Why Cameron McAdoo Didn’t Race Daytona SX Main Event—Injury Update [Update: Surgery Thursday]
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Cameron McAdoo entered the third round of the 250SX East Division Championship standings 11th after his big crash and DNF in Detroit, Michigan, at round two. Banged up from the crash, McAdoo received stitches under his left eye and had some broken teeth—and this is on top of the torn ACL in his left knee he suffered right before the opener in Tampa, Florida—but still was going to race the third round at Daytona International Speedway on Saturday.
The Monster Energy/Pro Circuit Kawasaki rider finished seventh in his heat race at the Daytona Supercross but ultimately did not lineup for the 250SX main event. McAdoo put on his Instagram story that he will not be racing the main event and will keep everyone updated “with our next steps moving forward.”
Unfortunately, McAdoo’s teammate Levi Kitchen would have a hard crash in the main event, which ended Kitchen’s night early and his championship hopes. Read our full update on Kitchen if you missed it. The third factory Kawasaki rider, Seth Hammaker, landed third in the main event behind winner RJ Hampshire and second-place Tom Vialle.
Pro Circuit team owner Mitch Payton talked to the TV broadcast crew on the SMX Insider Post-Race show after the race, saying the following on McAdoo.
“Felt like we had a really good chance of winning,” Payton said. “Levi and Seth rode amazing tonight.”
“Cameron hurt his knee worse, and we decided that’s it. So, he will go get that fixed, that’s the end of that,” Payton said. “He tried and it’s bad and he needs to get it fixed.”
“So that was it,” he continued. “It was starting to swell up again and it was looser than it was and it’s worse than initial, so we’re gonna just get it fixed.”
Watch the SMX Insider Post-Race show, 17:20 mark.
Our own Jason Thomas, who is also a trackside reporter on Saturday’s for the broadcast crew, posted on X (formerly “Twitter”) that Payton confirmed McAdoo would be undergoing surgery on his injured knee.
Mitch said asap on show last night
— Jason Thomas (@Jason66Thomas) March 2, 2025
The post-race team press release had the following information:
“Cameron McAdoo entered the weekend battling an existing knee injury. After finishing P11 in qualifying and securing seventh in his heat race, McAdoo decided to sit out the main event to avoid furthering the injury.
“Unfortunately, my knee just wasn’t strong enough today to safely race,” said McAdoo. “My safety–and that of the other riders–comes first. Everyone knows I’ll always give my all when I’m on the gate, but tonight, it just wasn’t in the cards for us.”
“It was a tough night with both Cameron and Levi sidelined,” said team manager Iain Southwell. “Rider safety comes first. Levi is doing okay and being evaluated now, and Cameron made the right call to sit out. On a positive note, Seth rode strong and put the team on the podium.”
Update: Wednesday, March 5 at 8:45 a.m. Eastern
McAdoo took to Instagram late Tuesday night to confirm he will in fact have surgery this week (scheduled for Thursday).
"Hey everyone, I wanted to jump on here and give you guys an update. As you all know, I didn't race the main event in Daytona last weekend. After practice and after the heat race, there was just a few moments on track that really made me realize that I was very low on strength with my leg and obviously my safety and all the other riders on the track, safety is the most important thing. And for me to race at the highest level, it had become just not quite safe yet, we felt. And so, the team and I came together, and we made the decision to go get my knee fixed up. As you guys all know, that was a really tough decision for me. I always want to be out on the track and trying my hardest. So, that was tough, but it was just time. So, this week I have surgery scheduled for Thursday. Looking forward to going in and getting fixed up, and I'll keep you guys all updated with my recovery process and keep you in the loop and just looking forward to getting healthy and being back out there. So, I really appreciate everyone's support with this journey and all you guys' support always. So, see you guys out there soon."
