Cole Davies returned to his Yamaha YZ250F with Yamaha Star Racing support, just months after breaking his arm and nose in the final round of the 2025 Supercross 250SX Championship in May.
Arriving under the bright lights of Salt Lake City’s Rice-Eccles Stadium, Davies was chasing redemption following his controversial clash with teammate and newly crowned champion, Haiden Deegan the week prior. But just as his comeback started to take shape, fate intervened.
Davies opened the weekend with intent, topping Free Practice 1 by three-tenths over Deegan and making it clear he was ready to settle unfinished business.
Qualifying 1, however, brought an unexpected and gut-wrenching turn. With pace to run near the front, Davies had set the fastest qualifying time when a small error caused him to lose his footing and slow briefly on track.
In a cruel twist of fate, Jordan Smith, arriving at full speed, collided with Davies from behind, the front wheel of Smith’s machine slamming into the Kiwi and sending both riders cartwheeling off their bikes in a violent crash.
In a bittersweet moment during the night program, Davies was announced as the 2025 250SX Rookie of the Year, an accolade well-deserved after a season filled with podium performances, fearless riding, and an unmistakable spark of future stardom.
After three months of recovery and gradually building back into form, Davies made his AMA Pro Motocross Championship debut at the Unadilla National on August 16. While the results weren’t what the young Kiwi had hoped for, it was a positive step in his comeback as he regained confidence and strength, bringing his Yamaha home 23rd in both motos.
“First weekend back is done and dusted. It’s not the result we wanted, but it’s good to get some gate drops and leave Unadilla healthy. We’ll keep progressing and set our sights on Budds Creek.” said Davies
Fast forward to last weekend, and Davies lined up for the Budds Creek National in Maryland, Round 10 and the season finale of the 2025 AMA Pro Motocross Championship, joining fellow Kiwi Brodie Connolly, who was aboard his Honda CRF250R.
In just his second Pro Motocross start, and his first taste of the challenging Budds Creek circuit, Davies wasted no time making an impression. He qualified an impressive 11th before carrying that momentum into the motos.
The opening race was red-flagged less than a lap in, but not before chaos unfolded. Several riders, including frontrunners Haiden Deegan and Jo Shimoda were penalised for jumping the uphill double past the mechanics’ area despite red and red-cross flags being shown.
On the restart, Davies slotted into second behind Tom Vialle. When Vialle made a small mistake, Davies briefly took control at the front, only to be reeled in by Deegan and Shimoda as the race developed.
The young Kiwi still crossed the line an impressive third in just his third Pro Motocross moto. But post-race penalties soon turned the result on its head. First, Shimoda was dropped from second to third, before Deegan was relegated from the win to second, elevating Davies to a stunning maiden moto victory in only his third AMA start.
The second moto proved more difficult. A poor launch off the gate left Davies buried in the pack, and despite pushing hard, he was unable to recover. He crossed the line 17th as the final rider on the lead lap, securing seventh overall for the weekend.
“I’m a Pro Motocross winner. It’s not the way you’d expect to get your first win, after Haiden and Jo were penalised, but that first moto was good overall. It’s definitely a step in the right direction after coming in at Unadilla,” said Davies
“Honestly, what a start can do is pretty crazy. I got off to a good start in Moto 1 and led for about half the race, which was very cool. In Moto 2, I had nothing left to give. A bad start set me back. I made a couple of passes but went down again.
“For my third Pro Motocross race, I’ll take it. After 12 weeks off after my surgery, it’s a solid bounce back. We know what we need to work on. The weekend was definitely a step in the right direction.”
Davies now turns his attention to the upcoming SuperMotocross World Championship, which kicks off on September 6 at Charlotte Motor Speedway.
For fellow Kiwi Brodie Connolly, Budds Creek was a tougher outing. Fresh off his back-to-back MX2 Championship titles, he finished 37th a couple of laps down in Moto 1 and did not start the second race, leaving him 41st overall.
A week earlier at the Unadilla National, Connolly had placed 16th and 21st for 20th overall. His AMA Motocross debut came at the Ironman National earlier in August, where he logged 26th and 22nd finishes to end the weekend 27th overall.
Connolly is also expected to join the SuperMotocross World Championship field with Honda. Team principal Martin Davalos hinted at the move after Unadilla, though an official announcement is still pending.
After openly stating his ambition to race in America following his double MX2 crowns, Connolly’s opportunity has now arrived, setting up the prospect of two Kiwis, Connolly and Davies, going head-to-head on the world stage.
Header Image: Coledaviesnz.com
