If the line between brazenness and arrogance is often blurry, it is even more so in Hayden Deegan (Yamaha), a true phenomenon of American motocross who is driving his fans crazy with amazing feats that are at the limit of the possible. This category also includes the mega “scrubbata” after the second start of race two and the long launch of race one that saw him land meters and meters ahead of his opponents at the start of the first fraction. The American who won 6 of the first 10 heats, finishing second in the other 4at Southwick he further extended his championship lead.
Tom Vialle, second at Southwick, squandered a chance to win
Danger boy without rivals in race one
Danger Boy is the nickname of the rider who, after narrowly losing the Supercross title to Tom Vialle (KTM), is taking his revenge by leaving everyone in line in the 250 outdoor championship. Starting in the lead at the start of the first heat, ahead of Chance Hymas (Honda), Levy Kitchen (Kawasaki) and Vialle, Deegan created a gap from the first cornersgaining several seconds. In fourth position the two-time World Champion took longer than expected to pass Kitchen and Hymas, finding himself second, seven seconds from the lead, thus unable to attempt an attack on his rival who in the final stretched out and wins ahead of the Frenchman by over 15 seconds, with Hymas third ahead of Kitchen and Joey Savatgy (Triumph).
Shimoda, 9th and 1st, stepped on the podium for the first time in 2024
Vialle wastes in race two, Shimoda takes advantage
The second heat starts with the top five from the first in the lead but this time it is Kitchen who gets the holeshot but the race is interrupted by the red flag due to the bad fall of Julien Beaumer (KTM). At the second start, Kitchen was once again the one to take the lead, but Deegan, with a cinema-worthy overtaking move and even risking a fall, took the lead after a few metres, trying to repeat the script of the first race, followed by Vialle third and Jo Shimoda (Honda), fourth. The strategy of the Avignon rider this time is different and after getting rid of the Kawasaki rider, Vialle tries to close the gap with Deegan who, under pressure, makes a mistake and slips, leaving the lead to his rival and also overtaken by Shimoda and Kitchen.
Southwick 250 podium, from left: Vialle, Deegan and Shimoda
First partial success for Shimoda
Vialle seems to be in control but Shimoda brings the gap to 3 seconds from the lead, while Deegan, sixth, recovers in a prodigious manner and gets back in the slipstream of the two escapees. With two laps to go, Shimoda, under pressure from Deegan, passes Vialle who, in an attempt to respond to the Japanese’s overtaking, makes a mistake and falls, giving second place to Deegan, who restarts in third place. At the finish line, the Honda rider scored his first win of the season, allowing him to climb onto the third step of the podium behind Vialle, second, and Deegan, first. In the championship his advantage over Hymas, fourth of the day, is 42 points, with Vialle second at 43 points from his rival.
The 250 MX standings after the first 5 races
