Haiden Deegan was more than prepared to mount up for the second moto of Round 1 at zMax Dragway in Concord, North Carolina, but was happy to take the win and improve his lead in the 250 SuperMotocross World Championship.
As is often the case, Deegan did not get the best start, and he finished Lap 1 in seventh place. Just as often, that did not matter as Deegan climbed quickly through the field and was in podium contention by Lap 4. With time running off the clock and two laps remaining, he made a decisive pass on Seth Hammaker to score the moto win and what would eventually become the overall victory.
Full points were awarded despite the cancellation of Moto 2, and Deegan now has an eight-point advantage over Jo Shimoda as the series heads into Round 2 in St. Louis, Missouri.
Click here for a recap of zMax Dragway
Hammaker was fast from the start of the day with one of the top five times in the first qualification session, but lost pace in Qualification 2 and landed just outside that mark. Despite a modest gate pick, he earned the holeshot, which gave him control of the race and the first selection of lines through the turns. That proved to be important on Lap 3 when he forced Shimoda into a mistake that created a sizeable gap over Austin Forkner. Hammaker maintained the lead until the closing laps, but could not withstand the pressure of Deegan.
Hammaker was docked five championship points for jumping under red cross flag conditions and left the track 16 points behind Deegan.
Shimoda admitted to losing patience early, and if not for his mistake, he might have proved to be a worthy candidate for the victory. Instead, he fell to 12th and had to work his way through the field. Shimoda was in fifth by Lap 7 and could only climb as high as fourth when the checkers waved. After a one-position penalty was assessed to Levi Kitchen for passing a rider under red cross flag conditions, Shimoda was awarded third.
Kitchen passed Forkner while the Alpinestars Medical crew was attending to an injured rider. He was also assessed a five-point penalty for jumping in that section of the track, but his solid effort netted 13 points and placed him fifth in the championship standings.
Austin Forkner has learned much since returning from a hard crash in the 2024 Arlington Monster Energy Supercross race. He earned only three top-10s in the stadium series and got off to a slow start in Motocross with results outside the top 15 in the first six rounds. He rattled off three top-10s during the end of the season, but showed speed during portions of the final two races before fading. His fifth-place finish at zMax Dragway was his first of the SuperMotocross season. Forkner is four points behind fifth-place Kitchen in SMX points with his eyes set on giving Triumph their first dirt bike top-five.
Here are the 250 Motocross results, lap times, and points standings after Round 1 at zMax Dragway in Concord, North Carolina:
Results
Moto 1
Results
Fastest Sector Times
Individual Lap Times
Detailed Lap Times
250 SuperMotocross Points
Manufacturer Points
Here is the finishing order of Round 1 in zMax Dragway (points earners):
1. Haiden Deegan, Yamaha
2. Seth Hammaker, Kawasaki
3. Jo Shimoda, Honda
4. Levi Kitchen, Kawasaki
5. Austin Forkner, Triumph
6. Ryder DiFrancesco, GasGas
7. Tom Vialle, KTM
8. Cole Davies, Yamaha
9. Nate Thrasher, Yamaha
10. Ty Masterpool, Kawasaki
11. Drew Adams, Kawasaki
12. Maximus Vohland, Yamaha
13. Max Anstie, Yamaha
14. Dilan Schwartz, Yamaha
15. Daxton Bennick, Yamaha
16. Cullin Park, Honda
17. Jordon Smith, Triumph
18. Lux Turner, KTM
19. Gage Linville, KTM
20. Parker Ross, Yamaha
21. Henry Miller, Yamaha
22. Garrett Marchbanks, Kawasaki
Motocross Results
Pala 450 Results | 250 Results
Hangtown 450 Results | 250 Results
Thunder Valley 450 Results | 250 Results
High Point 450 Results | 250 Results
Southwick 450 Results | 250 Results
RedBud 450 Results | 250 Results
Spring Creek 450 Results | 250 Results
Washougal 450 Results | 250 Results
Ironman 450 Results | 250 Results
Unadilla 450 Results | 250 Results
Budds Creek 450 Results | 250 Results
Supercross Results
Anaheim 1 450 Results | 250W Results
San Diego 450 Results | 250W Results
Anaheim 2 450 Results | 250W Results
Glendale 450 Results | 250W Results
Tampa 450 Results | 250E Results
Detroit 450 Results | 250E Results
Arlington 450 Results | 250W Results
Daytona 450 Results | 250E Results
Indianapolis 450 Results | 250 E/W Results
Birmingham 450 Results | 250E Results
Seattle 450 Results | 250W Results
Foxborough 450 Results | 250E Results
Philadelphia 450 Results | 250 E/W Results
New Jersey 450 Results | 250E Results
Pittsburgh 450 Results | 250E Results
Denver 450 Results | 250W Results
Salt Lake City 450 Results | 250 E/W Results
More SuperMotocross News
Jett Lawrence at zMax Dragway after Moto 2 canceled
Haiden Deegan wins zMax Dragway 250 Moto 1
zMax Dragway 450 Qualification | 250 Qualification
Will third time be the charm for Chase Sexton in the SMX Championship?
zMax Dragway 450 Practice | 250 Practice
Jorge Prado, Monster Energy Kawasaki skip 2025 SMX Playoffs
Aaron Plessinger to skip SMX World Championship Playoffs due to illness
Christian Craig departs from Star Racing Yamaha one year early
zMax Dragway Preview | Betting Guide
Tom Vialle was “lacking confidence in his setup” at Budds Creek
