Deegan Maintains 42-Point Championship Lead with Top-Five Finish at RedBud
Monster Energy Yamaha Star Racing’s Haiden Deegan battled back from adversity to secure fifth overall with a 2-6 moto score at the RedBud National / Jul 7, 2024 /
Monster Energy Yamaha Star Racing’s Haiden Deegan put in a championship ride to secure a top-five overall finish on a tough afternoon at Round 6 of Pro Motocross at RedBud MX in Buchanan, Michigan. After narrowly missing his sixth moto victory in Moto 1, he fought his way back after an unlucky crash with a fallen rider to cross the line sixth in Moto 2, maintaining his lead in the 250MX Championship. Max Anstie continued to make progress in his second outing with the team, finishing ninth overall with a 9-13 score. Daxton Bennick and Nick Romano also made improvements, finishing 11th (16-8) and 13th overall (12-14), respectively. Jordon Smith overcame adversity from a first moto crash to finish 16th overall (38-10) in the tricky conditions. At Friday’s first Scouting Moto Combine of the season, the young Cole Davies had a solid debut with the team and finished eighth at the rain-shortened event.
Deegan qualified fourth in the combined times and was fourth after the start of the first moto. The red plate holder rode a smart race in the tricky conditions and made forward strides as the track conditions deteriorated. After his championship rival went down on Lap 4, he advanced to third and then made the pass for second on Lap 11. Deegan put his head down and closed the gap to the leader for another thrilling battle to the finish, coming just three-tenths shy of victory. In the second moto, Deegan did not get off the gate as he had hoped and found himself 10th after the first lap. The Californian made his way to eighth a couple of laps later and tried to make his way to the front but unfortunately crashed due to an unseen rider on the landing of a jump. He rejoined and would ride on to a sixth-place finish for fifth overall, scoring valuable points to maintain his gap at the top of the 250MX Championship.
After a long absence from racing 250MX, Anstie continued to make progress in his second race weekend with the team in 2024. He qualified ninth and had a solid top-10 start. The British rider was shuffled to 12th on that opening lap but kept fighting and crossed the line ninth. In Moto 2, he had another strong start in the top 10 but got shuffled back to 18th and made his way to 13th to join Deegan inside the top 10 with a ninth overall finish.
Bennick made forward strides with his best qualifying result so far this outdoor season in 10th. Unfortunately, he did not get the start he was looking for and found himself 30th after the first lap. The young rider fought his way up to 16th, and in the second moto, he got a much better start from a less-than-ideal gate pick to sixth. From there, the rookie continued to battle inside the top 10 and earned a season-best result with an eighth-place finish and 11th overall.
Romano also continued to make forward progress, earning his best qualifying result so far this season in sixth. Although he didn’t get off the gate as he had hoped in both motos, he kept pushing in the challenging conditions to cross the line 12th and 14th, ending the day 13th overall.
It was a tough day for Smith at RedBud MX as he struggled to find his comfort early in the tricky conditions and qualified 13th. He got a good start in the first moto in sixth and was shuffled to eighth after the opening lap. Unfortunately, on Lap 5, he came together with another rider, crashed on the downhill, and ultimately withdrew from the race. In Moto 2, Smith got a good start from the 38th gate pick and was 17th after the first lap. The North Carolina rider put his head down and charged up to a top-10 finish to score 16th overall.
Davies had a solid first outing aboard the Monster Energy Yamaha Star Racing YZ250F at Friday’s Scouting Moto Combine, qualifying fourth. Riders were met with challenging conditions after the morning rain, and Davies went down while battling for a top result. Trying to make his way to the front, he had more crashes but kept fighting and finished eighth. Unfortunately, the second moto was canceled due to weather, and Davies was unable to build on the experience from the first moto with the team.
Next up for the Monster Energy Yamaha Star Racing team is the Spring Creek National, Round 7 of Pro Motocross, and Round 24 of the SuperMotocross World Series on July 13 at Spring Creek MX Park in Millville, Minnesota.
Jensen Hendler – Monster Energy Yamaha Star Racing 250 Team Manager
“It was a pretty good weekend overall. Qualifying went well for the team as a whole. Going into the moto, Haiden had the fourth gate pick, and starts were coming from the inside, so we lined up over there. He got a good start, started picking guys off, and ended up second. Haiden was literally right behind (Ty) Masterpool at the finish, which had us in a good spot. He didn’t get a good jump in the second moto and got swallowed up early, but he was in the top 10 and started trying to make his way forward. A lapper ended up going down on the landing of a tabletop, and Haiden crashed. It wasn’t great, but he got back up and finished sixth for fifth overall. We still have the points lead and didn’t lose any points in the championship, which is good considering how it could’ve gone. It was also a tough one for Jordon in Moto 1, but he had a good comeback in Moto 2. We made steps in the right direction with the rest of our guys, so there are some positives to take away from it. We’ll go back to work, and we’ll keep fighting next weekend in Millville.”
Haiden Deegan – Monster Energy Yamaha Star Racing #38
“It was a little bit of a slower day for me. I qualified fourth and in the first moto, I was riding really well. I got a decent start, made my way up to Masterpool, and we had another photo finish. He ended up getting a win, but it was super close. Then in the second moto, I got pinched off really hard on the start, so it made it a little hard on me, but I got going. I started setting some of the fastest laps, and then a rider crashed on a landing and there were no flags, and I crashed. So, 2-6 for fifth overall on the day, and no points lost, that’s good. We’ve got a 42-point gap still, so we’re in a comfortable position. We’ll go back to work this week, though, so we can come back swinging next weekend.”
Max Anstie – Monster Energy Yamaha Star Racing #37
“I ended up ninth overall at RedBud, but we’re making some steps forward and figuring out the 250MX class. I’m happy to be logging laps, and I’m looking forward to Millville next weekend.”
Daxton Bennick – Monster Energy Yamaha Star Racing #59
“It was a pretty good weekend for me at RedBud. I started 36th in the first moto and was riding tight, but I was able to make my way back to 16th. In the second moto, I got to a really good start, and finally, I’m really happy with that moto. I was in eighth, and fourth through seventh were not very far at all, so I’m happy with that. It shows that I can still do it. I’m looking forward to next weekend.”
Nick Romano – Monster Energy Yamaha Star Racing #511
“It was a good day. Qualifying went well for me, and I ended up sixth, which I was stoked about. I rode well all day in the motos, but I just got terrible starts, which was on me. That’s not like me, but I felt strong today, and we made progress, so I can't be mad about that. We’ll go back, regroup, figure some things out, and come back at Millville.”
Jordon Smith – Monster Energy Yamaha Star Racing #31
“It rained a lot yesterday, so the track was really deep, and the ruts were never-ending. I didn't qualify the best, and then I got together with Joey (Savatgy) in the first moto and went down very hard, but I was lucky to be okay in that one. I had the 38th gate for the second moto, so it wasn’t a great start, and I just battled back to a top-10 finish. I’m not pumped with how it all went today, but we’ll be back for Millville and ready to fight.”
Cole Davies – Monster Energy Yamaha Star Racing #17
“It was not the weekend I was looking for, but we’ll take away the positives and work up from here. I’m bummed there wasn’t a second moto due to weather. I was looking forward to some redemption from Moto 1. The team was super helpful, and I’m excited to show everyone what I can do in the future!”
2024 Scouting Moto Combine RedBud Results
2024 Pro Motocross 250MX RedBud Results
2024 Pro Motocross 250MX Championship Standings
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