Troy Dog
He did it everyone. Haiden Deegan is your 2024 250 Pro Motocross Champion.
It was a dominant summer from the start with five overall wins, nine moto wins, nine overall podiums in ten rounds, and he was able to wrap up the championship with three motos to go.
Deegan made sure to put in a statement ride in the first moto at Budds Creek and put over a 20-second gap on the rest of the field.
“I mean, I pulled the holeshot, got it to a 25-second gap, I was like I want 30-seconds!” Deegan said in the post race press conference. “I ended up tucking the front, but it is what it is, we got the championship and that’s all that matters.”
That mindset has clearly paid off for the sophomore all season. He recovered quickly from a wrist injury right before the 250SX East Region started, it put him behind. The crash in the first turn of the Main Event in the Detroit opener didn’t help either. The crash bent his bike up and he circulated the track that night to gain as many points as he could. He won the second round in Arlington on his way to coming up four points short to eventual champ Tom Vialle.
To lose the 250SX East Region title like that clearly left a bad tast in Deegan’s mouth. He came into the outdoor season with more mind games and a complete racing package.
“All I cared about on the line was destroying these dudes as bad as I could,” Deegan said on the podium after winning the first moto at Budds Creek. “I just wanted to annihilate everybody.”
What we saw this season out of Deegan was a rider who finally was able to bloom into something spectacular. His rookie season was obviously impressive last year and he had the chance to go toe to toe with the veteran Hunter Lawrence for each championship. That is valuable experience and he was able to carry that momentum into the Pro Motocross Championship this year.
“I feel like I’ve got a lot more confidence, I’ve matured, I’ve gotten faster,” Deegan said. “You know after Fox went I went 1-1, I was like damn, we’ve put in the work!”
Where is Lawrence now? Well, he’s the only rider with a mathematical chance of possibly winning a 450MX Championship, who’s name isn’t Chase Sexton. Sure, it’s a 28 point gap with two motos to go, but anything can happen as we’ve seen in this sport. Lawrence has had a very impressive 450 rookie season.
What’s next for Deegs? Well, quite a few scenarios were asked in the post race press conference and Deegan helped put some minds at ease for his immediate future as well as long term.
Will Deegan represent Team USA at the Motocross of Nations?
“Honestly I haven’t been talked to too much about it,” Deegan said. “Really nothing yet and it’s kind of up to the team to let me know what the deal is.”
Will he move up to the 450 class soon?
Deegan said that he’s not going to move up to the 450 class without a Supercross Championship. He also said that he can defend that championship as well once he wins it. The main goal for him is to get every championship possible in the 250 class before jumping up to the premier class.
Will he make the move to the 450 class at Ironman? No, he never was going to.
“Next weekend I get to race Ken Roczen, so I’m looking forward to that.”
Photo Credit: MX Sports Pro Racing, Inc.
