Deegan Returns to Podium at Indianapolis Supercross
Monster Energy Yamaha Star Racing’s Haiden Deegan scores a main event win and ends the night with a Triple Crown third overall / Mar 17, 2024 /
Monster Energy Yamaha Star Racing’s Haiden Deegan returned to the podium at last night’s Monster Energy AMA Supercross Triple Crown event in Indianapolis, Indiana. The Californian scored a dominant victory in the second main event of the three-race format and put in an impressive charge back to sixth in the final race, securing third overall with his 2-1-6 score. His rookie teammates joined him in the top 10, with Nick Romano earning a career-best result in sixth overall (8-10-5) and Daxton Bennick finishing ninth overall (11-15-4) in the challenging conditions.
Deegan had a solid start to the day, qualifying sixth. He got a good start in the first main event inside the top five and crossed the line second. The Californian got a better start in the second race and quickly claimed the lead. He then built a comfortable gap up front to score a commanding victory and head into the final race tied for the overall lead. Unfortunately, he clipped a tuff block on the run to the first turn and went down. Deegan rejoined towards the back of the field but made an impressive charge through the pack to cross the line sixth at the end of the 10-minute-plus-two-lap race. His 2-1-6 score earned third overall and has him heading into the break with forward momentum and sitting fourth in the points standings, trailing the leader by 16 points.
Although Romano struggled in the tricky conditions and qualified 15th, the rookie made progress throughout the day. With a less-than-ideal gate pick, he didn’t get the start he was looking for in the first main event and found himself 12th after the start. The New Yorker put his head down and made his way to eighth. In race two, he was 10th after the start and fought his way up to seventh, but ultimately would finish 10th. In the final race of the night, Romano came out swinging and grabbed the holeshot. Although he was shuffled to fifth on Lap 4, he rode a strong race to maintain the position and end the night sixth overall for a career-best result thus far during his rookie season.
Bennick qualified ninth and then got off to a flying start in the first main event. He grabbed the holeshot and led a lap before being shuffled to third. The rookie was holding down the final podium spot but unfortunately went down in the sand on the third lap and rejoined in 14th. Undeterred, he kept pushing and made his way back to 11th. In the second race, the North Carolina rider had another crash, this time in the whoops, and finished 15th. Bennick got a much better start in the final race of the night inside the top five and advanced to fourth on Lap 4, where he would finish. His strong finish to the night secured ninth overall and he heads into the break seventh in the points standings.
Monster Energy Yamaha Star Racing’s 250 West team returns to action next weekend at Lumen Field in Seattle, Washington, for Round 6 of the Monster Energy AMA Supercross 250SX West Championship and Round 11 of the SuperMotocross World Series on March 23.
Jensen Hendler – Monster Energy Yamaha Star Racing 250 Team Manager“The night was good overall. Haiden got the night off to a great start, going 2-1 to head into the final race tied for the lead. He had a pretty good start off the gate, but coming into the first turn, he caught a tuff block and ended up going down. He came from basically dead last and fought his way up to sixth. With these shorter 10-minute races, that’s really tough. Haiden ended the night third overall, which was good. We lost some points tonight, but this thing’s not over. There’s a lot of racing left and some East-West shootouts in there. Haiden’s healthy and riding better than he ever has, so I think moving forward we’re looking good. We’ll just continue to get better and continue to fight for wins. Obviously our end goal is the championship, and we’ll keep fighting for that.
“The other two boys got off to a rough start. Qualifying didn’t go that well, which kind of compounds things, especially in a Triple Crown. Daxton had some crashes but had a really good race in the last one. He finished fourth, which was great. He just needed to get in that groove early because consistency wins these Triple Crowns.”
““Romano struggled a bit but had good starts. He holeshotted the last moto, which was awesome, and ended up fifth, which was a great way to end the night. Daxton and Romano are rookies. This is only their fifth pro race, so we’re happy with their progress. We’ve just got to keep working.” Haiden Deegan – Monster Energy Yamaha Star Racing #38“Today was a little eventful, but we’re trending in the right path. The first main was a solid second place, and then I won the second main. I got up front and just checked out. It’s how I know how to ride, and I felt more like myself. Then in the third race, I made a mistake on the start and took myself out. I was dead last and made my way back to sixth to get third place overall. So I can’t be too mad. We’re back on the podium. We’ve just got to keep the consistency going. We have three weeks off now to train. I’ve been lacking a lot of training because of an injury, so it’s going to be good to get some training in and get back to where I should be and come back swinging.”
Nick Romano – Monster Energy Yamaha Star Racing #511“Indy was good to me! I had a really good night, going 8-10-5 for sixth overall. The Triple Crown is intense with the short breaks in between main events, but it all comes down to good starts and consistency especially with how tricky the track was. I’ve been making little improvements each weekend, even though it hasn’t shown on paper. I’m glad I was able to make something happen this weekend at my first Triple Crown and I’m excited to head into this break on a high note and ride a little bit of outdoors until we go race again in a few weeks.”
Daxton Bennick – Monster Energy Yamaha Star Racing #59“I was excited for the first Triple Crown of the season, and my first one ever. The three races aren’t that long, so I was fired up to get a start. In the first moto, I holeshotted and led a lap or so. I had a little mistake in the whoops, and (Tom) Vialle got by me and (Cameron) McAdoo, and then I threw it away in the sand. I got back up in 15th and then made my way to 11th. In the second moto, I didn’t get a great start. I got up to 10th and then crashed in the whoops and went backward. In the third moto, I had nothing to lose. I pulled a good start from pretty far out there. I had the 15th-gate pick and came out third. McAdoo passed me, and then I just hung in there for fourth the whole moto. It’s a lot easier if you start in the front because I ride that pace every day. I was comfortable up there and rode it in for fourth. I’m happy with that, but I really wanted to string three together.”
2024 Monster Energy AMA Supercross 250SX Indianapolis Results 2024 Monster Energy AMA Supercross 250SX East Championship Standings About Yamaha Motor Corporation, USAYamaha Motor Corporation, USA (YMUS), is a recognized leader in the outdoor recreation industry. The company`s ever-expanding product offerings include Motorcycles and Scooters, ATV and Side-by-Side vehicles, Snowmobiles, WaveRunner Personal Watercraft, Boats, Outboard Motors, Outdoor Power Equipment, Power Assist Bicycles, Golf Cars, Power Assist Wheelchair Systems, Surface Mount Technology (SMT) and Robotic Machines, Unmanned Helicopters, Accessories, Apparel, Yamalube products, and much more. YMUS products are sold through a nationwide network of distributors and dealers in the United States.
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