Late Race Chaos Derails Results for Cooper Webb and Justin Cooper in Denver
Monster Energy Yamaha Star Racing’s Cooper Webb and Justin Cooper finish 11th and 13th, respectively, at Denver Supercross / May 5, 2026 /
As the saying goes, sometimes you’re the windshield, sometimes you’re the bug. Denver Supercross was one of those nights. At the penultimate round of the 2026 Monster Energy AMA Supercross season, things didn’t quite come together for Monster Energy Yamaha Star Racing’s Cooper Webb and Justin Cooper. Despite good starts and flashes of speed inside Empower Field at Mile High, both riders saw promising main event rides unravel late.
The hard-packed, technical track challenged riders all day. Webb got off to a strong start to his heat race in third and battled with Ken Roczen before ultimately finishing fourth. In the main event, the reigning 450SX Champion quickly moved to third, but it was an intense race with multiple riders in the mix. Webb ultimately dropped back to fifth but continued to fight, holding off his teammate who closed in the latter half of the main event. In the final laps, he and Jorge Prado came together with Webb going down. He rejoined in 11th and, with little time left, would finish there.
“Denver was a tough day all around, honestly,” said Webb. “From qualifying, to the heat, to the main event – we just struggled all day. It was one of those days where you're just off. I was around fifth and trying to make the pass on (Jorge) Prado. We were playing a lot of cat and mouse, and he kind of came over, and we locked bars. My front brake got stuck, and I ended up going down. So that ended my night results-wise. It was an overall bummer.”
Justin Cooper also showed determination throughout the night. He started fourth in his heat race, moved into third, and after a red flag reset shuffled him back, fought his way once again to a third-place finish. In the main event, Cooper didn’t get the start he was hoping for but quickly went to work, charging from around 15th to sixth by the halfway point. On the heels of his teammate, he made his move, but Webb reclaimed the position shortly after. It then turned into a multi-rider fight for fourth. With four laps to go, he and Dylan Ferrandis came together in the sand, with both riders going down. Cooper rejoined in 13th, where he would ultimately finish.
“It was really hard-packed today, which is typical Denver,” said Cooper. “So we were challenged all day with that. It was a really tough track, honestly. I was third in the heat, but just didn't get the greatest of starts in the main. I think I started around 15th and got up to sixth. I just got caught behind Coop (Webb) there for a little bit, and went back and forth with him. I got stuck in a battle with him, Jorge, and then Dylan (Ferrandis) caught up there. We came together, and that was kind of it. I made some really good progress. I really felt like I had the speed to continue moving forward, but as you move up, the competition gets harder to pass. I gotta be better there. We'll move on to the last one.”
“A bit of a rough day here in Denver,” said Rich Simmons, Monster Energy Yamaha Star Racing’s 450 Team Manager. “The guys were just a little bit off, but there were some positives. We had decent starts. Justin rode really well in the main event. He came from 15th and caught up to his teammate. The speed he showed and how he rode, in that main event, I'm happy with that. We have these nights in racing, so we’ll just regroup and try to be back on the podium next weekend.”
The team heads to Rice-Eccles Stadium in Salt Lake City, Utah, for the Monster Energy AMA Supercross season finale and Round 17 of the Monster Energy SuperMotocross World Championship on May 9. Webb remains third in the standings, with Cooper holding fifth, as both look to finish the season strong.