Haiden Deegan Fined for Yelling at Hammaker, Going to Kawasaki Pit After Heat Race

Today, the American Motorcyclist Association (AMA) post-race penalty report went public, and not only is Haiden Deegan’s two-position penalty listed for cutting the track, but he is also noted with a code of conduct violation in the heat race. Racer X has learned the fine is a $1,000 for his unsportsmanlike conduct both during the heat race and afterwards when he approached the Kawasaki team truck.

In the first turn of the heat, the Monster Energy Yamaha Star Racing rider had a collision with Seth Hammaker that sent Hammaker down hard and his #43 Kawasaki into the back half of Deegan’s Yamaha. Deegan stayed up but could not proceed with his competitor’s bike jammed into his rear wheel, so he had to jump off and untangle the two machines. Hammaker got up and made his way over to the tangled bikes to receive finger pointing and repeated yelling from Deegan. Once the two bikes were untangled, Deegan pushed Hammaker’s Kawasaki to the ground then remounted his own bike and took off. Hammaker got going again seconds later, but the damage was done for both riders, as they would have to go to the LCQ, both finishing outside the top 15 and well outside of a transfer spot.

After the heat race, a TV broadcast camera picked up Deegan, helmet still on, walking towards the Monster Energy/Pro Circuit Kawasaki team semi yelling and again pointing fingers at Hammaker. Several team members of the Kawasaki team (and Hammaker’s mother!) diffused the situation and told Deegan to leave their pit area before it escalated to anything past yelling.

Come the main event, Deegan went off the track in the second turn on the opening lap, skipping a big double and half of the following turn—which he received a two-position penalty for. Then on the last lap of the race, the #38 had one more on-track incident as he block passed Coty Schock off the track in the final turn. Schock broke his collarbone in the incident in the final turn, which will knock him out for the immediate future as he will undergo surgery this week.

Here’s a statement from Deegan via this week’s Yamaha press release:

“Birmingham didn’t go as planned. I will always ride with heart. I’m sorry the emotions got the best of me tonight. We’ll get back to work and come out swinging in Indy.”

Note, this is not the first time the #38 has been on the AMA’s penalty report this year. After giving the finger to Tom Vialle at the opening round after the wild first turn crash, the second generation rider received a warning. Then, he received a code of conduct violation for his ghost-ride bike launch after his maiden 250SX main event win in Arlington, Texas. He was not fined for either of those events. This incident with Hammaker in Alabama is now Deegan’s second code of conduct violation. The AMA does have the ability to put riders on probation, as we have seen repeat offenders end up on six-month probation through the end of the supercross season. So far that does not appear to be the case for Deegan.

The post-race penalty report is below.