The 250MX title hopes of Haiden Deegan were severely impacted by a technical issue in moto one at Unadilla, dropping the Monster Energy Yamaha Star Racing rider to P4 in the standings following round nine of the 2023 Pro Motocross Championship.

Deegan, 17, was just three points from red plate-holder Hunter Lawrence after a commanding showing last time out at Washougal saw him become the only rider in the category to go 1-1 so far this season.

Marking his first outing at Unadilla, rookie standout Deegan qualified 10th fastest and, after being shuffled back to seventh in the opening laps of moto one, had fought his way back to third.

The teenager was looking to chase down title-rival Lawrence, before a bike malfunction in the final laps ended his race prematurely. With a bad gate pick to the far outside in moto two, Deegan battled his way to 12th by lap four and after a tip-over during the race, finished in P10, ending the day a lowly 17th overall.

“Today was going really well in the first moto,” reflected Deegan. “I felt super-good and then we had an issue and didn’t finish, which happens, so we just had to move on.

“I was all the way on the outside in the second moto, so I had a very bad start and just tried my best and finished 10th. It is what it is… At the end of the day, we are leaving here healthy and will be back to fight another day.”

Following the ninth round of the season, Deegan trails red plate-holder Lawrence by 36 points and is fourth in the series ahead of Budds Creek’s penultimate stop of this year’s outdoor season.