Is it too early to start talking about a 450 Deegan ride at Daytona?

Dendro
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2/18/2026 11:55pm Edited Date/Time 2/18/2026 11:56pm

Let me preface this by saying he’s a supreme fake persona, hell he’d probably be alright to hang out with if he’d just be himself.  I put him midpack if he lines up, would show us what he’s got.

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wfopete
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2/19/2026 5:07am Edited Date/Time 2/19/2026 6:45am

You won't find many ex or current pro's that dismiss Deegs abilities. If people could put their dislike of his personality behind them and focus on Deegan's riding skills they could arguably would put him in the top five or even podium of a 450 SX/MX.  The kid is built like a brick and won't turn into a wet noodle on a 450 and that alone puts him in the top 10.   

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Flatliner
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2/19/2026 6:01am Edited Date/Time 2/19/2026 6:02am
RDnutz wrote:
earned it? seems more like entitled to me, without having to struggle and really prove anything outside of a couple seasons beating inferior riders in 1...

earned it? seems more like entitled to me, without having to struggle and really prove anything outside of a couple seasons beating inferior riders in 1 class.

He won back to back outdoor titles, and is on track to do with same this year on the 250 indoors.  What else does a guy need to do to earn it?  I'm not talking about personality stuff.  Only speaking on results.

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Mossy940
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2/19/2026 6:07am

He had 15 chances to put Kitchen in the cheap seats in Seattle, yet he rode clean(ish) & provided us the best 250 main any of us have seen in years.

 

I still think his tactics on Shimoda in Vegas were absolute chickenshit.

I still think his podium speech after Forkner damn near died was appalling.

 

I do however think he is learning (slowly) how to turn down the DangerBoy antics when they're not needed (after the checkers last weekend) & his riding is so damn fun to watch.....

 

Deeg's still has time to chill down the act & let his riding do the talking like this past weekend.

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The Shop

RDnutz
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2/19/2026 9:02am
Flatliner wrote:
He won back to back outdoor titles, and is on track to do with same this year on the 250 indoors.  What else does a guy...

He won back to back outdoor titles, and is on track to do with same this year on the 250 indoors.  What else does a guy need to do to earn it?  I'm not talking about personality stuff.  Only speaking on results.

methinks that is solely for his employer to decide using whatever criteria makes the most sense to them, not commentors on the internet.

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Racerman967
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2/19/2026 9:04am
RDnutz wrote:
earned it? seems more like entitled to me, without having to struggle and really prove anything outside of a couple seasons beating inferior riders in 1...

earned it? seems more like entitled to me, without having to struggle and really prove anything outside of a couple seasons beating inferior riders in 1 class.

He earned it by beating almost everyone through his entire junior career. You act like his family is the only one with money and everyone else at Loretta's is on a 3 year old bike. And then he has dominated the calls for 2 season now and all of the other riders you guy like to suck up to are getting smoked. Levi caught him, finally, Haiden let him by, learned his lined and then beat him clean. Kid is 20 and unless he gets hurt is likely to be here for a while. And this is a professions meaning the goal is to win and make money. And his schtick makes a LOT OF MONEY for a lot of people. 

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RDnutz
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2/19/2026 9:10am
The only thing you are correct about is that Haiden is beating inferior riders...because none of them are on his level.

The only thing you are correct about is that Haiden is beating inferior riders

...because none of them are on his level.

512966ea-b87a-4d8a-9c97-8aee6f5ef16a

yet you automatically assume none of the 450 guys are on his level- or above his? Without ANY prior results whatsoever that he'll automatically be a podium guy in 450s right from Day 1?

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RDnutz
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2/19/2026 9:17am
RDnutz wrote:
earned it? seems more like entitled to me, without having to struggle and really prove anything outside of a couple seasons beating inferior riders in 1...

earned it? seems more like entitled to me, without having to struggle and really prove anything outside of a couple seasons beating inferior riders in 1 class.

He earned it by beating almost everyone through his entire junior career. You act like his family is the only one with money and everyone else...

He earned it by beating almost everyone through his entire junior career. You act like his family is the only one with money and everyone else at Loretta's is on a 3 year old bike. And then he has dominated the calls for 2 season now and all of the other riders you guy like to suck up to are getting smoked. Levi caught him, finally, Haiden let him by, learned his lined and then beat him clean. Kid is 20 and unless he gets hurt is likely to be here for a while. And this is a professions meaning the goal is to win and make money. And his schtick makes a LOT OF MONEY for a lot of people. 

I got no dog in this fight. 250s are like Triple A baseball minor leagues to me. The big show is 450s class with ultimate bragging rights- which is why everyone aspires to get there right?

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mx691
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2/19/2026 9:51am Edited Date/Time 2/19/2026 9:52am

If he races Daytona, he will be on the box…

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woodsryder
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2/19/2026 9:56am

Not happening. He's going for a sweep of 250W. That's far more important than risking an injury on a 450 that he still needs more time on.

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deanwhite51
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2/19/2026 2:04pm
woodsryder wrote:
Not happening. He's going for a sweep of 250W. That's far more important than risking an injury on a 450 that he still needs more time...

Not happening. He's going for a sweep of 250W. That's far more important than risking an injury on a 450 that he still needs more time on.

why is it so important? Reed won every race but the final East vs West in Vegas in 2002 (rookie season). No one speaks, remembers or cares about that... 
 

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Johnny Ringo
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2/19/2026 2:10pm Edited Date/Time 2/19/2026 2:11pm
woodsryder wrote:
Not happening. He's going for a sweep of 250W. That's far more important than risking an injury on a 450 that he still needs more time...

Not happening. He's going for a sweep of 250W. That's far more important than risking an injury on a 450 that he still needs more time on.

why is it so important? Reed won every race but the final East vs West in Vegas in 2002 (rookie season). No one speaks, remembers or...

why is it so important? Reed won every race but the final East vs West in Vegas in 2002 (rookie season). No one speaks, remembers or cares about that... 
 

Because it didn’t happen. Jesseman won Pontiac.

RC is the only one to sweep a 125 SX series.

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gt80rider
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2/19/2026 2:35pm
Mossy940 wrote:
He had 15 chances to put Kitchen in the cheap seats in Seattle, yet he rode clean(ish) & provided us the best 250 main any of...

He had 15 chances to put Kitchen in the cheap seats in Seattle, yet he rode clean(ish) & provided us the best 250 main any of us have seen in years.

 

I still think his tactics on Shimoda in Vegas were absolute chickenshit.

I still think his podium speech after Forkner damn near died was appalling.

 

I do however think he is learning (slowly) how to turn down the DangerBoy antics when they're not needed (after the checkers last weekend) & his riding is so damn fun to watch.....

 

Deeg's still has time to chill down the act & let his riding do the talking like this past weekend.

best main in years is slowing down and barely beating sub-par competition???? that's just retardation... not a great race... LMAOOOO 

thy cringe lord is dern lucky he's not having to race actual competition like Joe or Davies.... 

 

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Andrew314
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2/19/2026 2:43pm
gt80rider wrote:
best main in years is slowing down and barely beating sub-par competition???? that's just retardation... not a great race... LMAOOOO thy cringe lord is dern lucky he's...

best main in years is slowing down and barely beating sub-par competition???? that's just retardation... not a great race... LMAOOOO 

thy cringe lord is dern lucky he's not having to race actual competition like Joe or Davies.... 

 

Not surprising these takes are coming from Boulder.

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-MAVERICK-
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2/19/2026 2:44pm
woodsryder wrote:
Not happening. He's going for a sweep of 250W. That's far more important than risking an injury on a 450 that he still needs more time...

Not happening. He's going for a sweep of 250W. That's far more important than risking an injury on a 450 that he still needs more time on.

Hate to break it to you, but he can't sweep 250 West. 

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wfopete
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2/19/2026 2:50pm
-MAVERICK- wrote:

Hate to break it to you, but he can't sweep 250 West. 

😆😆😆

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2/19/2026 4:02pm
Mossy940 wrote:
He had 15 chances to put Kitchen in the cheap seats in Seattle, yet he rode clean(ish) & provided us the best 250 main any of...

He had 15 chances to put Kitchen in the cheap seats in Seattle, yet he rode clean(ish) & provided us the best 250 main any of us have seen in years.

 

I still think his tactics on Shimoda in Vegas were absolute chickenshit.

I still think his podium speech after Forkner damn near died was appalling.

 

I do however think he is learning (slowly) how to turn down the DangerBoy antics when they're not needed (after the checkers last weekend) & his riding is so damn fun to watch.....

 

Deeg's still has time to chill down the act & let his riding do the talking like this past weekend.

gt80rider wrote:
best main in years is slowing down and barely beating sub-par competition???? that's just retardation... not a great race... LMAOOOO thy cringe lord is dern lucky he's...

best main in years is slowing down and barely beating sub-par competition???? that's just retardation... not a great race... LMAOOOO 

thy cringe lord is dern lucky he's not having to race actual competition like Joe or Davies.... 

 

I was excited about the race for the decades and immediately made a thread here only to get a bunch of people responding like you who were talking shit and claiming Deegan was slowing down to take shots, and show us his full collection of take out moves, etc.  It's well documented in this thread that only small minority here here can appreciate the good racing that it was, and can look past any personality issues one may have with the kid who did nothing wrong in this race:

https://www.vitalmx.com/forums/dumbgeon/you-guys-still-hate-haiden-after?page=0

Meanwhile, it was very interesting to watch this unfold and witness how everyone else who doesn't hate Deegan saw it exactly like us.  I suggest everyone who saw a very skewed version of the the race like you do, watch these level headed guys talk about it, and all the other "race of the year"  race recaps that are out there:

 

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Racerman967
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2/19/2026 4:36pm

He will not race Daytona and risk the championship. Now if he wins the 2 E/W shootouts and clinches early maybe he races one. But I doubt it

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yak651
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2/19/2026 4:44pm
woodsryder wrote:
Not happening. He's going for a sweep of 250W. That's far more important than risking an injury on a 450 that he still needs more time...

Not happening. He's going for a sweep of 250W. That's far more important than risking an injury on a 450 that he still needs more time on.

How is he sweeping the West, he lost the opener?

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wfopete
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2/19/2026 5:07pm
woodsryder wrote:
Not happening. He's going for a sweep of 250W. That's far more important than risking an injury on a 450 that he still needs more time...

Not happening. He's going for a sweep of 250W. That's far more important than risking an injury on a 450 that he still needs more time on.

yak651 wrote:

How is he sweeping the West, he lost the opener?

Maybe he get a throwaway race?  😁

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Johnny Ringo
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2/19/2026 5:35pm
woodsryder wrote:
Not happening. He's going for a sweep of 250W. That's far more important than risking an injury on a 450 that he still needs more time...

Not happening. He's going for a sweep of 250W. That's far more important than risking an injury on a 450 that he still needs more time on.

yak651 wrote:

How is he sweeping the West, he lost the opener?

wfopete wrote:

Maybe he get a throwaway race?  😁

We call that a breakfast ball in golf

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chill014
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2/19/2026 5:42pm Edited Date/Time 2/19/2026 7:32pm
gt80rider wrote:
best main in years is slowing down and barely beating sub-par competition???? that's just retardation... not a great race... LMAOOOO thy cringe lord is dern lucky he's...

best main in years is slowing down and barely beating sub-par competition???? that's just retardation... not a great race... LMAOOOO 

thy cringe lord is dern lucky he's not having to race actual competition like Joe or Davies.... 

 

Jo or Davies? You mean the guys he has already thoroughly dominated? 😂 Kitchen is #2 overall and the shootouts will prove this.

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Hasletjoe
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2/19/2026 5:42pm
Spoonguy wrote:

He is wasting his time in 250s.

He is collecting money and championships.  I think it is a smart move. 

He does clearly look ready to move up though.

Deegan in the past has stated it is all about the money. He would only have to finish 7-9th to equal what he makes in the 250 class.. Guess he gets sizeable bonus for the win on the 250, although he only has half as many races to earn from. 

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super_fan_38
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2/19/2026 8:23pm
mx691 wrote:

If he races Daytona, he will be on the box…

I agree, I would only add that he would be on the top of the box at Daytona because if anyone was honest with themselves, they'd know he'd place P1.

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Juck
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2/19/2026 9:51pm
wfopete wrote:
You won't find many ex or current pro's that dismiss Deegs abilities. If people could put their dislike of his personality behind them and focus on...

You won't find many ex or current pro's that dismiss Deegs abilities. If people could put their dislike of his personality behind them and focus on Deegan's riding skills they could arguably would put him in the top five or even podium of a 450 SX/MX.  The kid is built like a brick and won't turn into a wet noodle on a 450 and that alone puts him in the top 10.   

You think he top 5s in this field of 450sx?

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wfopete
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2/20/2026 1:03am
wfopete wrote:
You won't find many ex or current pro's that dismiss Deegs abilities. If people could put their dislike of his personality behind them and focus on...

You won't find many ex or current pro's that dismiss Deegs abilities. If people could put their dislike of his personality behind them and focus on Deegan's riding skills they could arguably would put him in the top five or even podium of a 450 SX/MX.  The kid is built like a brick and won't turn into a wet noodle on a 450 and that alone puts him in the top 10.   

Juck wrote:

You think he top 5s in this field of 450sx?

I'd give him a better than 50/50 chance.  The top five are tough but I think the lap times of sixth and below are way off the top five numbers.

EZ pickings for Deegan?

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CPR
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2/20/2026 4:16am
woodsryder wrote:
Not happening. He's going for a sweep of 250W. That's far more important than risking an injury on a 450 that he still needs more time...

Not happening. He's going for a sweep of 250W. That's far more important than risking an injury on a 450 that he still needs more time on.

why is it so important? Reed won every race but the final East vs West in Vegas in 2002 (rookie season). No one speaks, remembers or...

why is it so important? Reed won every race but the final East vs West in Vegas in 2002 (rookie season). No one speaks, remembers or cares about that... 
 

Because it didn’t happen. Jesseman won Pontiac.

RC is the only one to sweep a 125 SX series.

That’s right, Reedy did get second to Jesseman in that one. I’ve previously forgotten that myself because Chad came in as a rookie and won six straight. If that happened now, people would lose their minds.

As for Deegan, before this year, he hasn’t exactly been convincing in SX like he has in MX. This year is different, credit where credit is due. With the benefit of hindsight, I reckon they got his transition spot on.

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aees
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2/20/2026 4:22am
wfopete wrote:
You won't find many ex or current pro's that dismiss Deegs abilities. If people could put their dislike of his personality behind them and focus on...

You won't find many ex or current pro's that dismiss Deegs abilities. If people could put their dislike of his personality behind them and focus on Deegan's riding skills they could arguably would put him in the top five or even podium of a 450 SX/MX.  The kid is built like a brick and won't turn into a wet noodle on a 450 and that alone puts him in the top 10.   

Juck wrote:

You think he top 5s in this field of 450sx?

Capabilities wise yes, but we saw in WSX that they had things to work on, on the bike.

So I'm not sure they would have bike dialed for him for one race.

Clutch setup and starts was issue. If he starts 10-15, very difficult.

wfopete
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2/20/2026 4:25am
aees wrote:
Capabilities wise yes, but we saw in WSX that they had things to work on, on the bike.So I'm not sure they would have bike dialed...

Capabilities wise yes, but we saw in WSX that they had things to work on, on the bike.

So I'm not sure they would have bike dialed for him for one race.

Clutch setup and starts was issue. If he starts 10-15, very difficult.

Yeah, but we're talking Daytona here.  

IMO, WSX was a throwaway; most everyone had set up issues.

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kxking
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2/20/2026 10:27am Edited Date/Time 2/20/2026 10:27am

Honest question, is he beating Webb or J.Coop at the test track?

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