Jo Shimoda Wins 250 MX National at Ironman

The final chapter of the 2023 AMA Pro Motocross Championship was written in Crawfordsville, Ind., over the weekend with Monster Energy racer Jo Shimoda (Pro Circuit/Kawasaki) recording victory in the 250 class, while Monster Energy’s Haiden Deegan (Star Racing/Yamaha) and Chase Sexton (Honda) recorded runner-up finishes in the 250 and 450 classes, respectively, at the Ironman MX National.

Overall on the MX Nationals’ season, Monster Energy would land three racers on their respective class podiums, with Dylan Ferrandis (Star Racing/Yamaha) earning the runner-up spot in the 450 class, while Justin Cooper (Star Racing/Yamaha) nailed the runner-up position in the 250 class, followed by Shimoda in 3rd place podium position.

At the Ironman it’d be Shimoda’s 1-1 effort, leading to his third career victory, that’d highlight Monster Energy’s effort at the season finale. Deegan, as well, who’d recently been named as the AMA “Rookie of the Year,” also ran very well as he topped former MXGP World Champion Tom Vialle (KTM) for 2nd place in the 250 class with a 2-3 effort on the day.

Said Shimoda: “I’m so happy to end the last race like this. I got two good starts, and it turned into a 1-1. It’s been a long, great season, and I’m excited for the SMX (SuperMotocross) rounds.”

Added Deegan: “This year’s been crazy. To be honest, I woke up sick as a dog, but there ain’t no quit in me. I’m going to fight until the end./ This year’s been hard, but I never gave up. I’m going to go home, work my butt off, and come back swinging next year.”

On the 450s, Sexton brought in yet another 2-2 finish for 2nd, with Monster Energy/Kawasaki’s Jason Anderson (4th) and Adam Cianciarulo (5th) rounding out the top five.

Said Sexton regarding Jett Lawrence’s effort, and his comeback from injury this season: “Jett upped the game a bit. I had to play catch up when I came back, but then he got better. You haven’t seen the last of me winning. I’m determined to come back stronger next season.”

Ironman MX

450 class results                                                   250

2nd - Sexton (Monster/Honda)                              1st - Shimoda (Monster/PC/Kawasaki)

4th - Anderson (Monster/Kawasaki)                      2nd - Deegan (Monster/Star/Yamaha)

5th - Cianciarulo (Monster/Kawasaki)                   4th - Cooper (Monster/Star/Yamaha)

FINAL Overall Standings (11 of 11 rounds)

450 class                                                               250

2nd - Ferrandis, 399 points                                   2nd - Cooper, 399 points

4th - Sexton, 338 points                                        3rd - Shimoda, 393 points

5th - Sexton, 328 points                                        4th - Haiden Deegan, 371 points

450

Moto 1

Sexton pulled a good start, 3rd place, trailing leader Lawrence and 2nd place Aaron Plessinger (KTM). … By lap two Sexton had set up, then passed Plessinger for 2nd place, with Cianciarulo (4th) and Anderson (5th) giving chase. … Sexton, in his pursuit of his teammate Lawrence, would put up several of the fastest laps of the race as the two Honda racers distanced themselves from the rest of the pack. … With Lawrence up on Sexton by a variety of seconds – anywhere from four to nine (seconds) – Anderson would make his move from 5th, past Cianciarulo, then onto – and past – Plessinger for the third and final podium spot in Moto 1. … With fans at the Ironman transfixed on the battle near the front, Ferrandis put on a furious charge from his 9th place start, all the way up to 3rd – past Anderson. … At the checkers, Sexton would cut the gap on Lawrence, who clocked in at 5.8 seconds out front of Sexton. Ferrandis was well back in 3rd, with Anderson in 4th – giving Monster Energy two podium spots and three in the top five.

Moto 2

A determined Ferrandis came ripping out of the starting gate to grab the MotoSport.com Holeshot in Moto 2, with Sexton out quickly again in 3rd place. …  What looked to be an excellent second moto for Ferrandis, and likely overall podium finish, came crashing down when the French rider wadded up several turns after the start – ending his day. … With Sexton inheriting 2nd, he took off after Lawrence, who had about 4 seconds on Sexton as the race neared the midway point. … Sexton would punch the clock and began to reel in Lawrence, taking advantage of some lapped traffic to cut the 450 class champ’s lead down to three seconds, then 1.4 seconds with five minutes left in the moto. … That lead time would yo-yo a bit in the final laps of the moto, with Lawrence taking the win over Sexton by 1.7 seconds. Anderson would place 4th, for 4th overall (4-4) with Cianciarulo placing 6th, for 5th overall (6-6).

250 

Moto 1

Monster Energy’s Ryder DiFrancesco got things rolling in the opening moto at the Ironman MX National, pulling the MotoSport.com Holeshot ahead of Vialle, Monster Energy/Pro Circuit/Kawasaki’s Seth Hammaker and Shimoda. But collected in a first turn crash was Cooper, who rolled around in 31st place after the opening lap. … DiFrancesco would buckle down and put in some of the most competitive laps he’s run all summer, leading the opening 250 moto for the first nine minutes. Vialle would then make a move past DiFrancesco, as would his teammate, Shimoda. … On Lap 6 Deegan would join the frontrunners, passing DiFrancesco for 3rd and setting his sites on Shimoda and Vialle. … With about a second-and-a-half separating the three aforementioned racers, Shimoda struck first – passing Vialle for the lead on Lap 8. Deegan was next, getting past the former world champ (Vialle) on Lap 10 and looking to reel in Shimoda, who had just over a two second lead with around 11 minutes remaining in the moto. … For the remainder of the moto Shimoda would flat out not be denied as he increased his lead over Deegan to 7.3 seconds, extending it to 7.6 at the checkers. Deegan would place 2nd, with Monster Energy/Pro Circuit/Kawasaki’s Austin Forkner continuing to impress on his comeback trail, placing 4th.

Moto 2

DiFrancesco would nail his second holeshot of the day, with Shimoda glued to his side through the opening turn. Monster Energy/Star Racing/Yamaha’s Levi Kitchen would rally from a 24th place start in the opening moto, coming out in 3rd. … Kitchen would then quickly burn past Shimoda, and looked ahead to DiFrancesco – only to get passed back by Shimoda on Lap 4. … With DiFrancesco in 1st, Shimoda in 2nd and Kitchen in 3rd, the podium position racers moved out front of 4th place by more than five seconds. … DiFrancesco was riding his best of the season up front, leading through Lap 6, before it was time for Shimoda to shine – his pass for 1st setting up a battle with Kitchen, who would also get by DiFrancesco on the following lap. … With the stage set for and all-out Monster Energy Shimoda vs. Kitchen battle for Moto 2 supremacy, Kitchen would suffer a crash – and had to exit the moto with around 10 minutes to go. Shimoda would cruise to victory at that point, 2.1 seconds ahead of a hard-charging Cooper, with Deegan beating Vialle to the tape for 3rd – and 2nd place overall.

Notes & Quotes

• Sexton’s 2nd place at the Ironman MX National, his sixth 2nd place effort on the season, gave him seven podium finishes in eight races (following missing three races due to injury).
• As we shift into the SuperMotocross World Championship (SMX) season, Sexton, with help from his 2023 Monster Energy AMA Supercross championship, will be the No. 1 seeded 450 class racer headed into the opening SMX round in North Carolina (Sept. 9).
• Great news for Team Monster Energy/Pro Circuit/Kawasaki as Shimoda’s Ironman victory staved off the notable factory racing program’s first winless season since 1981. Noteworthy was the fact that the 2023 season was seemingly ruled by an inordinate amount of rider injuries to the team.
• Cooper’s effort on the season earned him his fourth overall career podium finish, with a 2nd place runner-up effort in the 250 championship points chase. Cooper, much like Sexton, had six runner-up finishes this summer.
• Monster Energy would place six racers in the top ten of the Ironman’s 250 class. Joining Shimoda (1st) and Deegan (2nd) were Cooper (4th), DiFrancesco (6th), Hammaker (9th) and Stilez Robertson (Star Racing/Yamaha) in 10th.
• 450 qualifiers up front at the Ironman included Sexton in 2nd, Ferrandis in 3rd – just ahead of Anderson (4th). 250’s top qualifier was Kitchen (1st), with Deegan in 2nd and Hammaker in 3rd.
• Rookie Daxton Bennick (Monster Energy/Star Racing/Yamaha) continues to race well, overcoming a 20th place opening moto finish to place 7th in the second moto (for 12th overall).
• Nice work from Anderson, coming back from injury to five consecutive top five moto finishes.
• Also battling back at Ironman was Deegan – from the flu and accompanying symptoms. Deegan was quoted as saying his 2nd place overall finish was for “The first loser.” Regardless, he takes the No. 2 seed into SMX, one click back of 250 outdoor champ Hunter Lawrence.