High drama and a nail-biting finish mark the conclusion of the 250SX East/West Showdown in Salt Lake City.
The 250SX East/West Showdown finale in Salt Lake City was nothing short of chaotic. Haiden Deegan rocketed out of the gate for the holeshot, with Tom Vialle and Seth Hammaker in tow. RJ Hampshire, hampered by a poor gate pick from the LCQ, started deep in the field but mounted a furious charge through the pack.
In no time, Hampshire was inside the top seven, and within five minutes, he had climbed to fifth and was closing fast. Up front, Beaumer overtook Hammaker and then chased down Vialle, eventually slipping past him with a calculated pass. Hammaker followed suit, putting him in position to claim the championship.
But drama struck again. Hampshire tripled past Vialle, then targeted Hammaker. Hammaker briefly reclaimed second from Beaumer, but Beaumer returned the favour with a forceful pass. Soon after, Hampshire attempted a block pass on Hammaker but ended up taking both riders down, shuffling the standings dramatically and handing the title lead back to Vialle.
With the white flag waving, Hammaker needed to close a two-second gap to Vialle but couldn’t gain enough through the whoops, missing his last real shot.
Deegan won the race, followed by Beaumer, Vialle, Hammaker, and Michael Mosiman. The third-place finish was enough for Tom Vialle to secure the 250SX East Division Championship in a heart-pounding conclusion.
