Morganton native wins amateur motocross event in Tennessee

Motocross is in Daxton Bennick’s blood. 

His father, Todd, competed in the sport for many years before founding Nebo-based Bennick Grading & Excavation in 1998 and growing it into one of the top contracting companies in the country. And now Daxton Bennick is preparing for his rookie season in the Monster Energy American Motorcyclist Association (AMA) Supercross Championship after finishing his amateur career with a major victory.

Bennick’s father bought him a bike when he was 4 years old, with son stating that “I kind of grew up around it all the time … and I loved it.” 

The 17-year-old Morganton native said he was never really interested in participating in other sports, stating that “I loved riding and that was it for me.”

Homeschooled most of his life, Bennick graduated from high school this year. He made his professional motocross debut earlier in the summer, but was still allowed to compete in August’s AMA Amateur National Motocross Championship at Loretta Lynn’s Ranch in Hurricane Mills, Tenn., thanks to a rule that allows A-Class amateurs to score a limited number of championship points (40 total) and retain their eligibility for the biggest amateur event in the sport.

“Loretta’s is a unique event,” said Bennick, who won all three races in the Open Pro Sport division to capture that title while taking second overall in the 250 Pro Sport division following finishes of seventh, second and sixth in that class. 

He also received the Nicky Hayden AMA Motocross Horizon Award, which is presented annually to the top performing amateur racer on the cusp of graduating into the pro ranks.

“For amateurs it is the national championship,” said Bennick of last month’s event. “... There’s a lot of pressure on that race for sure to do well before you go into the pros, and especially being in the Open Pro class. There is a lot of pressure and a lot of people will look at the guy who wins that, so I definitely wanted to win, and I’m on a really good team right now.”

Bennick first raced at Loretta Lynn’s Ranch in 2012, making his appearance in the 2023 event his 12th overall. But after spending his entire amateur career as a member of the KTM racing team, he bet on himself by joining Monster Energy Yamaha Star Racing for a six-month trial late last year.

That bet paid off, as Bennick notched several wins and ultimately earned a multi-year contract with his new team.

“I actually walked away from a really good deal with KTM, had a new contract which would have got me two years into the pros and it was a good contract,” said Bennick. “And I walked away from that to go to Star for nothing, just like a handshake deal to hopefully maybe get a deal if I did well and won some races. 

“I knew that Star Yamaha was a team I wanted to be on, they have the best bike and they’re the best team right now, so I took that risk to maybe gain a deal out of it. And I did end up getting a two-year contract with Star because I did pretty well in the amateurs, and looking back it’s cool and I feel like I’ve earned it for sure.”

Bennick’s family owns a home on Lake James, but right now he’s living in Tallahassee, Fla., where he resides most of the time. He said that he enjoys surfing in warm weather and snowboarding when it’s cold, and he also likes go-karting and golfing, although he admits that he’s “not very good” at the latter.

One thing Bennick is good at is riding bikes, and he is currently getting ready for the 2024 AMA Supercross Championship season. According to Bennick, motocross training includes riding motorcycles three or four times a week, a lot of bicycle training and hitting the gym three times a week. He said he once cycled 100 miles in a day with his team.

The 2024 AMA Supercross Championship season begins in January. Bennick expects his first pro supercross event to be held in either Anaheim, Calif., or Houston, and he said racing at the highest level will be “kind of a dream come true.”

Josh McKinney can be reached at 828-445-8595 or josh@thepaper.media.