What happens in Vegas could affect the biggest moments of your career.

Haiden Deegan’s aggressive tactics proved exactly that, as he and Jo Shimoda crashed just as the clock reaches four minutes remaining in Moto 2 of the final race of the SMX World Championship at The Strip at Las Vegas Motor Speedway.

And one could say that Deegan had half a million things on his mind. The champion in the 250 division wins $500,000 in prize money, and last weekend, Deegan had that in jeopardy after he and Levi Kitchen crashed in the second turn during Moto 2 in St. Louis.

But there should be another half a million things on his mind as well. Deegan was originally slated to be one of the three entries for this year’s Motocross of Nations next month at Ironman Raceway, a track where Deegan won both motos and the overall in Pro Motocross last month.

Granted, that was in the 250 division. This would also be his first professional event graduating to the premiere 450 class, with a balanced schedule between both bikes in 2026, only meaning that the couple months of off-season training would be crucial to prepare himself for a bike with twice the power.

Now, he sits on a couch for the next several weeks in a sling.

Jo Shimoda and Haiden Deegan crash while battling for the lead in 250 Moto 2.
Deegan would not continue and appears to have injured his shoulder.
The AMA announced after the race they would investigate the collision for reckless riding. pic.twitter.com/LlUMimsosc

— Justin Schuoler (@JSchuoler) September 21, 2025

Instead of using his skills to ride into the sunset and dominate the second moto, he injures himself playing his own game.

Looking at the top riders in the 450 class, that’s a mind game that will never succeed.

“His dad Brian talked exactly about this scenario with me,” said NBC Sports reporter Will Christien during the live Peacock broadcast. “He said, ‘All I want is for him to stay healthy through this.’ It’s not worth the injury. It’s not worth setting back next season or Motocross of Nations. This is obviously the very last thing that they wanted in this scenario.”

Other industry members took to social media to voice similar opinions as well.

Just so weird to me. If you’re Deegan, why not just ride and smoke everyone. Lose the series but everyone knows you’re the guy. Make no enemies and dont look douchey. Race MXoN and be Captain America?

— MXG (@MXGRyan) September 21, 2025

“Just so weird to me,” said MXG on Twitter. “If you’re Deegan, why not just ride and smoke everyone. Lose the series but everyone knows you’re the guy. Make no enemies and dont look douchey. Race MXoN and be Captain America?”

“Kids, let this be a lesson to you–if you can’t win the right way, try to win it (expletive) way and then when [that] doesn’t work, just quit I guess,” PulpMX host Steve Matthes sarcastically said.

“Play stupid games, win stupid prizes 🤷‍♂️🤷‍♂️🤷‍♂️,” Justin Starling tweeted.

Play stupid games, win stupid prizes 🤷‍♂️🤷‍♂️🤷‍♂️

— Justin Starling (@JustinStarling_) September 21, 2025

Even earlier that night, Deegan was the aggressor in a collision with Ryder DiFrancesco. While it wasn’t any fault of Deegan’s as DiFrancesco washed out entering the sand section, some may consider the aggressive riding of Deegan to be over the line that could have avoided this crash that ended DiFrancesco’s night early.

After the race, the AMA posted they would review the incident for a potential penalty for reckless riding. Deegan already has a written warning from earlier this year after crashing into teammate Cole Davies at Denver, which per the AMA rulebook, could result in a points penalty. The Playoffs also add an additional factor to penalties, concluding that since Las Vegas was a triple points night, the points penalty and fine could also become three-fold.

BREAKING: Haiden Deegan suffers a broken collarbone from his Moto 2 crash with Jo Shimoda.

— Justin Schuoler (@JSchuoler) September 21, 2025

Even more regarding AMA penalties? Seth Hammaker lost the SMX World Championship to Shimoda by a mere five points, the same amount he was penalized from Round 1 in Charlotte for jumping on a red cross flag. But instead of playing with his food, Hammaker would go out and win the last moto of 2025, taking the checkered flag in Moto 2 of the 250 class at Las Vegas.

“[Hammaker’s] proving himself to be a force to be reckoned with,” said seven-time SMX champion and current Peacock broadcaster James Stewart.

Some lessons are learned the hard way. It’s not to say Deegan needs to slow down. If anything, he should keep training to ride faster and smoother. It’s not to say Deegan should choose better words during his interviews, aside from his fine from Denver, or change his personality. It’s not because he can’t or because he won’t learn lessons like these, but because the premiere class demands it.

The premiere class is smarter than that, and that’s why it’s filled with champions across the gate.

Related: Watch: Vegas SuperMotocross Qualifying | Jordon Smith Goes For a Wild Ride!

This story was originally reported by Motocross (Deprecated) on Sep 21, 2025, where it first appeared in the NEWS section. Add Motocross (Deprecated) as a Preferred Source by clicking here.

#Opinion #Haiden #Deegan #Refuses #Bigger #Picture