Pierce Brown Scores Emotional 250SX Victory in Arlington
Monster Energy Yamaha Star Racing’s Pierce Brown earns an epic comeback win at the 250SX East opener, capturing his first career victory in the class. / Feb 23, 2026 /
There’s no better way to illustrate the highs and lows of racing than the year Pierce Brown has endured. From a devastating crash while leading the 2025 Monster Energy AMA Supercross 250SX East season opener in Tampa that sidelined him for nearly the entire season, to standing atop the podium Saturday night at AT&T Stadium — the journey came full circle at Arlington Supercross.
“A lot, that’s for sure,” Brown said about the emotions he was feeling. “There were so many nights that I didn't think this would be possible. Missing a year, especially with the injury I had… It’s a scary thing to come back from, and there were a lot of doubts. I’m just thankful that I never stopped fighting. Every day we put our best foot forward. Wow, I don’t even know where to start. This is amazing.”
Brown started the day off as the fastest qualifier, but then had a lackluster heat race, finding himself ninth early before charging back to fourth. The Monster Energy Yamaha Star Racing rider reset for the main event, and when the gate dropped, he delivered. A strong start put him in the runner-up spot early, and by Lap 6, he had made his move into the lead. From there, Brown controlled the race to secure his first Monster Energy AMA Supercross victory and his first win with the team.
“I qualified first and then had a subpar heat race and ended up fourth, so we just had to shake some things out for the main,” Brown said. “I had a really good start in the main, and ended up getting by Jo (Shimoda) and then just rode it on to the win. A first supercross win for me, and with the team, it feels really good.”
It was a rollercoaster day for the Monster Energy Yamaha Star Racing team as a whole. The four-rider East Coast squad had pretty much picked up where they left off in the Western Divisional 250 class – dominating the competition. Then it all sort of went pear-shaped with three of the four-rider squad on the ground in the first turn of the main event.
At the center of that chaos was Cole Davies, who responded with an impressive charge back through the field. In just his second season of Monster Energy AMA Supercross, the 18-year-old showed top form all day, qualifying just shy of the top spot and winning his heat race in commanding fashion after moving into the lead early. Finding himself on the ground after the start of the main event, he made an impressive charge to eighth in the first half of the race, and then threw down some fast laps to make his way through fifth.
“The season opener is done and dusted,” said Davies. “The day went to plan. I felt comfortable in both qualifying sessions and got the Heat Race win. Unfortunately, with a crash in the first turn, I had my work cut out for me, but I’m proud of how we fought back to fifth. The bike felt solid all day, especially through the whoops where we made most of our passes. We had the speed to win, now we just need to execute. A big thanks to the team for giving me the tools to battle up front. Now onto Daytona.”
Nate Thrasher also showed resilience. He qualified 10th and didn’t get a great start to his heat race, but charged his way through to the runner-up spot, and rode on to finish there comfortably. Unfortunately, he was collected in the first-turn crash and found himself at the back of the field. From there, he did what he could to salvage some points, coming back from last to finish 11th.
“Round one is done,” said Thrasher. “I felt really good in the heat race, but the main was not my best. I have to get off the gate better and not put myself in that position. The bike was bent up after the crash, but we tried our best. It’s not over. We have a lot of racing to go. I have to come out next weekend with one mindset.”
Making his professional debut in Arlington was 16-year-old Caden Dudney. The Texan impressed early, finishing near the top of the combined qualifying times and grabbing the holeshot in his heat race before finishing fourth. In the main event, he was caught behind the first-turn chaos and fought back from 19th to 13th.
“Arlington was good to me, even though the main wasn’t exactly what I wanted,” said Dudney. “I can’t put myself in that position off the start again, but it’s a big learning curve, and there were a lot of positives to take away from it. My riding was great all day long. I had fun, and I’m ready to do it again next weekend.”
“It was an awesome opener for the team,” said Wil Hahn, Monster Energy Yamaha Star Racing’s 250 Team General Manager. “PB (Pierce Brown) getting redemption for last year, after 12 months off, was amazing. Cole rode his butt off to get back to the top five after the first-turn crash. Nate and Caden were down for a long time in the first turn and salvaged the best result they could. We’re looking forward to Daytona.”
Next weekend, the team heads to Daytona Beach, Florida, for Round 2 of the Monster Energy AMA Supercross 250SX East Championship at the legendary Daytona International Speedway on February 28.