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Denver SX - Rider Comments

Denver SX - Rider Comments

May 4

  • Interview

Red Bull KTM Factory Racing's Chase Sexton earned his sixth win of the 2025 Monster Energy AMA Supercross Championship with a command performance at the Denver Supercross that saw his lead stretch in excess of 10 seconds. The victory brings with it valuable points as Sexton now sits just nine points back in the title hunt with only one round remaining.

Empower Field at Mile High delivered thrilling race action to fans of the Monster Energy AMA Supercross Championship. Denver hosted the penultimate round of the season with next weekend’s finale taking place in Salt Lake City, Utah.

Monster Energy Yamaha Star Racing's Cooper Webb held on under intense pressure to take second place at Empower Field at Mile High and retain the points lead over Sexton. Monster Energy Yamaha Star Racing's Justin Cooper recovered brilliantly from a 12th place start to catch both Webb and Rockstar Energy Husqvarna Factory Racing's Malcolm Stewart in the closing laps.

Cooper passed Stewart as the race clock reached zero. The three riders held in tight formation for the final two laps with Justin Cooper earning his third podium of the season.

In the Western Divisional 250SX Class, Monster Energy Yamaha Star Racing's Haiden Deegan grabbed the win and with it his first Monster Energy AMA Supercross Championship by using an aggressive pass late in the race that created conflicting – and very vocal – reactions from the fans.

First place 450SX Class - Chase Sexton

“To be honest I was a little fired up. [Cooper Webb] crossed on me pretty hard on the start [in the first rhythm section], almost took me out. I was kinda seeing red after that. Yeah, I made an aggressive move, but I kind of have to. I knew I was faster tonight, so I wanted to get out front and break away, and that’s what I did. Another win, sixth one of the season. Yeah, just trying to go out there and show that I’m the best rider. I was pretty fired up from the first lap of the Main Event after we all got a bit close during the first rhythm lane. At that point, I just wanted to get to the lead, and I knew that I could run some good laps, so getting out front and breaking away was my goal. I made an aggressive move by my standards on [Cooper Webb], but we're both going for a championship and have a lot of respect for each other. At the same time, we both really want to win.

Second place 450SX Class - Cooper Webb

“I don’t know, man. We’re fighting for position, I feel like that was just hard racing and I had position [and] I was trying to get Malcolm early. So, I apologize if he thought that, [I] definitely didn’t mean it, or didn’t really think I did. But I understand his frustration for sure. With that being said, it was a tough Main Event. [I’ve] been a little under the weather today, wasn’t feeling great, really struggled so to be able to get second tonight. I’m pumped. I was holding on by dear life there at the end. My teammate Justin was running great, Malcolm rode great, Justin was pushing hard, so I’ll take it…. Great overall day. Two and three for the team is awesome, and we’ll carry this little bit of a lead going into Salt Lake and do what we need to do… I’ve always really enjoyed Salt Lake, I’ve always done well there, so I’m fired up. I just need to get rested and recovered and come back swinging next Saturday.”

Third place 450SX Class - Justin Cooper

“It was tough because it was a disappointing start for me. I actually put it in second gear on the gate when the board went sideways. And we’re starting in first gear all day, so it was just a habit [to click up to second]. [I] panicked, shifted down to first and I think it upset my start a little bit so I was buried. It was a really tough race. At altitude it’s a little bit tougher fitness-wise, so I feel like I came from outside the top ten, I was pretty far back there. And this track’s really tough to pass on, so I just put my head down, was clicking off consistent laps, didn’t make too many mistakes, and had a good flow. Yeah, I [could see] the podium pretty much the whole race. That’s kinda where my eyes were at and just kept focusing on that. [I] was able to get the pass around the outside with Malcolm around one minute to go. In the process we were sneaking up on Coop, and it turned into a three-way battle there. With all the lappers, my heartrate was really high already, so with all that going on it just escalated it that much more. So, I’m really proud of myself for getting this done.”

In 250SX Class racing, Haiden Deegan entered the Denver Round with a 17 point lead over teammate Monster Energy Yamaha Star Racing's Cole Davies.

Davies grabbed the holeshot and looked to have the pace to make it three wins in a row for the rookie. Just before the race’s midpoint Deegan took over second place from Monster Energy Yamaha Star Racing's Michael Mosiman and began to steadily reel in Davies, who would have to finish in fourth or better to force the championship to the final round.

In the final minutes, Deegan reached Davies and put in a few close pass attempts. With two laps remaining Deegan upped the aggression and made a pass that sent Davies over the berm. Davies remounted in fifth place, where he would finish.

By the rulebook Deegan clinched the title due to a 25-point lead. Even if Davies wins the final round and Deegan earns zero points, the championship tiebreaker would be the rider with more second place finishes, which is Haiden Deegan.

Red Bull KTM Factory Racing's Julien Beaumer earned the second-place spot in Denver after fighting his way forward from an eighth place start. Monster Energy Pro Circuit Kawasaki's Garrett Marchbanks rounded out the podium, having a similar charge through the pack to recover nicely from his ninth-place start.

The racers match up one final time, along with the Eastern Divisional 250SX Class, in the Dave Coombs Sr. 250SX Class East/West Showdown next Saturday night.

First place 250SX Class - Haiden Deegan

“First of all I want to congratulate Cole, he’s been riding really good. Two laps to go, I wanted that win, baby. I was going to do anything for it. This [Championship] means a lot to me because people doubted me all the way. They [were] telling me I was all hype coming into Supercross and motocross. They’re just mad that I’m him and they’ve got to deal with it… We the champ now, and let’s go, baby!... [When asked specifically about the pass] Yeah, 100%, Cole was riding great, and I was just digging towards the end. At elevation, you get a little out of breath, so was just digging, and I was like, two laps to go, I [saw] Cole slide out, found an opening, and took the chance. Good job to Cole and a good race.”

Second place 250SX Class - – Julien Beaumer

“I did a lot of work these last three weeks in that break [for the West Division] and just tried to get back to myself, the guy that I was in the first part of this season. I think I showed I’m back this weekend and I’m ready to fight for another one in Salt Lake… Also, congrats to Haiden. He deserves this championship.”

Third place 250SX Class - Garrett Marchbanks

“I had such a good start in the Heat, I was hoping to carry that on into the Main, but didn’t quite do that. But [I] made some good passes and I just tried to stay with Beaumer the whole time. [I] had a pretty good pace, was getting pretty close to him with about three laps to go and someone stopped on the triple right before the finish line. I jumped right on him and had a pretty close one, so I lost some time. I didn’t know I got third until the last lap, so that’s a cool little gift at the end. I’ve just been feeling really good all day… I’m just blessed to be back up here.”

Fifth place 250SX Class - Cole Davies

“I got a good start and was focusing on just trying to build a bit of a gap and ride from there, but I got caught up with some lappers. I should have capitalized on that better, and, you know, that’s on me tonight. I shouldn’t have put myself in that position, but I’ll be back. And I’m going to keep working on, and keep on keeping on… [When asked for his opinion on the pass that resulted in him crashing] I shouldn’t have put myself in that position, to be honest. I could’ve been better in that department. But I’ll be back. Just a big thanks to everyone around me… There’s been a lot of sacrifices to get me here, so big shout out to them, and I’ll be back at Salt Lake.”

Jordon Smith: "It felt good to be back at the races at 100%. I had a good day in qualification and was feeling really good on the track. Unfortunately, a crash early in the heat race really put me behind the eight ball for the night but I pushed hard from way back in the main and ended with a decent result. I am ready and excited to get back on track at Salt Lake City to finish this supercross season strong!"

Aaron Plessinger: "This was my first time in Denver, and it was tough! I had an exceptional qualifying, but after that, I struggled. If you know me, I'm more of a soft dirt kind of guy, so the conditions here were challenging. I still got a top-five out of it, so I can't really ask for a whole lot more – we're here and in the fight with the team, we turned the season around, and have one to go in Salt Lake."

Malcolm Stewart: Denver went well. Every year I come here, I ride really well. Practice and qualifying went good to finish in P2, and then a great start in my Heat Race resulted in winning that one, which was an awesome feeling. In the Main Event, I actually got my first holeshot of the season, which shows that even at the altitude, our bikes have plenty of power! I rode hard in the Main, it was a big battle between second, third, and fourth, but at the end of the day, I gave it everything I had and we ended up in P4. We'll look to close this season out strong in Salt Lake next weekend."

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