tained and did as good as I
could, and it just worked out.
The confidence is up, so keep it
rolling and keep doing my best
at every round."
Going hard in the sand-dune
whoops may have worked for
Lynn, but it backfired for others.
Pro Circuit/Kawasaki Off-Road
Team's Dalton Shirey sprinted
the section and made crucial
passes, but the effort spiked his
heart rate, and he found himself
unable to recover, eventually
finishing fourth overall.
Bridgestone/FMF/Moose
Racing 480 RR-mounted Rob
-
erts admitted the dunes were
his
Achilles' heel. "I actually
had a great start and good first
few miles," he said. "It was just
sand dunes. I always struggle
with them. Those guys were just
sending it through that stuff! I
just got eaten alive in the sand
The underdog privateer kept
his Wonder Electric Co./Gain
-
slinger Human Performance/
O'Neal
Racing-backed two-
stroke out front for an estimated
four or five miles in the dunes
before ceding his spot to several
450s and a couple of fellow Pro
250s.
Among them were Lynn and
Ryder Thomaselli on their 250s,
plus perennial front-running
450s ridden by Dalton Shirey,
Daemon Woolslayer, Roberts
and, eventually, Oliveira.
Lynn, whose older brother
Tyler has won here in the past,
credited more seat time lately
for his inspired ride aboard his
Precision Concepts/Dunlop/
MSR-backed KTM, adding,
"Racing in Baja helped with the
whoops. That first loop with the
whoops, I made a ton of passes,
and the second loop just main
-
"While sitting there waiting
for the start,
I just told myself,
'This is your start! This is your
start!' over and over again. Sure
enough, the YZ250 got off to
a good start," he said. "I held
that inside really tight; I figured
people were going to push wide
rushing into that first turn. Luck-
ily, I held the inside and looked
to
my right and didn't see a
single soul, and I was like, 'Wow!
I finally did it, I finally overalled a
start!' I was stoked, for sure!"
VOLUME 63 ISSUE 15 APRIL 14, 2026 P95
(Left) Proving his win at round three
was no fluke, Kayden Lynn made it
two Pro 250 triumphs in a row and
also claimed a career-best third
overall. (Above) It's been a long time
since a 250—especially a two-stroke
250—claimed the holeshot at a Hare
& Hound National. Cody Simpson
broke that streak, leading overall for
several miles, finishing third in Pro
250, and sixth overall.
