Following his third 250SX East podium of the season in Atlanta, Haiden Deegan has outlined learning is still the focus as he continues to deliver a strong rookie Monster Energy Supercross campaign.

Deegan, 17, commenced 2023 in the Supercross Futures class and finished fifth position at Anaheim 2 after an eventful night.

One week later he lined up for the opening round of 250SX East in Houston, where he completed the event fourth place on debut. Prior to that round, Deegan was admittedly unsure of when he was going to make the professional step in Supercross, let alone compete in the complete regional championship.

Entering the seventh race of the 250SX East season, Deegan had two main event podiums to his credit in the class with third-place results at Daytona and Detroit, also scoring a heat race win in Tampa. He qualified sixth at Atlanta Motor Speedway on Saturday and finished heat one in P4 after a crash from the lead, before another holeshot in the main event saw him lead in the early stages.

Deegan ultimately took the checkered flag in third behind red plate-holder Hunter Lawrence and teammate Jordon Smith, with the result also lifting him to second in the 250SX East standings, 45 points from the Team Honda HRC rider.

“Definitely this year I didn’t come into Supercross thinking that I would be second in the points at some point, didn’t think that at all,” Deegan explained. “I didn’t even think I would be in the top 10 at the first round and I surprised myself there. Second, it’s outstanding for me for my first year and how much I have been learning.

“Hunter is just on top of the game right now, he is going fast and right now it would be a miracle if I could get in front of him, he’s going too fast right now. I’ve just got to keep learning, and that is what this year is all about, learning, so hopefully next year we can be a little more forward.”

Monster Energy Supercross continues this Saturday at East Rutherford, with the first 250SX East/West Showdown of the season to take place at MetLife Stadium.