team it expected for 2027 is looking less likely. Put together, that points to Marchbanks and Stewart as the likely 2027 pairing, but Kawasaki hasn't released its 2027 roster yet, so treat that as the expected lineup rather than a done deal.

There's also a pattern Kawasaki won't love. Jorge Prado ended his three-year Kawasaki contract after one year too, which is the opening Marchbanks stepped into for 2026. Prado then went to KTM and won the 2026 SMX World Championship, per Racerhead. Two marquee 450 signings, two early exits.

Where could Sexton land? (Speculation)

This part is guesswork from other outlets, not anything Sexton or a team has said.

• Cycle News lists Yamaha, Ducati or Suzuki as the talk.
• Racer X's Racerhead said it had heard everything from a gap year in MXGP to Monster Energy Yamaha Star Racing, while pointing out that Star already has Haiden Deegan and Justin Cooper and that a season in Europe would mean no supercross.
• MotoOnline adds Quad Lock Honda, a less likely KTM return and PRMX Racing, which it says is switching to Yamaha for 2027, as possibilities.

None of those has been confirmed, and Kawasaki's statement says nothing about where he's headed.

The last big piece of silly season

Racer X called Sexton "one half of the last big silly season for 2027," and it's been a busy fall. Nate Thrasher moved to Pro Circuit Kawasaki, Michael Mosiman joined Quad Lock Honda after Joey Savatgy's exit there, RJ Hampshire went to Ducati, Justin Barcia returned to Suzuki and Cooper Webb landed at Team Tedder Husqvarna. With so many rides already spoken for, that's exactly why a free Sexton is such a big story.

The clock is real. The 2027 Supercross season opens at Angel Stadium on January 9, and Sexton was still working his way back from knee surgery this fall. He said on Race Day Live that he hoped to be back on a bike in mid-October, per GateDrop. A new team means a new bike to learn on top of that.

Rider takeaway

Sexton is still a race winner on his worst year, and two Supercross wins on a bike he never felt comfortable on tells you the speed is there. Kawasaki keeps a likely Marchbanks and Stewart lineup and avoids running three riders. The open question is where the number 4 shows up, and whether whoever signs him can give him the comfort he never found on green. Until a team says so, it's all rumor.

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