HAIDEN DEEGAN

Yamaha’s Haiden Deegan was ready for whatever, was thrown his way in Colorado. With unstoppable momentum seemingly now at his disposal, the athlete aboard the number thirty-eight machine was ready to rocket from the starting grate, as the opening race began on Saturday. An exceptional start and initial dive into turn number-one would lay the foundation for a successful moto for California’s Haiden Deegan. The Yamaha rider was locked-in, and after being pursued by KTM’s Tom Vialle and Honda’s Chance Hymas, Deegan seemed more than comfortable combatting the pressure of his championship rivals...all the while constantly putting forth phenomenal lap-times, well through the first ten minutes of the moto. Holding onto the lead until only a few minutes remained on the clock, a high speed wash-out of sorts would force Deegan to the ground, not long before the finish line area! Scrambling to remount his motorcycle, he was forced to second upon getting back on the bike, and returning to “race pace” per se. He was desperately trying to overtake the French rider, and would ultimately do so just before the white flag. Standing on the foot-pegs with an excellent lean angle (using his torso), he crested the single before the finish-line and swoop, from inside to outside — taking Vialle off track, and regaining the lead! But Vialle wasn’t going to let matters go that easily, and made one final attempt per se, in the right-handed bend just after the rollers. The “lunge” and makeshift block pass from Vialle wasn’t enough for the French rider to make the pass stick, sending the KTM rider to the ground as a result! And in the end, it was Deegan who had jumped over the final tabletop, with the race victory!  A second-place start to the latter moto of the afternoon was optimal for the Yamaha rider. He was smart, and aware of Levi Kitchen behind him as they powered through the first lap...but he had to focus on Chance Hymas more than anything else, with the Idaho native riding extremely well at the pinnacle of the field. Trying to keep the “bigger picture” of an overall championship within the forefront of his thought process, after roughly eight laps (or so) it seemed as if Deegan had found a flow within the second-place residency. He was comfortable at that point in time, and had enough of a cushion over Jo Shimoda, that he could “somewhat” cruise en route to securing the overall win. He stayed upright and eliminated mistakes, following Chance Hymas over the final jump on the track — to take second place in the moto, but most importantly, the overall win on the day in Lakewood!