Frenchman Tom Vialle was thrilled to win the East Coast SX250 class title in the 2024 AMA Supercross Championships after the series wrapped at Salt Lake City on Saturday night (Sunday NZ time).
Upon joining Red Bull KTM Factory Racing Team in 2019, a successful rookie term in the MX2 World Championship saw the Frenchman race to fourth position in the point standings, before he went on to be crowned the MX2 World Champion at his second attempt the following year in 2020.
After placing third in 2021, he spectacularly regained the crown at the finale.
Originally from Avignon, France, Vialle then moved to the U.S. ahead of the 2023 season, in which he made a highly-anticipated AMA Supercross debut and gained immense experience in the stadiums on his way to eighth in the final 250SX East standings.
Vialle also finished sixth overall in the 250MX category of the AMA Pro Motocross Championship – claiming a breakout first victory at Southwick – as part of a wider SuperMotocross World Championship (SMX) campaign, where he was eventually ranked eighth in the 250SMX Class at the conclusion of the hybrid-type SMX Finals Series.
Building upon the vast knowledge that he picked up one year ago, Vialle has taken his career to new heights in 2024, standing on the AMA Supercross podium for the first time in Arlington’s second round of the season before taking elusive back-to-back 250SX Main Event wins in Daytona and Birmingham.
Vialle continued that podium form with a runner-up result in Indianapolis, followed by third in both Foxborough and Nashville, and then was second again in Philadelphia’s penultimate round.
Those finishes set him up with an instrumental 15-point advantage entering Salt Lake City’s ninth and final race of the eastern region.
A calculated eighth-place finish was enough to seal Vialle the title at the weekend in the second 250SX East/West Showdown of the year, marking Red Bull KTM Factory Racing’s first in the 250SX category since fellow French rider Marvin Musquin won the eastern regional title victory in 2015.
“That’s pretty amazing, to learn one year and then win this title in the second year,” Vialle reflected.
“After I won Daytona and made it two in a row in Birmingham, I knew I could fight for the title. I made it to the end and I felt great all season. Going into Supercross this year, I enjoyed it even more and am very happy to win the championship.
“It’s only my second year here and feel like I have a lot to learn, am still learning every race, but I’m really excited now to head outdoors in two weeks at Pala. Thank you to everybody that has been behind us for this championship.”
Vialle managed to finish on the podium in seven of the nine rounds this season to clinch the No.1 plate for 2024, obviously adapting to life in America as part of Red Bull KTM Factory Racing’s United States operation led by team manager Ian Harrison, alongside KTM’s legendary director of motorsports in North America, Belgium former motocross world champion Roger De Coster.
Meanwhile, American rider RJ Hampshire (Husqvarna) became the new AMA Supercross 250SX West Coast Champion.
Next up for Vialle, Hampshire and their rivals is the AMA Pro Motocross Championship, which starts in Pala, California, on Saturday, May 25.
Photo courtesy KTM
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