The Monster Energy AMA Amateur National Championship at Loretta Lynn’s Ranch concluded on August 6th, but one story keeps growing and building: Monster Energy Yamaha Star Racing’s Haiden Deegan had his bike claimed by another racer, Brennan Schofield (claiming means purchasing someone else’s bike, which is actually a part of the AMA rulebook). Later that same day, Schofield withdrew the claim. No one knew exactly why he changed his mind, until Schofield did an interview with Tyler Livesay on Livesay’s YouTube Channel on Friday. This blew the lid off the story, and now several others involved, including Schofield himself, have spoken to Michael Lindsay of Vital MX and Steve Matthes of PulpMX.
For those both familiar with this story or not, here’s the information we’ve been able to collect based on all of these interviews. In full disclosure, MX Sports, promoters of the Loretta Lynn’s event, is a sister company of Racer X.
When and How Did This Happen: The AMA amateur rulebook contains a “claiming rule” that states any rider in a class can choose to purchase another rider’s bike for double the MSRP. The rule is in place to discourage riders from racing extremely expensive or exotic bikes. If you’re not prepared to lose a bike for double the MSRP, then you shouldn’t race it.
On Friday afternoon, after the final 250 B moto of the week, 250 B rider Brennan Schofield chose to put a claim on Haiden Deegan’s bike, which is a Yamaha YZ250F. Double the MSRP of that would be $17,500. Schofield followed all the procedures correctly. He had $17,500 cash, and he showed up to the office trailer where the MX Sports and AMA staff are located, within the 30-minute time window after results from the race are posted. The bike was going to be his.
Schofield said he would like to make a YouTube video with the bike and race it in the following weekend’s TransCan event in Walton, Canada (which would have been a sight to see). He said he saved up the $17,500 by working on bikes at the training facility where he rides, Matt Walker’s Moto-X Compound. Some suspect Schofield’s engine builder, Derek Harris, was behind the claim and wanted to tear down the Star bike and learn from it. But none of that matters. Schofield could light the bike on fire if he wanted to. It was his to keep as long as he provided the $17,500. The intent doesn’t matter.
What Happens to Deegan’s bike after that: There was one issue: Deegan still had another moto to run on that same bike in the Schoolboy 2 class on Saturday. Schofield was not in that class, so if he wanted to claim the bike, he had to do it after the Friday 250 B moto. Because Deegan needed to race one more time, the bike would be “impounded,” taken away from Deegan’s Star Yamaha team and held in a neutral site.
In this case, MX Sport’s Loretta’s Race Director Tim Cotter and AMA Amateur Manager Mike Burkeen had to get the bike from Star. They allowed the Star team to perform maintenance on the bike to prepare it for the Saturday moto. The team washed the bike, and that was supervised. The Star team asked if it could change engines for the third moto. Cotter and Burkeen said they could swap engines, but only if the original 250 B engine, which Schofield gets to keep in the claim, was tagged and sealed, and then put back into the bike after the Saturday moto.
MX Sports official Tim McAdams supervised the engine swap and the tagging of all the seals so parts could not be changed internally. MX Sports Security’s John Knox watched over the whole process to make sure Star didn’t try to switch bikes or change parts. Then the bike was impounded in Cotter’s camper, across from the office. The bike was Schofield’s to keep as soon as Deegan raced his final moto on Saturday.
What Is Inside Deegan’s Bike: It’s obvious why Schofield would want to do this—anyone on Earth would want that Star Yamaha race bike for just $17,500. But is Deegan’s bike an actual “factory” level machine just like the pros race in Lucas Oil AMA Pro Motocross? We talked to Star Racing 250 Team Owner Bobby Regan at Unadilla, and he says that while Deegan was not on a “pro” bike, the engine is built using internal parts from specific suppliers, and the team doesn’t want anyone to know who those suppliers are. Regan says there are markings on some of the parts that would allow someone to figure out who builds the parts. Regan told me that in the future, the team might consider shaving the markings off those internal parts.
Was Deegan’s Bike Illegal: No one, not even Schofield, said the bike was illegal. A claim is a way to purchase the bike for double the MSRP, not to get someone disqualified. Star says Deegan did not have a full pro bike, but even full pro bikes are legal to race at Loretta’s. Of course, you run the risk of that bike being claimed for pennies of its value…
Where Were Schofield’s Parents: When Schofield, 17, approached the MX Sports office, he was not with a parent and only accompanied by his engine builder, Derek Harris. Cotter and Burkeen asked where his parents were, and the reply was that his father was “not here.” Cotter and Burkeen took that to mean the father was not actually at the race. They later learned that he was, apparently, on the property, and washing Schofield’s bike after the moto.
“My dad was like, 'I gotta go get some water for the pressure washer' so he took off in the truck to get some water,” explained Schofield to Vital MX. “My mom was actually watching a friend who had a moto after me. I was at the camper by myself. Then Derek [Harris, engine builder] actually came over at the camper, we were talking about how the moto went and how the bike was working. I said, 'Dude I gotta get over and do this claim, I only have 30 minutes.' He had brought his golf cart over so I asked if he would mind giving me a ride over.”
“I kind of agonized a little bit, should I send him back to go get his parents?” said the AMA’s Burkeen to Michael Lindsay of Vital MX. “But I kinda had the impression, when he said they’re not here, that they weren’t there at all at the event. But then his father did come over later. So now that I know that situation, if I had to do it over, I would have probably said, 'Where are they?' and tried to get his parents involved. But it’s kind of damned if you do, damned if you don’t. If you tell the kid he can’t claim the bike without his parents, then everyone says you tried to deny the kid the right to claim the bike, and that’s not in the rulebook [that a parent must be present.]”
Burkeen was also worried if that anything took too long, the 30-minutes-after-results-were-posted window to claim the bike would have passed.
“The last thing we need is for someone to say that the AMA wouldn’t let this kid claim a bike,” says Burkeen. “That’s not the way the rule works [it does not require a parent to be present]. I promise you next year that the rule will say you need to be of age of have or have your parent or guardian with you to do the claim. But it’s not in there [the rulebook] today, this year, so we really didn’t have any choice but to accept it.”
Why is MX Sports (The Promoter) Involved and Not Just the AMA: Says MX Sports’ Tim Cotter to VitalMX: “It would [a claim] always go to the organizer who has an officiating team. We’re sanctioned by the AMA, but we have officials, I’m one of many officials that we have there. The AMA, because it’s the national championship, they have their management team there as well. It’s kind of the best of both worlds because it’s Loretta’s. If this had happened at an Area Qualifier, a Regional or any AMA race, for that matter, it’s the organizer that’s going to receive the claim, or the request [for a claim], and act on it.”
Why Wouldn’t the AMA Just Handle all of the Officiating Itself: It takes a big staff to officiate every AMA-sanctioned race in the country, or one big race like Loretta’s. So, the promoter handles some of the officiating staff, and the two sides work together.
Why Does Brian Deegan Get Involved: In Schofield’s original interview with Tyler Livesay, he speaks of being locked in a room with Cotter and Brian Deegan [Haiden’s father] for 30 minutes. He then did an interview this week with Vital MX and his stance softened, saying Deegan asked him questions and Cotter mostly sat there and listened. The AMA’s Burkeen says he was also in the room.
“I think Brian Deegan came over when they were getting the bike ready,” said Schofield. “I wasn’t expecting to talk to him at all. I was just in the room with the AMA officials and staff, and then Tim Cotter came in and said to come into the back room with Brian Deegan so we can talk about it. Obviously, Brian was mad, I think anyone would have been mad about getting a bike claimed.
“He didn’t say much,” said Scofield. “He just asked me why I was doing it and if I was trying to defame his family on YouTube. He asked me who was behind it and whose money. Tim Cotter just sat there and kind of listened and asked the same.”
Cotter and Burkeen say the conversation lasted three to five minutes. Scofield says the conversation lasted 30 minutes.
Why Would Cotter Allow Deegan to Have a Conversation with Scofield: “Brian showed up and said, 'Hey, you’re taking my bike? Can I talk to the kid?' said Cotter to Vital MX. “And Mike Burkeen was there. I said, 'Yeah, I think that’s fair. It’s your bike.'"
“Brian, I think was very cordial,” said Cotter. “He asked why, and Mr. Schofield said, 'Well, I want to make a video of it.' Brian asked, 'Are you going to defame my family?' And Mr. Schofield said, 'Absolutely not, I have a lot of respect for your family.' And that was it. We were in there three or five minutes, whatever, and it was very cordial. Mr. Schofield was very polite, and he had his story [for Brian] and it was exactly the story he had [for us] to begin with. It really didn’t last very long. And it was not ugly.”
In hindsight, Cotter and Burkeen should have asked Schofield his age, and after finding out he was 17, they should have demanded he bring a parent up to the trailer with him. Burkeen has also said, in hindsight, that they shouldn’t have let Deegan talk to Schofield. While Deegan was respectful and the conversation didn’t last long, it could have gone in a completely different direction. It could have gotten ugly. Cotter should have considered all of this before allowing Deegan to speak with Schofield.
Did the Deegan Conversation Result in Schofield Deciding Not to Claim the Bike: No. Deegan asked Schofield his questions and then left the trailer. That’s the last time Deegan spoke to Schofield. Schofield did not pull the claim after that meeting. After the meeting with Deegan, the claim was still in place, and the AMA and MX Sports staff still collected the bike from Star.
Did MX Sports or the AMA Try to Change Schofield’s Mind: No. Even after the meeting with Deegan, AMA and MX Sports staff still collected the bike from Star. At that point, it was over. Schofield was going to get the bike as soon as Deegan’s final moto was over.
What Made Schofield Change His Mind: Said Schofield to Michael Lindsay of Vital MX: “Number one would be, we’re not sure how or who is behind this one, but somehow my main sponsor, that supports me with bikes, got contacted and their dealership got threatened by Yamaha. That’s the reason I pulled back the claim.”
What’s Yamaha’s Response to That Accusation: There is no verification of Yamaha actually threatening the dealer that supports Schofield and provides him with bikes. Representatives from Yamaha Canada have said they were not contacted by anyone from Yamaha in the U.S.
Donnie Luce from Yamaha said it this way: “This is all new territory to me. We know the rule is out there and we support the rule, but this is all new to me. So, I took the initiative to ask Brian [Deegan] if he knew the rider’s name. He told me the rider’s name and he said he was trained by Matt Walker. Walker’s space was right up the hill, so I headed up there and that’s where this all started. I went up to Matt to get a little more insight on the rider. It kind of evolved from there, it was a generic conversation with Matt to figure out what was going on. It quickly spooled up to something much bigger than I thought it would be.”
Brennan rides Yamahas and had been having engine problems during his training leading up to Loretta’s. Luce asked what the problems were and offered help with parts and engines via Yamaha’s trackside amateur support. He even offered Schofield a chance to ride a factory Star Racing Yamaha at the GOAT Farm in Florida—which Luce admits he isn’t really in charge of, because that would be Star’s decision, not his. But he still tried to offer it.
The Sponsor Approaches the MX Sports Trailer: “We got a knock at the door from a gentleman who says he’s Mr. Schofield’s sponsor,” says Cotter. “He said to us, 'I don’t want this to happen.' I told him, 'That’s not up to me. But we do have the bike.' I assume that’s when he went off to see the Schofield family.”
The Sponsor/Dealership Approaches Brennan’s Camp: Says Luce, of Yamaha: “His sponsor from Canada came in, was introduced into the group, he made a brief statement to Brennan, asked to speak to his dad, and the two went off, had a private discussion, and basically from there he returned and said they were going to withdraw the claim.”
It's also said that during the meetings at Walker's camp, Walker and Harris, the engine builder, got extremely heated and almost fought.
What About Luce and Yamaha Threatening the Dealership: “No, that was never communicated by me. I had heard a little bit of that, that we, YMUS [Yamaha USA] were applying pressure to Yamaha Canada. I can assure you that on a Friday night, things in the corporate world don’t happen that quick. That pressure was not applied by myself or anywhere in the U.S.”
Who Was Talking to Schofield: Matt Walker, Schofield’s trainer, made it very clear he, personally, didn’t think claiming the bike was a good idea. He heavily advised against it. Walker also says that the dealer told him, “Matt, my name is on the side of that bike. I don’t like this.”
“Never once, and I need you guys to understand this,” said Walker on Monday's PulpMX Show. “Not one time have I ever said that Yamaha would potentially pull his dealership. That sounds so far-fetched, when I first heard it, I couldn’t believe this was even said. This narrative keeps getting brought up. I’m telling you, it didn’t happen.”
Multiple sources in both the U.S. and Canada have indicated there was no contact between Yamaha U.S. and Yamaha Canada, or any sort of threat to pull bikes, hurt the franchise, or anything along those lines. Not only would such a threat require a huge stretch from Yamaha’s amateur motocross manager down at Loretta’s all the way over to the Yamaha Canada sales division, and likely require meetings regarding sales figures, regional reps, franchise laws and more, it would have all had to happen within just a few hours on a Friday evening. Luce, of Yamaha, says he wasn’t even made aware of the claim until after 8:00 p.m. on Friday.
The Claim is Withdrawn: Cotter says 15 or 20 minutes after being approached by the sponsor, Brennan’s group approached the office again. Brennan’s dad was now part of the group, as well. “They all came in and said, 'We would like to withdraw the claim,'” Cotter says. “The room got pretty quiet, as you can imagine. I looked at Brennan and I said, 'Brennan, you’ve done everything right. You made your claim, you had the money, you have done everything right, and I want to make sure this is your decision, and this is all on you.' He told me, 'Nope. I’m good. I don’t want to claim the motorcycle.' And at that point, we withdrew the claim."
Brennan says, “I told them straight up, if it was completely my choice, I’d be leaving with that bike tomorrow. But I told them I’m kind of in a corner and I had no way out, so I’d have to take my money back and retract my claim, due to some reasons with my sponsors.”
“I don’t recall him saying it that way,” said Cotter. “But I did ask him, 'Is this your choice?' And [his] dad was there, as well, and dad was like, 'We don’t want to do this.'"
What Does the Sponsor Say: The dealership in Canada would like to not be named or interviewed, however, he did send a statement to Vital MX:
“No one from Yamaha Canada, Yamaha USA, or any Yamaha affiliates has contacted me in the weeks up to, during or after Loretta’s in regards to our Yamaha franchise.”
What Do We Think Really Happened: If Brennan Schofield was not held to what his sponsor (a Canadian Yamaha dealership) wanted to do, he would have Haiden Deegan’s bike right now, and we would be watching a video of him racing it at the TransCan in Walton, Canada.
Aftermath: On Saturday at Loretta’s, Haiden Deegan still had one more moto to race. To make sure another one of the its engines didn’t get claimed, the team took an engine from one of Evan Ferry’s NSA/Yamaha Amateur Team bikes. Despite not having the Star engine, Deegan went out and won the moto, and theSchoolboy 2 (12-17) B/C championship.
Mainimage by Mitch Kendra
