HOUSTON, Texas: Defending Monster Energy Supercross champion Cooper Webb did not hit his stride in 2025 until the fourth round. That round in Glendale, Arizona, was his second podium of the season and the best finish to date.

Glendale was the first Triple Crown of the season. Webb won the first feature, finished fifth in the second race, and was third in the final race. He lost the overall victory by one point to Chase Sexton with consistent finishes of 3-3-2.

The importance of the round would not be apparent until five weeks later at Indianapolis when he completed a six-race streak of finishes second or better.

Round 4 of the 2026 season is once again a Triple Crown race. This time around, it will be held in NRG Stadium in Houston, but it may prove to be just as critical if Webb hopes to repeat.

"There've been a few things in my control, a few things out, so it's just overall been a little bit of racing that stuff happened, so I have yet to lose confidence," Webb told NBC Sports on Press Day. "I feel like I'm the top guy still and have been riding well, it's just some unfortunate breaks, but also some mistakes that are on me. So [I'm] looking to clean that all up here and hopefully start with a bang here at Houston."

The downside is that Webb has more ground to make up this year than last — and three riders, Eli Tomac, Hunter Lawrence, and Chase Sexton, have momentum on their side.

In the first three rounds of 2025, Webb scored two top-fives with a fourth in Anaheim 1 and third in San Diego. His low point came one week later in Round 3.

Round 3 has been his highwater mark in 2026. He finished fifth last week after scoring a seventh in A1 and eighth in San Diego.

And while Webb expresses confidence in his riding, there is no doubt that he is unhappy with his early performance.

"I wouldn't say [Anaheim's top-five] was very important because it should have been better," Webb said. "I hope this Round 4 is where we can get our first one in the season. That'd be awesome."

Team manager Rich Simmons provided added perspective. The communication between team and rider during the first three races has concentrated on keeping things in perspective.

"I mean really it was just don't be so hard on yourself at this point," Simmons said. "I mean the luck's got to turn at some point — we hope. The others [incidents] are could have, would have, should have [in] the last couple rounds. Small mistakes. He rode really well, but I think he was just hard on himself after the race. Somebody at that high of a level obviously wants to win, so putting himself in a good position — and then another crash — I think it was just hitting him pretty hard at that point. And that's pretty much it, but it's not the end of the road. We get to line up again this weekend."

Webb's Triple Crown success last year remains, but Webb was quick to point out that racing is unpredictable.

"Triple Crowns can either be your best friend or your worst nightmare, but overall I've had some good success with Triple Crowns," Webb said. "I enjoy them. It's a lot of chaotic, exciting racing, and you got to be consistent over all three. I'm looking forward to it. I think it fits my genre and I've had some good success in this building, so that's always nice when you kind of just have some good vibes."