Brennan Responds To Deegan | Vital | Cotter | Walker And Yamaha 

I felt pretty neutral about everyone in this situation but pulling support even after the kid dropped the claim is so fucked up. Fuck Yamaha and that dealership.

There is a claim rule. Don't bring a bike you don't want to lose! PERIOD!

Regardless of which side one might be taking , The sponsor dropping him after an agreement/negotiations to cancel the claim is complete horseshit!!

The young man played by the rules and got burnt for it!! Everyone knows the claim rule,don't bring a bike that you don't want to lose!! Plain and simple. There are Mom's and Dads all across this country trying to provide their kids with the best equipment they can in order to compete!! Hats off to you brother!!!

Followed the rules and got sacked! We support this young man! He should sue the hell out of everyone involved! He followed the rules and the powers crushed him!

The rule is pay the money, claim the bike. I missed the part where you have to submit an essay of future plans for the bike to Brian Deegan for approval.

I personally know this kid! I'm not only his Compound Neighbor, he has mechanic for me also. I can say he is a hard worker, humble, funny and a great person! Straightforward kid with a heart of gold and not afraid to speak up! Good Luck in your new journey 🙏❤️ We will always support you!

Brennan Schofield... the man that stood up against the factory's at 17 and leveled the field for all future amateur Racers! You've certainly made them think twice about using crazy priced bikes now, hat off to you bro it needed to happen it just takes one rider. Stay transparent dude your heading in the right direction 🤙good luck, and get back after it 🤟 #mxpioneer #ballsofsteel

I wish I knew what Brennans RU-vid channel is cause I’d be stoked to support him. 17 year old kid outclassed Brian Deegan, one of the titans and legends of motorcycle racing and a guy who helped develop the freestyle motor cross sport as a whole. He’s a stand up kid who comes across as a seasoned veteran and it’s great to see a young kid like this trying to make it in the sport instead of some spoiled rich kid who’s daddy paid his way to the top. (I don’t mean Haiden here, he’s fast as fuck and as Brennan has said could win on the worst bikes out there). And I’m dumb and didn’t even check if Johnny posted his YT channel which he did. Thanks Johnny, props for helping get this kids story out there.

Hind side, At least he would've had a bike to ride right now! Brennan good things will come, keep positive. Everyone have a great day, thanks Johnny for the great content.

Big black eye for Yamaha..... Also Brian Deegan always comments " Support the Moto world" Huge opportunity for another bike company to step up and help this kid. A great rider, following the rules, and getting blackballed for no reason........ F - Yamaha! , Walker, and Brian Deegan. Lost all respect to Brian now...... Hats off to FN Hopper, and those that are getting the truth out.

The sad part of all this is that he lost his main sponsor for following Lorettas rules. Meanwhile, the Big Cover Up is on full force for MX Sports and Star Yamaha missteps. The tough guy trainer that was threatening the engine builder should get more interviews.

Thanks Johnny for covering this. We fully support this kid. Pretty messed up situation. We ride Yamaha and are seriously re-evaluating our changing bikes. I'm so upset that the "adults" in this case acted so poorly. We are supposed to be teaching these kids how to behave and be respectful. This is not leading by example. Disgusting actions from the sponsor and the adults. This kids doesn't need to defend himself. He did nothing wrong and you are right....that book would be a good read for him and help him navigate the negative.

After watching the Vital interviews it was obvious Cotter and the AMA rep were covering each other's back. Its common that people's recollections when in a position of having to do damage control will be completely selective to fit the narrative they want to sell. This kid got shafted all the way around . In situations at AMA races where I've known of a protest taking place the organizer has nothing to do with it , they put it completely in the hands of the AMA official . The playing field is not level. If it had not been a factory bike , the claiming rule would have been inforced without question. Star racing shouldn't have received special treatment.

I hope this kid gets ,,,A FACTORY RIDE WITH ALL THE AWESOME SPONSORS!!! THIS KID IS A HONEST, RESPECTFUL YOUNG MAN .HOPE THE MAN ABOVE TAKES YOU UNDER HIS WING & FLYS YOU TO THE TOP , #1 @ THIS GAME !!! ✊🏻✊🏻✊🏻🙏🙏🙏 GOOD LUCK KIDDO !!! 🌟🌟🌟🌟🌟🏆🎖

"If you don't drop the claim I'm gonna cancel our deal....." Claim dropped Week later "I'm sorry bunt I'm gonna cancel our deal." That's dirty.

I'm 45 years old and this confirms why I never liked Brian Deegan, I'm sure Brian Deegan would have no problem if somebody else with all that star power and intimidating took his son Hayden Deegan into a room by himself interrogating him yelling at him asking him what his motives were for following the rules, I'm sure he would just post another RU-vid video right?

Someone pick this kid up. He’s a smart dude and played by the rules, Not his fault ! Great interview Johnny 😎

If the young man had finished what he started, he'd be on top of the world right now. Instead, factory douch bags will screw him over.

Johnny thanks for giving Brennan a platform to tell his side of the story. I would bet money someone steps up and does this kid right. Keep on keeping it real and good luck in Finland.

This young man handles himself very well. Follows the rules and got cheated. He will grow up to be twice the person as others involved in this.

this whole ordeal has been ridiculous

The fact that Tim and Brian had Brennon in a room with out adult support. He should have the Bike aside from he said she said Bullshit. Sad that Yamaha let this happen so yes they need to lose support do to the way they handled it. Brian Deegan him self could of offered support him self. Losing respect for a lot of parties involved.

Huge respect for you Johnny on this video. I wasn't sold on you as a media reporter before, but I'm with you now. Thanks for bringing this story to front page, with your experience and knowledge, too.

From the moment he claimed, he was losing his (sponsor) bikes, sadly. Tough life lesson to learn, shitty way to learn it, but "it's not *what* you know, it's *who* you know. Cotter/Deegan (senior) had no legitimate reason for questioning the young man, alone. At an AMA sanctioned event, all of their discourse should have been via the AMA representative, who's only reply should have been "he payed the money, that bike is his now." I would also like for the claiming rule to be modified in such a way that once the money is paid, the deal is done, no change of heart possible, if you claim it and pay, it's yours, good or bad deal. If Star want their bike back...negotiate to buy it back.

I don't know how anyone could think claiming Deegans bike would be good for their future in racing with any factory team.

This kid is awesome, totally upstanding guy. Looking forward to following his career there has gotta be some championships in him with his attitude and ability.

Sorry man , he got 5 bikes and only a B rider and has a motor builder, WTF? This sport has gotten way out of hand with the money in amateur racing. Takes the fun out of it for sure.

Great lesson for everyone: when making choices in life, think of every single possible scenario, both good and bad. Weigh out all the possibilities and make an educated choice using a 'risk vs reward' & 'probability vs consequence' equation. If someone is willing to suffer the consequences 'if it all goes south'- then by all means, go for it. I can't believe this kids dad wasn't there to ask him "what are you going to do if Yamaha pushes back?" To think there would not be any pushback for " claiming " a $70+k works bike is asinine. Of course there was going to be pushback, duh. All that said, this kid got screwed. Yamaha has absolutely ZERO intentions on letting him ride that bike OR give him two crate motors. If it isn't in writing, then he's screwed. The way Yamaha sees it "the kid tries screwing us out of a works bike-so we don't feel bad about screwing him" Yamaha shouldn't bring that level of tech to AM races if they're not willing to get it claimed.

Good job on the video! Love how you supported him and made him feel like he isn’t a bad person. He seems like a good kid

One thing not asked, if the Canadian dealer told him, not to go out and start discussing the ordeal, like you tube interviews. That might be why the Dealer said he had enough, turn in the Bikes.

What Brennan did wrong was stating Yamaha threatened the dealer when he knew that was not true. He later admitted that he assumed that was the case but was never told. Why would any sponsor continue to support someone that throws them under the bus with no facts?

Thanks Johnny for bringing clarity to this story. Thanks to Branon for putting up with all this.

Unwritten rule; Is not really an unwritten rule. It is word put out there to make anyone (the little guys) out to be the bad guy when the cheaters get caught by an "actual" rule and is really just a "vield threat" to scare off people essentially "nullifying" the rule! So glad our amatuer racing days are long past and stoked to see these things finally coming to light as this crap has been going on for a long time!

According to the interview I heard from the trainer the sponsor told him to not talk about it and let it go. If that’s the case that’s why he was dropped.

If Yamaha had any balls they would step up and provide bikes for him.

I’ve followed this pretty close since it happened…&, although I’m from a different time in motocross...i did Lorettas on Yamaha YZ80s & YZ125s. Here’s what I’ve been able to gather; In Moto #2 outta 3, Evan Ferry’s Foot peg got caught in Haiden Deegan’s spokes and Deegan DNF’d the 2nd moto…Brennan claimed Deegan’s Monster Energy/Star/Yamaha YZ250F after the 3rd moto, to me, that tells me that the 3rd moto was a throw-away moto for Deegan. If _Monster Energy/Star/Yamaha_ was going to test the feasibility of something they weren’t entirely sure about running on their *ACTUAL* pro race bikes…that’d be the time they’d test it. Something I’ve heard multiple times following this, is that Donnie Luce from Yamaha said to Brennan “I know you’re a motorcycle mechanic, but you’re not going to be able to service this engine, neither is he” _[pointing at his motor builder Derek Harris]_ I think that engine had Electronic Valve Control. I bet the camshaft’s have no cam lobes, and the engine timing depends on specialized hardware to connect with a laptop & utilize proprietary computer software….That’s why Brennen or Derek Harris wouldn’t be able to service it…because the hardware & the proprietary software necessary for set up the engine timing…

My buddy said if that was his son that got placed in the room with Brian if he could have got up in there Deegan would have seen every corner of that room.

So while he was claiming the bike he was saying that he wanted to make a RU-vid video with it??? But is now showing that he didn’t even have a channel. I honestly think his motor builder had a lot to do with this.

Yamaha has definitely left a sour taste in the consumer community.

I'm predicting several things: Brennan will get *A bike, he will get his motors as promised, price for claiming a bike will go up(or claiming will get removed completely), and he will never be touched by another sponsor again. They will want no association with somebody who has gone through the Stargate drama.

The cracks are starting to show. Keep going johnny, you've had a hand in changing the narrative for these riders and their stories over the past few seasons. You're already a go-to media guy for moto content. They can pretend to ignore you but they hear that braaaaap WFO from MX-unfiltered for sure!

keeps complaining about blowing otors up seems like he needs a new MOTOR GUY and points to why the motor guy wanted the star bike

Everyone needs to hate on corporate Yamaha.Tell your local dealer how you feel.

Deegans are turning into the Kardashians of moto . bummed for this kid , he deserves better

Paying your own way is the best. Ride what, where and when you want. Having full control of your own program is priceless. Great lesson learned

I believe Brennan over all others envolved, it's easy to tell he's a integrity filled intelligent young man, and I truly hope he finds a full ride somewhere, and I hope Yamaha holds to their word but always get it in writing anytime you're dealing with rich pricks.

I’m proud of the kid for taking the initiative to take his own money and claim the bike on his own. The fact that his dad wasn’t there is a technicality. The kid followed the rule to the letter. I wish he had given a big middle finger to the bullies and stuck to his claim! Good for you kid!!!

No one has ask him if he thought it might of been a good idea to run by his sponsor 🤔

After seeing this kids post about deegan calling him a pussy because they had a little run in at a track. You know full well he did this out of spite and was going to show any and every little secret in that bike.

"Dont thing you Did anything wrong". What, that was never a question. Brennan should think about taking this up in court, because Brennan has been injured financially and even more so, his name is besmirched within the industry and any possibility of him have a prio career

This kid is an awesome young man. If someone doesn’t pick him up with sponsorship I’ll be surprised. Good job Buddy.

I'm a Deegan fan, but after all this I'm a Brennen fan, too. I think it sucks that he went through all this drama, stress, and pressure, and doesn't have anything to show for it. Maybe he could build a nice youtube channel, and it could be one of the many good things that come from this whole thing. I went and sub'd, and I thought it was pretty cool that he already has almost 1,500 subscribers, and doesn't even have a real video posted, yet.

Yamaha talked him out of claiming the bike then gave him the punishment anyway

This schofield kid is a great young man.he has acted more mature about this whole situation,more then one person involved.good luck buddy

According to schofields mechanic he received 2 engines from star racing, trip to California to Ride a Star racing factory Yamaha bike Which he didn't mention on his original videos

So he was rotating 5 free Yamaha's and he decides to claim a Star Yamaha. How is it nobody told him this unspoken rule was a terrible idea. The whole situation sucks. Pretty sure the teams wont be bringing the high dollar bikes anymore. Good learning experience for everyone.

I think everyone is behind you Brennan, I remember when I was a kid racing mx we all talked about doing what you did claiming a bike, we all wanted to claim a factory bike just to ride and take it apart to see what we could do to our bikes so stand tall brother you did what everyone wants to do, it’s ashame what has happened to you but better things will come your way

The fact he was punished and the way it went, for exercising this rule, doesn't sit well with me. I feel like I want to see some claims in the future.

Good on you Brennan, You worked hard to get the money and followed all the rules, and the higher ups screwed you over. They put the rule in there, you followed it. Much respect kiddo.

Typical example of how corporate America silences and crushes the small guy. No Yamaha’s in my future!!!

I agreed with what JT said on pulpmx. If it’s an “unspoken rule” that you don’t use the claiming rule for fear of repercussions from sponsors, manufacturers, etc then the rule is fucking pointless & should be removed… At first, I didn’t agree with him claiming it. A Star Yamaha isn’t gona make Brennan 10sec/lap faster so what’s the point, curiosity, just cause you can? After seeing all these interview videos, I realized the why doesn’t matter. I think the kid is being done wrong.

Right now would be a great time for another factory to step in with a sponsorship. The press alone would pay off.

Unspoken rule is still a rule, get rid of the rule or enforce it and go after the individuals using bullying and threats to get around it.

A good lesson here. Always follow through with your decision and understand nobody is your friend. At least you would have came out with a sweet ass bike. Something tells me though he will be able to hop on another pony in no time.

Brennan. I am so impressed with the way you handled the situation. Very mature for only 17! You just earned yourself another fan and I will be following your progress. I used to watch a lot of the deegans RU-vid channel and I think they owe you a massive apology! Keep your head up and keep doing the right thing! God bless you sir! Also, thank you Johnny for this interview and allowing him to share!

Deegan isn't planning on going back to the Ranch. I wonder who's bike he'll try to swipe next year.

David Pingree & Grant Langston did a good video about this screwed up mess on Whiskey Throttle Media on RU-vid. Someone said Grant’s dealership should help Brennan out. I’ll be rooting for him when he turns pro ! 👏👍💯

Rule number 1, check with your major sponsor before pulling a stunt like this or risk losing it all. I believe his father know it wasn’t the smartest thing to do, but you can’t tell some kids. Life lesson learnt.

I’ve been following this story…. I’m kinda just pissed at “Big Sponsorships”. Hayden is a born rider, no doubt. I think they are a victim of their own success. Meaning Yamaha would give him the best bike in the world mainly because he and his family are a marketing gold mine. Sadly it , was Yamaha that made that choice to push it on a young rider who has millions of followers “ can you say “free advertising “. Now as far as Brennan goes he got screwed, not by the Degans But by the marketing people at Yamaha. Sad day for both kids. And both families. In my opinion . Don’t hate the player, hate the game.

Its iff the sponsor "didnt want tbeir name out there". Was it actually negative press up to that moment? I mean I think they turned it into negative press

Johnny so nice to hear you in support of Brennan. Fell sick after hearing on Gipsy tales how they riped this kid apart. He had every right to check Deegan out, by blackmailing this kid they just prooved they hiding something.

Just wondering if his sponsor who had given him 5 bikes to practice on and race, feels like, hey if Brendan wants another bike so bad that he saves all his money to get it, my bikes must not be good enough, go get your bikes somewhere else…. Just playing devils advocate. Not saying he did anything wrong by the rules but trying to look at it from the sponsors view

Well at least we have something in writing - Matt Walker's text messages definitely shine light into some cracks in his story. If I were a betting man I bet there's a few text messages in his phone to the dealer slandering Brennan. If I were to double down on that bet I bet MW told the dealer that would lose their support if they didn't drop him. As I said earlier, after watching all the vital interviews there are too many people with conflicts of interest involved. This should have only been between Brennan and Star (owner of the claimed bike). A bike was claimed, money was fronted, threats were made, and now this kid got screwed.

There are a lot of discrepancies. Most of those discrepancies came from Luce and Walker. The dealer also. That guy was working behind the scenes and seemed to tell everyone to keep his name out their mouths.

Bad decision from his sponsor. Brake a deal face the wheel...of public opinion. Baby Boomers for Bennan. This kid has guts and support from the sensible-crats. A new party for Honesty, Integrity and following the rules. Good luck Brennan.

The kid seems to be getting screwed and did nothing wrong. Feel bad for him

If it would of been anyone else except Deegan this would never been so issue

We would like to know what Chris'(spronsor) said to Brennan's dad for them to drop the claim !

Did anyone pick up on the bike being placed in Tim Cotters trailer over the evening? He is not a AMA official….he is the head promoter.

Having and been a moto family, and knowing how hard it is to compete with the big money teams is, I get how cool it would be to ride/race a factory race. He did it by the rules and it's unfortunate that it didn't work out. There are always ramifications for our actions and it's unfortunate that he got his ride pulled, but he went after a Star bike when endorsed by a Star house. Why didn't he discuss it with his sponsor first? Also, he talks about all these motor issues, sounds like he need a different motor guy. I wish him the best. This situation wont touch Deegan he's on a missle to the top.

He respects Deegan? Pretty sure his past posts about Him were pretty bullyish and complaining about Deegan being handed everything and calling him various curse words.. more to this from Brennans side I’m thinking and he is playing up the victim part to the fullest

Definition of defame transitive verb 1 law : to harm the reputation of by communicating false statements about : to harm the reputation of by libel

Need to clarify the screenshots of Brennan's story that had mean text added directed at deegan. Did Brennan add the mean text or was that some 3rd party added text on the screenshot made to look like Brennan said that?

I did understand Brennan claimed the bike to do a review of it on his RU-vid channel? That what´s been said from the start. But in this interview Brennan says he now started a channel, has 600 followers and is going to buy a camera today.because of all the people letting him know they can´t find his channel? Although I wish the boy all the best for his career, and as he just followed the rules and just wanted the opportunity to have a heavily moded factorybike, that stood out as being inconsequent in this interview to me. Also, having 5 bikes and an engine builder, and 17k to claim does not seem like having a big disadvantage. A lot of people would wish their Kids to have even one decent competitive bike to ride amateurs...

I imagine this makes KTM warm and fuzzy since Deegans dropped KTM like a bitch

If my sponsor left ,,,next race I was in with that bike,, claim that bike and take it apart, sell off

The only way to fix it is Yamaha now should give him a full sponsored ride straight from the factory

Yeah I’m doing good I’m planning on going to LL with my bike and claim a pro circuit bike since those kids are winning it’s gotta be the bike not skill. You should not be able to show up with a plan to claim another riders bike that sounds nuts to me

We support you Brennan! F the establishment!

His idea of haiden having everything handed to him is stupid. This kid had 5 bikes on rotation FOR FREE. You know what happened when I couldn’t afford to race? I couldn’t race. Don’t get your own situation twisted, your privileged too just not as much.

Subscribed to both your channels. Great interview John, like your interview demeanor. And Brennan - you played by the rules - No one should fault you for that...

Best interview I've seen so far for honesty and the truth and I've watched and commented on pritty much them all, awesome kid that's been shafted by the industry who deserve to pay for how they have treated him.

Are people really saying poor Danger Boi was victimized by a privateer on social media? 😂🤣 GTFO

Too bad Brennan didn’t go through with the claim, show up at Walton rip a few hole shots lose his ride and then posted a full breakdown of the bike with you tube videos and a full documented description of all internal parts, ECU and mapping. But before doing that I would have contacted Star Racing to ask if they wanted me to pull the plug on it for 75K.

This only shows what is really going on in the industry and what a given manufacturer is willing to do to be on top. Its a slap in the face to all the private riders who pay for everything they need to be able to be competitive racers out of their own pockets, all to find out that the bike that they just purchased is not even close to being the bike that they will be racing against. And that is what that rule is all about, to keep the bikes on a level playing field. That rule should also keep the person claiming the bike confidential to prevent this type of situation. That simple, don't invest more into a bike than double the MSRP or more than you are willing to lose if it is claimed. He did not do anything wrong and was playing by the rules, and the only ones that come out looking bad with a black eye are the ones not willing to play by the rules because they need an unfair advantage to even play the game. It only hurts the brand names of the parties involved and that is their own fault for putting themself in that situation and for handling it the way they did. So much for the resale value on the blue and white junk that I have sitting in the garage that I won't be riding anymore.

Who's the Yamaha dealer in Canada the stabbed him in the back AFTER he dropped the claim on their intimidation and threats!!?? Name them so people know who NOT to go buy a bike from in the future!!

Jonny, how come you didn't ask Brennan about his cyber bullying of Haiden Deegan? Maybe his sponsor found out about the shit he's been giving Haiden and that tipped the sponsor to recalling his bikes?

The hell with the Deegan’s and Star Yamaha and the dealership

A good lawyer could probably make a decent lawsuit of this. I feel bad for him, but with that being said, I think there’s for sure more to his end. You don’t get $17k work while in high school easy, then ontop of that, I can’t imagine you would pay $17k “just to ride a factory bike” there was some other motives there, BUT, he was well within his rights to do so. But Yamaha threatening to pull the dealers support is bullshit, and cheap. I’m sure they have more motors of the same caliber waiting ready to go back into any bike Hayden rides. AMA should do a deep dive into this and there needs to be more rules made about this