Haiden Deegan: Supercross rookie on the rise is keeping racing success in the family
The 2023 Monster Energy Supercross season was supposed to be a chance for 17-year-old Haiden Deegan to find his footing before making a major push in 2024.
Instead, through his first three 250SX East starts, the 17-year-old younger brother of NASCAR up-and-comer Hailie Deegan and son of X Games legend Brian Deegan, finished in the top five twice and swept the top-10 in his first three races.
“The season started better than I expected,” Deegan told Auto Racing Digest, “I wasn't expecting for it to go this well right off the bat. My goal was just to come in and start learning.
"This year was really a learning year, so I could see how it is, learn the tracks and I’ve been doing that well, so hopefully just keep that rolling.”
Deegan committed to Star Racing Yamaha in 2021 at the age of 15. Two years later, he is already looking extremely comfortable atop his Yamaha YZ250F.
It’s not surprising that the younger Deegan took to the next level so quickly. Nicknamed "Dangerboy," Haiden has been making moves and breaking records since his single digits.
“Growing up with a family that's very competitive in racing, it's helped me a lot to get to where I'm at right now,” Deegan said. "We still have a lot of work to get further, but as of now it helps keep me on the right guidelines.”
Keep your eyes and ears peeled for even greater racing success for 17-year-old Haiden Deegan. Photo: Feld Entertainment.
This is one of the reasons Deegan knows to look at his early success as just that: early.
The path forward has not changed for the young rider, this year is about getting familiar with the uniqueness of the Supercross rounds and tracks.
“That's big for me,” Deegan said of the chance to gain experience, “I'm learning all these tracks, learning how slick the dirts are, how tacky the dirts are, and each different round, each stadium getting used to it.”
Deegan is set to compete Saturday in Round 8 of the Supercross Championship at Daytona International Speedway. A track designed by the living legend, Ricky Carmichael throws a new obstacle at the young rider as he tries to navigate the split-lane unique to this build.
In Arlington, Texas last week, when Deegan competed in his first Triple-Crown layout, the Supercross community finally saw the rookie’s first fumble when he overcommitted before the whoops and crashed into an obstacle.
“I wasn’t a hundred percent comfortable in that dirt,” Deegan said of the first Arlington race, “I made a mistake before the whoops and it affected me in the whoops. So I ended up falling. Luckily, it was a good crash. I got out of it good and was able to keep going.”
But in all sports, a fumble does not have to mean the end of the game and crashing helps the athlete find the edge. Deegan was able to get back in his lane and finished 15th in the first feature. From there he bounced back with a fifth- and fourth-place finish in Race 2 and 3, respectively.
“This is a learning year,” Haiden reiterated, “so we’re going to see those things so I’m not horribly mad at it and it was a Triple Crown. We had two more races and were able to get a good overall.
“It taught me that in Triple Crowns you have to have good starts and be consistent to get on the overall podium.”
Deegan’s early career is shaping up to follow his own judgment as he succeeds quickly and continues in the quest for his first podium.