It was podium time for 17-year-old Kiwi rider Cole Davies at the weekend as he stepped onto the top step of the podium for the first time in his career, securing a breakthrough victory in Seattle.
The Monster Energy Supercross series returned to the West Coast this weekend, with Seattle’s Lumen Field hosting Round 11 of the 2025 championship and Round 7 for the 250SX West division and once again provided plenty of action.
With rain soaking the area in the days leading up to race day, there was a lot of speculation about whether Seattle would see a classic mud race. To preserve the track, organisers cut the free practice session, but thanks to the track crew’s efforts, conditions were prime as racing began.
Seattle delivered an exciting night of racing, with Cooper Webb making a dramatic late pass to claim the 450SX victory. Meanwhile, in the 250SX West class, New Zealander Davies, from Wiatoki, finally broke through for his first career win, in a race filled with drama.
On a sombre note, 450 rider Jason Anderson withdrew from the event due to a family emergency.
450SX CLASS
Justin Cooper’s recent front-running form continued in the 450 class as he topped 450SX qualifying, setting the fastest time of the day with a 46.899. Fresh off last weekend’s win, Chase Sexton was second quickest with a 47.121, just 0.222 seconds behind Cooper. Points leader Cooper Webb slotted into third at 47.691, trailing by 0.792 seconds. Malcolm Stewart followed closely in fourth with a 47.748, just 0.057 seconds behind Webb, while Justin Barcia rounded out the top five at 48.128, 1.229 seconds off the top time.
Aaron Plessinger became the third rider of the night to lead from start to finish, delivering a flawless performance to claim victory in the first 450SX heat, despite Mitchell Harrison officially being credited with the holeshot.
Sexton started the race in fifth but steadily worked his way through the field, crossing the line a couple of seconds behind his Red Bull KTM teammate. Stewart was a distant third, finishing 25 seconds back after getting caught up in an early crash when Kyle Chisholm lost control in the first rhythm lane. Colt Nichols and Mitchell Oldenburg rounded out the top five.
Cooper was almost the fourth rider in the heat races to go wire-to-wire, but Webb took the lead on the second lap after securing the holeshot. Cooper eventually crossed the line just over a second ahead of Webb after making an outside pass earlier to claim his first heat win.
Barcia finished 7 seconds back in third, while Ken Roczen was a distant fourth. Shane McElrath rounded out the top five, 20 seconds behind Cooper.
In the 450 main event, Webb took the early lead, with Ken Roczen and Justin Cooper closely following. Points leader Sexton didn’t get the best start but quickly moved into the top five, closing in on Cooper for third.
Up front, Webb and Roczen exchanged positions fiercely, with Webb leading for the first six laps. However, Roczen made his move and took the lead, and the two continued to battle until lap 15, when Sexton made his pass on both of them within a few sections.
Sexton moved into the lead, while Webb and Roczen dropped to third and fourth as Cooper moved into second. Unfortunately, Roczen appeared to lose pace, likely due to the lingering effects of a shoulder injury, and continued to fade.
As the race entered the second half, Sexton remained strong at the front. Webb kept the pressure on but couldn’t close the gap, eventually settling just one second behind Sexton. Cooper, who had been in the hunt for another podium, made a mistake in the final laps, hitting a tough block and going down, dropping to sixth.
Meanwhile, Plessinger seized the opportunity, taking third place, 10 seconds behind Webb. While Sexton was the standout rider of the night, recording the fastest lap of the event at 46.954 – the only rider to dip into the 46-second range – Webb wasn’t ready to give up.
As the final laps arrived, Webb made a small mistake that seemed like it would seal his fate, but Sexton made a similar mistake just in front of him, allowing Webb to capitalise on the opportunity.
As Sexton regained his composure, Webb retook the lead with only a couple of laps left for Sexton to recover. Sexton had to watch as Webb took his fourth win of the season. Sexton finished less than a second behind, for the second year in a row, while Plessinger secured a solid third.
Roczen finished fourth, and Dylan Ferrandis achieved his best finish of the season with a strong fifth. A disappointed Cooper ended up in sixth.
Webb’s win sees him out to an 11 point lead over Sexton, while Roczen sits 22 points back from Sexton in third.
250SX CLASS
The 250SX West Coast riders returned to action in Seattle, with Haiden Deegan setting the pace in qualifying.
The championship leader was the only rider to break into the 46-second range, posting a 46.993 to top both sessions and finish just 0.104 seconds off 450 class fastest qualifier Justin Cooper’s overall best time of the day.
Julien Beaumer was second quickest with a 47.286, 0.293 seconds behind Deegan, while Michael Mosiman rounded out the top three at 47.783, trailing by 0.790 seconds. Coty Schock slotted into fourth with a 48.078, 1.085 seconds off Deegan’s benchmark, edging out Derek Kelley, who completed the top five with a 48.238, 1.245 seconds back.
Schock kicked off the night with a wire-to-wire win in the first 250SX heat, grabbing the holeshot and leading every lap despite early challenges from Jo Shimoda. Schock held off a hard-charging Beaumer, who also had to contend with a stubborn Shimoda.
Beaumer worked his way up from fifth on the opening lap to finish just half a second behind in second place, while Shimoda rounded out the top three.
Heat two saw Davies mirror Schock’s performance, grabbing the holeshot and staying clear of the chaos to take a commanding victory – his first 250SX heat race win.
The Kiwi charger crossed the line 2.7 seconds ahead of Garrett Marchbanks, while fastest qualifier Deegan, sporting prison-orange gear – a nod to his recent traffic-related arrest – recovered from a high-side crash after clipping Davies’ rear wheel to salvage third.
Meanwhile, Jordon Smith’s return to racing, after recovering from a punctured lung, lacerated spleen, and broken ribs in Arlington, took an unfortunate turn when he was caught up in a first-lap incident caused by Michael Mosiman.
Smith finishing outside the qualifying spot, sending him to the cutthroat LCQ where he did make the main event after claiming second.
When the gates dropped on the 250 main, Davies took the holeshot, but Beaumer quickly moved to the front. However, Davies passed Beaumer early in the first lap and from there went unchallenged, securing his first career main event win.
Marhbanks seemed uninvolved in the hectic action around him as he and Beaumer controlled second and third for 90% of the 20 lap journey. With four laps to go, Marchbanks claimed the second place for good and rode to the line seven and a half seconds adrift of Davies.
Deegan had a rough start to the main event, crashing early after an average start. He remounted in eighth and steadily worked his way forward. It wasn’t an easy ride for the red plate holder, as he engaged in an intense and physical battle with Shimoda on his way up the order.
As the final laps approached, Deegan found himself in a heated battle with Beaumer before claiming the third and final spot on the podium. After the race, tempers flared, with Deegan throwing a “helmet slap” in Beaumer’s direction at the conclusion of the race, causing a stir with the assembled media just a few meters away.
Meanwhile, heat winner Schock was one of several riders to suffer a mishap, flying off the side of the track and landing on a tough block, which ruined his night. Australian Brad West made the final but finished down in 19th place.
In the championship standings, Deegan extended his lead from 12 to 15 points over Beaumer, while round winner Davies now sits in third 10 points ahead of Jo Shimoda.
After an entertaining night in Seattle riders and team will make the cross-country trek to Foxborough, Massachusetts, for round 12 and a return to racing for the Eastern Regional Championship riders.
Photo courtesy AMA
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