Cole Davies Extends 250SX East Lead with Commanding Nashville Supercross Victory
Monster Energy Yamaha Star Racing’s Cole Davies continues to build momentum with his fourth victory of the season / Apr 13, 2026 /
The mission is the 250SX East Championship. On Saturday afternoon in Nashville, Tennessee, Monster Energy Yamaha Star Racing’s Cole Davies took another big step toward that goal. The young New Zealander once again delivered a commanding performance on one of the most challenging tracks of the season to further advance his lead in the title chase.
Davies showed speed from the start in the hard-packed conditions, qualifying just shy of the top spot. After the first gate drop of the day, he got a great start, quickly claimed the lead, and remained unchallenged to score his fifth heat race win of the season. Although he didn’t repeat that start in the main event, he worked his way from sixth to second in the opening laps. After making the pass on teammate Nate Thrasher, he put his head down and built a comfortable gap to secure his fourth win of the season. It was another impressive ride from Davies, who now holds a 19-point lead in the 250SX East Championship with three rounds remaining.
“It was a solid ride tonight,” Davies said. “I just focused on making passes where I could and didn’t force anything – I let the race come to me. The track was gnarly all day, especially the whoops; they were like walls. I made the pass for the lead with 11 minutes to go and just put my head down from there. Being a big country music fan, taking the win here feels pretty special. Championship lead extended – we’re right where we want to be.”
It was a home race for Nate Thrasher, who, now back to full fitness, got the day off to a strong start. After qualifying third, he grabbed the holeshot in his heat race and led for most of it before being passed in the final laps by Seth Hammaker and finished second.
As the track conditions worsened throughout the day, Thrasher was outside of his comfort zone in the main event. Despite that, he put himself in position to contend for the podium. He got another good start in the main event, took the lead on the opening lap, and led the first four laps before Davies made his way through. The Tennessee rider got shuffled back to fourth but stayed in the fight. In the final laps, Daxton Bennick and Hammaker went down in front of the mechanic’s area, moving Thrasher back up to second, where he would finish to secure his first podium of the season.
“I felt like I was riding really well in the heat race,” said Thrasher. “I just didn’t quite get the win in that one, but I felt like my speed was solid. The track just kept getting harder-packed, and I started struggling a bit. I’ve never really been a super hard-packed guy. I got a little lucky with it for sure, but we’ll take it. I put myself in a good situation to get on the podium, but just didn’t have the riding I needed to contend for the win. There’s a lot to improve on still, but the last two weeks have been a lot better, and we’ll keep building.”
Making his pro debut in Monster Energy AMA Supercross in Nashville, Landen Gordon had a strong showing. He qualified sixth and got a good start to his heat race, slotting into third and running a strong pace to maintain the position to the checkers. Unfortunately, in the main event, he was involved in a first-turn incident that damaged his wheel. After pulling into the mechanic’s area for a wheel change, he rejoined the race and continued on to gain valuable experience, finishing 22nd.
“I had a good day in Nashville for my pro debut,” said Gordon. “I learned a lot and got third place in the heat race. I had a good start in the main, but caught another rider's footpeg in the first turn, and ended up having to pull into the mechanic’s area to change my front wheel. I got back on the track three laps down, but overall it was a great experience – onto the next one.”
“Honestly, it was a good day all around,” said Wil Hahn, Monster Energy Yamaha Star Racing’s 250 Team General Manager. “A 1-2 finish, and Cole got the heat race win and showed a lot of maturity again in year two. Nate almost won his heat and showed some real fight in that race. Then, getting back on the podium this year – we’re heading in the right direction. With Landen stepping up this weekend, I thought he showed really good maturity, too. It's a shame that his wheel was sacrificed in that first turn in the main event.”
Next up, the Monster Energy AMA Supercross Championship heads to Cleveland, Ohio, for Round 8 of the 250SX East Championship and the final Triple Crown event of the season at Huntington Bank Field on April 18.