A spectacular first win in the AMA Supercross Championship was earned by Tom Vialle at Daytona International Speedway tonight, the Red Bull KTM Factory Racing 250SX East contender breaking through in challenging conditions at the world-famous venue. Round 8 also saw Chase Sexton finish on the podium, claiming second position in the 450SX Main Event.
Two-time MX2 World Champion Vialle moved to the U.S. full-time last season and raced to a first Supercross podium just one week ago in Arlington, now becoming a race winner onboard his KTM 250 SX-F FACTORY EDITION.
The 23-year-old Frenchman qualified third fastest this afternoon and then was second in his Heat Race to keep the momentum going into the night program. Vialle was third at the conclusion of the opening lap of the Main Event and then took charge on lap five, going on to win by 4.997 seconds. As a result, he's moved to within three points of the series lead.
Tom Vialle: "It was nice to grab the win after having my first podium last week and now my first victory here in Daytona. The track was tough, but I actually feel good. I didn't have a great start, but I passed a lot of guys and it feels so good – it's amazing to win. I want to thank my team and everybody who works with me and supports me. It's amazing to race at Daytona and to get this result!"
Daytona was also a positive outing for defending 450SX Champion Sexton, qualifying second in the single session held during the afternoon and then racing to second in his Heat despite a crash while challenging for the lead. He factored at the front once again in the Main Event, leading the opening four laps until eventually taking the checkered flag in third position aboard the KTM 450 SX-F FACTORY EDITION. Sexton has climbed to P3 in the standings, currently 13 points outside of the red plate.
Chase Sexton: "This is definitely a step in the right direction. I've had a rough couple of weeks with my hand being hurt, but tonight was good. Overall, this is another building block and we'll go back to work this week. I finally got to ride between races this past week with my hand and we're not done yet, just gotta keep building and keep moving forward."
This weekend marked the most difficult of the season for teammate Aaron Plessinger after he crashed heavily in the Main Event. His day started with promise, setting the eighth quickest lap in qualifying and then scoring P3 in his Heat, however, a crash while running sixth in the Main Event ended his hopes of a strong result, eventually salvaging four points for 18th position.
Aaron Plessinger: "Daytona was an interesting one. I was feeling good all day and then the rain came, got a little muddy, and the track was already soft, so that added to it. The Heat was good, caught a flow on my way to third, and then the Main Event was going well also, until it wasn't. I was running around fifth or sixth, hit a soft spot on the face of a jump, and had to bail over the bars. I got up, the bike was all twisted so I pulled in, went back out, and then rolled around to save some points. Overall, we're going into next weekend to race and we're going to push on. I'm looking forward to Birmingham, it's gonna be a good one."
Next Race: March 9 – Birmingham, Alabama
Results 450SX Class – Daytona
1. Jett Lawrence (AUS), Honda
2. Eli Tomac (USA), Yamaha
3. Chase Sexton (USA), KTM
OTHER KTM
18. Aaron Plessinger (USA), KTM
Standings 450SX Class 2024 after 8 of 17 rounds
1. Jett Lawrence, 160 points
2. Cooper Webb, 150
3. Chase Sexton, 147
OTHER KTM
6. Aaron Plessinger, 132
Results 250SX East Class – Daytona
1. Tom Vialle (FRA), KTM
2. Cameron McAdoo (USA), Kawasaki
3. Seth Hammaker (USA), Kawasaki
Standings 250SX East Class 2024 after 3 of 9 rounds
1. Max Anstie, 52 points
2. Cameron McAdoo, 51
3. Pierce Brown, 51
4. Tom Vialle, 49