Deegan Scores Overall Victory in the Sands of Southwick
Monster Energy Yamaha Star Racing’s Haiden Deegan continues to strengthen his 250MX Championship lead with a 1-2 moto score at the Southwick National / Jul 1, 2024 /
Monster Energy Yamaha Star Racing’s Haiden Deegan put in another inspired ride at Round 5 of the Pro Motocross Championship, claiming his fourth overall victory and strengthening his position at the top of the 250MX standings. The red-plate holder dominated the first moto and executed an impressive charge back to second after a crash in Moto 2, securing the overall victory at the Southwick National. Teammate Jordon Smith overcame adversity to finish seventh overall with his 7-4 score. As did rookie teammate Daxton Bennick, who finished 12th overall (13-15) in the challenging conditions at The Wick 338 in Southwick, Massachusetts. Making his 2024 debut with the team, Max Antsie had a tough return to the outdoors with a crash in the first moto but came back to finish ninth in Moto 2 for 13th overall. The young Nick Romano got great starts in both motos but ultimately ended the day 20th overall (17-20).
Deegan got the day off to a great start, topping the timesheets in the first session and qualifying in the runner-up spot. From there, he got a flying start in the first moto, grabbing the holeshot and setting a blistering pace up front to secure his sixth moto victory of the season by a 15-second margin. Although he didn’t repeat his holeshot in the restarted red-flagged Moto 2, he was up front and claimed the lead on the opening lap. In the heat of the battle, he went down a few laps later and rejoined in sixth. Deegan quickly went to work and made his way to third before the halfway point. In the final laps, he had the frontrunners in sight and made an impressive charge to battle for the win, ultimately securing the runner-up finish for the overall victory and expanding his points lead to 42.
Smith qualified 11th and found himself in that position on the opening lap of Moto 1. The North Carolina rider put his head down and made his way to seventh, where he would finish. He got a better start in the second moto and went from eighth to fourth in the demanding conditions of the final moto of the day, ultimately scoring seventh overall.
His rookie teammate Bennick bounced back from a tough qualifying in 25th at The Wick and then had a solid start to the first moto despite the less-than-ideal gate pick and would finish 13th. Unfortunately, he did not get off the gate as he had hoped in the second moto, but Bennick kept pushing and crossed the line 15th to end the day 12th overall.
New addition Anstie had a strong start to his first round with the team in the 2024 season, but unfortunately, his fast lap was forfeited with a sound penalty. He ultimately qualified 18th, giving him a less-than-ideal gate pick for the first moto, and then got caught up in a crash after the start, ending his race early. Undeterred, Anstie got a great start despite having the 39th gate pick and was 13th after the first lap, ultimately crossing the line ninth for 13th overall.
Despite feeling less than 100% and searching to find his comfort zone in the challenging conditions, Romano had a solid qualifying in 14th. From there, he got a great start in the first moto inside the top five but would ultimately cross the line 17th. In the second moto, he got another good start but found himself 11th after the first lap of the red-flagged race and would finish 20th, ending the day 20th overall.
Next weekend, the Monster Energy Yamaha Star Racing team heads to RedBud MX for Round 6 of Pro Motocross and Round 23 of the SuperMotocross World Series on July 6 in Buchanan, Michigan.
Jensen Hendler – Monster Energy Yamaha Star Racing 250 Team Manager
“It was another great weekend for the championship in Southwick. Haiden was first in the A group practice and got bumped from a kid in the B practice but went into the first moto with a good gate. He got the holeshot, led the whole moto, and won it pretty easily. The second moto wasn’t quite as easy. He stuffed the front outside a berm and went down but got back up. That last lap was something to talk about, for sure. Those guys were three-wide fighting for the win, and Haiden ended up second for the overall. So, leaving with the overall and more points in the championship, which is awesome, and we couldn’t be happier.
“It was definitely pretty gnarly out there today. Jordon didn’t get off the gate so well, but he fought his way back and showed good speed out there. Nick, on the other hand, had great starts but unfortunately was struggling a bit and got shuffled back. Dax continued to push through and ended up 12th, so it was another learning round for our young guys. Max had some bad luck and ended up in a crash after the start and was unable to finish, but he had a good comeback in the second moto to ninth from the 39th gate pick. We’re just going to keep working and keep fighting next week at RedBud.”
Haiden Deegan – Monster Energy Yamaha Star Racing #38
“It was a really good day at Southwick. I rode really well in the sand and went 1-2 for the overall win. I think it’s time to get rid of the 1-2’s, and I need to go back to 1-1, but it got us the overall and a lot more points today, so that’s good.”
Jordon Smith – Monster Energy Yamaha Star Racing #31
“It was pretty good. I didn’t get off the gate very well but rode really good today, so I’m happy with the results.”
Daxton Bennick – Monster Energy Yamaha Star Racing #59
“Twelfth overall at The Wick. It’s not the result we are looking for, but we’ll keep learning and go back to work this week for RedBud.”
Max Anstie – Monster Energy Yamaha Star Racing #37
“It was quite a welcome back to the outdoors. In the first moto, I was in the mid-pack carnage and got a metal rod stuck in my wheel somehow, so that was the end of that race. In the second moto I had the 39th gate pick, so I just wanted to click off the laps and ended up getting ninth. The second moto was solid and a good bit of learning for me and the team. That’s the reason why I’m here – to make progress going into next season. There’s no magic formula. Right now I’m jumping in the deep end; everything’s new, everything’s different, and I’m learning the team and how the bike works. Hopefully, we can be a little bit better next weekend and keep this progression going so that next year, I’m firing on all cylinders for outdoors. So yeah, we’re just figuring all those things out and ironing out all the kinks.”
Nick Romano – Monster Energy Yamaha Star Racing #511
“It was a tough day at Southwick. I struggled all day with setup and finally got something decent for the last moto, but I was just smoked. I’m dealing with health issues right now, so I’m doing my best each weekend, but yesterday, that was all I had. I’m going to keep searching and figuring stuff out and will be ready to give my all for RedBud.”
2024 Pro Motocross 250MX Southwick Results
2024 Pro Motocross 250MX Championship Standings
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