Cycle News Staff | May 11, 2024
It all comes down to this! Today is the final round of the 2024 Monster Energy AMA Supercross Championship in Salt Lake City, Utah. All three championships are set to be decided tonight with the 250SX West points all tied up. The 250SX East and 450SX titles aren’t as close, but still up for grabs.
At the checkers, Haiden Deegan won the 250SX Showdown with Chase Sexton taking top honors in the 450sX main event. RJ Hampshire, Tom Vialle, and Jett Lawrence all clinched their respective championships.
MAIN EVENTS
450SX
Chase Sexton grabbed the start in the 450SX main event. He traded the lead with Justin Cooper on the opening lap but quickly established himself as the race leader. Sexton led every lap of the main and grabbed his second win of the year. While he did win San Francisco, this is the first dry win of the campaign. With Eli Tomac not racing the finale, Sexton breaks the tie for third in the championship.
Sexton ended the season with a win in the 450SX main event. Photos: Brown Dog Wilson
Justin Cooper took second, the first podium of his 450SX career. He started up front with Sexton and led for a bit on the opening lap. He quickly settled into second and held off teammate Cooper Webb for the second position. Cooper finishes out the season with his best result of the year.
Justin Cooper earned his career-best result with a second place finish.
Cooper Webb crossed the line third, taking the final podium. He started ahead of Jett Lawrence but needed the Honda rider to finish outside the top 17. Webb rode a strong race considering his injured thumb and fended off attacks from Jason Anderson during the mid-section of the race. He beat Jett in the race but finished second in the title chase by 15 points.
Cooper Webb finished third in the race and second in the title chase, 15 points down from Jett.
Lawrence rode a safe race to finish seventh. This still earned him the championship, making him the third rookie to ever clinch a Supercross championship.
Jett Lawrence crossed a safe seventh but still clinched the title.
450SX Overall Results (Top 10)
| 1. |
Chase Sexton |
(KTM) |
24 Laps |
| 2. |
Justin Cooper |
(Yam) |
+03.228 |
| 3. |
Cooper Webb |
(Yam) |
+04.406 |
| 4. |
Jason Anderson |
(Kaw) |
+09.803 |
| 5. |
Justin Barcia |
(GG) |
+11.957 |
| 6. |
Malcolm Stewart |
(Hus) |
+34.797 |
| 7. |
Jett Lawrence |
(Hon) |
+39.337 |
| 8. |
Dylan Ferrandis |
(Hon) |
+44.568 |
| 9. |
Mitchell Oldenburg |
(Hon) |
+46.076 |
| 10. |
Dean Wilson |
(Hon) |
+47.179 |
250SX
The 250SX main event proved to be the nail biter everyone expected. The Showdown between East and West kicked off with Haiden Deegan grabbing the crucial holeshot over his Star Racing teammates Nick Romano and Jordon Smith.
Deegan got the start and led every lap of the 250SX main event.
Deegan needed to win to keep his title hopes alive, with rival Vialle finishing outside the top 10. He fended off a late attack from Smith which resulted in the 31 hitting the dirt with only a few laps to go. Dangerboy again held off RJ Hampshire on the final lap and clinched the win at the season finale.
He held on to win the Showdown.
RJ Hampshire finished second behind Deegan and clinched the 250SX West championship in the process. He started ahead of his championship contender, Levi Kitchen, which put him in control of the title from the start. Hampshire rode a smart race in third for the majority of the race but moved into second after Smith fell from the spot. On the final two laps Hampshire made a run at the win, but ultimately crossed .802 seconds back. He clinched his first championship in the process.
RJ Hampshire finished second and clinched the 250SX West title.
Jordon Smith landed on the box in third. He started inside the top three and moved into second early in the race. He stalked teammate Deegan for most of the race and made a pass attempt in the whoops which resulted in Smith going down. He quickly remounted and salvaged a third at the line.
250SX Podium
Levi Kitchen finished fifth, putting him second in the West Coast Championship. At times he was the fastest rider on track but he never got close enough to make a run at Hampshire.
Tom Vialle finished eighth and won the 250SX East Coast championship.
Tom Vialle crossed eighth which was enough for him to clinch the East Coast title. This is also his first championship in the United States.
250SX Showdown Overall Results (Top 10)
| 1. |
Haiden Deegan |
(Yam) |
18 Laps |
| 2. |
RJ Hampshire |
(Hus) |
+0.802 |
| 3. |
Jordon Smith |
(Yam) |
+02.330 |
| 4. |
Jo Shimoda |
(Hon) |
+03.424 |
| 5. |
Levi Kitchen |
(Kaw) |
+05.125 |
| 6. |
Nate Thrasher |
(Yam) |
+13.800 |
| 7. |
Chance Hymas |
(Hon) |
+21.089 |
| 8. |
Tom Vialle |
(KTM) |
+25.771 |
| 9. |
Jalek Swoll |
(Tri) |
+27.495 |
| 10. |
Phil Nicoletti |
(Yam) |
+28.624 |
QUALIFYING
450SX
Chase Sexton logged the fastest lap of the 450’s. The KTM rider looked fast all morning and set the best time on the smooth track in session one. Jett Lawrence was second, .045 back from Sexton, as he looks to lock up the title tonight. Justin Cooper grabbed third. Cooper Webb is still in the championship fight but riding with an injured thumb. He clocked eighth.
Chase Sexton leads the way into the night show. Photos: Brown Dog Wilson
Jett Lawrence clocked second.
With Justin Cooper in third.
450SX Combined Qualifying (Top 10)
| 1. |
Chase Sexton |
(KTM) |
52.139 |
| 2. |
Jett Lawrence |
(Hon) |
52.184 |
| 3. |
Justin Cooper |
(Yam) |
52.595 |
| 4. |
Malcolm Stewart |
(Hus) |
52.647 |
| 5. |
Hunter Lawrence |
(Hon) |
52.976 |
| 6. |
Justin Barcia |
(GG) |
52.999 |
| 7. |
Jason Anderson |
(Kaw) |
53.096 |
| 8. |
Cooper Webb |
(Yam) |
53.207 |
| 9. |
Dylan Ferrandis |
(Hon) |
53.680 |
| 10. |
Dean Wilson |
(Hon) |
53.782 |
250SX Showdown
The Showdown is set to be the race of the night! Levi Kitchen and RJ Hampshire are dead tied in the 250SX West with Tom Vialle and Haiden Deegan duking it out in the East. Hampshire topped the overall 250’s with a hot lap in the final session.
RJ Hampshire leads the way as the fastest 250 rider. Photos: Brown Dog Wilson
Jordon Smith and Julien Beaumer clocked second and third in the West sessions, with Kitchen back in fifth.
Haiden Deegan clocked fastest in the East.
Haiden Deegan needs to win if he wants the title tonight, with Vialle finishing 11th or worst. He was fastest of the East Coast riders with Seth Hammaker and Chance Hymas rounding out the top three. Vialle was fourth, seven-tenths back from Deegan.
Vialle needs to finish better than 10th to win the title.
250SX West Combined Qualifying (Top 10)
| 1. |
RJ Hampshire |
(Hus) |
53.169 |
| 2. |
Jordon Smith |
(Yam) |
53.349 |
| 3. |
Julien Beaumer |
(KTM) |
53.397 |
| 4. |
Nate Thrasher |
(Yam) |
53.568 |
| 5. |
Levi Kitchen |
(Kaw) |
53.710 |
| 6. |
Jo Shimoda |
(Hon) |
53.956 |
| 7. |
Ryder DiFrancesco |
(GG) |
54.482 |
| 8. |
Anthony Bourdon |
(Suz) |
54.893 |
| 9. |
Cole Thompson |
(Yam) |
55.141 |
| 10. |
Joshua Varize |
(GG) |
55.379 |
250SX East Combined Qualifying (Top 10)
| 1. |
Haiden Deegan |
(Yam) |
53.255 |
| 2. |
Seth Hammaker |
(Kaw) |
53.444 |
| 3. |
Chance Hymas |
(Hon) |
53.852 |
| 4. |
Tom Vialle |
(KTM) |
53.953 |
| 5. |
Pierce Brown |
(GG) |
54.600 |
| 6. |
Coty Schock |
(Yam) |
54.669 |
| 7. |
Daxton Bennick |
(Yam) |
54.684 |
| 8. |
Jalek Swoll |
(Tri) |
54.689 |
| 9. |
Nicholas Romano |
(Yam) |
55.063 |
| 10. |
Max Anstie |
(Hon) |
55.101 |
