Podium Finishes in Daytona for the Monster Energy Yamaha Star Racing’s 250 Team
Cole Davies and Pierce Brown go 2-3 in 250SX East with Landen Gordon extending his SMX Next podium streak in punishing conditions at the Daytona Supercross / Mar 2, 2026 /
Round 2 of the Monster Energy AMA Supercross 250SX East Championship delivered another intense night of racing, with Monster Energy Yamaha Star Racing showing strength at Daytona International Speedway. When the checkered flag flew, Cole Davies secured a runner-up finish, with red plate holder Pierce Brown joining him on the podium in third. In SMX Next, Landen Gordon continued his momentum with another runner-up result, marking his third consecutive podium of the season in Daytona Beach, Florida.
It was a wild opening heat race with all four Monster Energy Yamaha Star Racing riders inside the top six. Davies qualified sixth and quickly went to work after the gate drop, advancing from sixth to fourth on the opening lap. After battling with Coty Shock and teammate Caden Dudney, Davies made a decisive final-lap pass on Dudney to secure third.
The main event required another charge. After a poor start left him buried in the pack, Davies pushed forward, breaking into the top five within three laps. He passed Brown on Lap 4 and set the fastest lap of the race in the process. At the halfway point, he made the move on Drew Adams to claim the podium position. The young New Zealander then closed in on second, securing the spot after the competition crashed in the final laps. The runner-up finish moves Davies to fourth in the championship standings, six points behind his teammate in the top spot.
“We wrapped up Daytona with a second place in the Main Event,” said Davies. “A decent result, but it’s not where I want to be. Qualifying sessions weren’t the best for me as I was overriding the track, but we knew what to improve on for the night show. I got a terrible start in the main and was absolutely buried, which made for a tough fight through the pack. I enjoyed the battle, but a few mistakes were costly. I really wanted the win tonight, but we’ll regroup and come out swinging for the next one.”
Coming off his debut 250SX East victory, Brown arrived in Daytona carrying momentum and the red plate. He qualified fourth and wasted no time in the heat race, charging to second on the opening lap before taking the lead and securing his first heat race win of the season by a three-second margin. In the main event, Brown rode a smart race in the demanding conditions. With a top-five start, he managed the race as mistakes unfolded ahead of him, capitalizing late to secure third. The podium marks back-to-back top-three finishes to open the season and allows Brown to maintain the championship lead heading into Indianapolis.
“It was a good night,” said Brown. “I ended up third and on the podium two weekends in a row. I struggled a little early in the main, and Cole passed me. I had to make a couple of moves to get to around fifth. Then Jo (Shimoda) made a mistake late, and I ended up getting by him, so that put me third, and I just rode it in. It was a pretty low drama main for me. I just kind of stayed where I was. I didn't really have the pace tonight, but I can't be mad with P3. We’ll take the positives and head to Indy. We still have the red plate, so I'm stoked.”
Nate Thrasher, who’s enjoyed a lot of success at the speedway tracks, also showed strength in Daytona. The Tennessee rider had a solid top-10 qualifying result, and then came out swinging in the heat race, grabbing the holeshot. After being passed by Brown, he continued to run a strong race to maintain the position. Thrasher got another good start to the main event in third, but dropped back to sixth in the opening laps. He kept pushing and returned to the top five, but a mistake in the final laps had him crossing the line seventh.
“We have to be better,” said Thrasher. “We will take it on the chin and give it everything going into Indy.”
In just his second pro race in Monster Energy AMA Supercross, Caden Dudney continued to make improvements. He qualified fourth and had a good start to the heat race in fifth. After passing Shock and Davies, he closed in on his other teammate, Thrasher. In the final laps, he found himself under pressure from Davies and unfortunately went down on the final lap and rejoined in fifth to secure the top-five result. Then in the main event, a bad start had him at the back of the field, but he fought his way through to an 11th-place finish.
“I felt qualifying was better this weekend,” said Dudney. “I also finished better than I did last weekend, so that's another positive. I just have to figure out the heat race, which will get me a better gate pick, and I should have a better main. A lot of positives take away from it again, and I’m going to learn from my mistakes and apply it next weekend.”
In SMX Next, the team got off to a great start with Landen Gordon and Kayden Minear qualifying 1-2. Although Gordon didn’t get the start he was hoping for in the main event, he made his way from eighth to third by Lap 4 and set the fastest time of the race the lap before. It turned into a multi-rider battle for the runner-up spot with Gordon making the pass in the final laps to finish second for his best result so far this season.
“Overall, it was a good day,” said Gordon. “In qualifying, I felt really good, and going into the main, I was really confident. I thought I picked a good gate, but I hit the bump weird and just got a little off-center off the gate. I started eighth and ended up getting all the way back up to second. By the time I got there, the leader was just too far away, but overall, I felt like I had a great night. I just need to be better.”
Minear was fourth after the start, but a crash on the second lap dropped him back to eighth. The young Australian put his head down and steadily made his way through, moving into fifth on the final lap.
“It was a tricky day,” said Minear. “A tricky track, and my first time in Daytona. I had a lot of fun and learned a lot. We’re going to go back to work on Tuesday and come out even better for Birmingham.”
“A great night for us all the way around and lots of podiums,” said Wil Hahn, Monster Energy Yamaha Star Racing’s 250 Team General Manager. “But we want more and plan to be on the top step next week in Indy.”
Next weekend, the team heads to Indianapolis for Round 3 of the Monster Energy AMA Supercross 250SX East Championship at Lucas Oil Stadium on March 7.