(Pictured: Dallas Daniels #32
and Briar Bauman #3)
DAYTONA BEACH, Fla.
(March 7, 2025) – Dallas Daniels
(No. 32 Estenson Racing Yamaha
MT-07 DT) opened his 2025
Grand National
Championship campaign
in perfect double-victory
fashion by completing the
Royal Enfield Short
Track at DAYTONA I & II
sweep on Friday night. However,
he was forced to do so in a
manner that yet again promised
an incredible
Progressive American Flat Track
season, sanctioned by
AMA Pro Racing,
to come.
After stealing Thursday’s
victory from Briar
Bauman (No. 3 RWR/Parts
Plus/Latus Motors
Harley-Davidson XG750R) despite
struggling pretty much all day
long, Daniels was more in his
expected Mission AFT
SuperTwins title
favorite form throughout
Friday’s program.
Daniels continued that trend by
breaking free early in the Main
Event while Bauman found himself
caught up in a four-rider melee
that also included Henry
Wiles (No. 911 J&M
Logging/Ray C’s Harley-Davidson
Kawasaki Ninja 650),
Sammy Halbert (No. 69
OnlyFans/Castrol Kawasaki Ninja
650), and Davis Fisher
(No. 67 Rackley Racing/Bob
Lanphere’s BMC Racing KTM 790
Duke).
By the time Bauman established
himself in second, Daniels had a
cushion of nearly 1.4 seconds at
the front. But just when Bauman
started to whittle away at that
advantage, he was forced to play
defense after Fisher came
charging up in third. That
chase/defend accordion continued
to play out in both directions,
with Bauman freed up again when
Wiles closed on Fisher from
fourth.
But Bauman’s golden opportunity
to give the XG750R its maiden
premier-class win didn’t come
until the leaders hit traffic –
the exact situation that cost
him Thursday’s win with their
positioned swapped.
And in fact, the RWR star
managed to momentarily grab the
lead with just 20 seconds
remaining on the clock. However,
his Estenson Racing
Yamaha-mounted rival countered
in the very next turn and
managed to hold his adversary at
bay over the final two laps to
prevent the reversal of
fortunes.
Daniels said, “Man, I thought
last night was the toughest I
ever had to ride, but I think
tonight beat that. I had a
really good night going – won
the heat race, won the (Mission
#2Fast2Tasty Challenge). I was
feeling really good. I got a
really good start and was out
front. But I could just feel the
pressure coming in. I was
keeping an eye out, and I knew
he was getting closer and
closer… It was just such a
nailbiter. Brian rode a hell of
a race, gave me a good battle,
and it was super fun.”
Fisher came home in third,
equaling his ‘24 podium total in
the season’s opening week.
Combined with his Thursday
fourth, Daytona proved a
seamless transition for Fisher
who was expected to take more
time to come to grips with his
Rackley Racing KTM after
spending the previous seven
seasons on an Indian.
The experienced duo of Wiles and
Halbert earned fourth and fifth,
respectively, pushing down a
handful of strong title
contenders in the process. That
list was headlined by
Brandon Robinson (No.
44 Mission Roof Systems
Harley-Davidson XG750R), who
took sixth, and Jarod
VanDerKooi (No. 20
Fastrack Racing/Wally Brown
Racing KTM 790 Duke), who
finished seventh.
Dan Bromley
(No. 62 Memphis Shades/Vinson
Construction Suzuki GSX-8S)
returned to action after
suffering a laceration to his
foot on Thursday and did so most
impressively with an
eighth-place result aboard his
Suzuki.
Meanwhile, Trent Lowe
(No. 48 American
Honda/Progressive Insurance
Honda Transalp) and Max
Whale (No. 18 Moto
Anatomy X Powered by Royal
Enfield 650) made it a
remarkable seven different
manufacturers in the race’s top
ten as the premier class’ new
production-only ruleset shine in
their debut.
Daniels has the early title
advantage following Rounds 1 & 2
after grabbing the maximum of 46
points in Daytona. He’s followed
by Bauman at 38 with Fisher and
Wiles locked even in third at
30.
AFT Singles presented by
KICKER
24 hours spent by the field
hoping to find a solution to
combat the Thursday form of
reigning-but-not-defending
AFT Singles presented by
KICKER champion
Kody Kopp (No. 1 Bob
Lanphere/KTM/Fastrack Racing KTM
450 SX-F) ultimately proved
fruitless. In fact, the class’
three-time champ was even more
dominant on Friday night.
An increase in the level of
difficulty with the track’s
surface and visibility only
served to widen the margin
separating Kopp from his
would-be challengers. Operating
on another level, the new
Talent Cup
competitor was quite easily the
fastest rider in every practice
and qualifying session and then
won both his heat and the 1st
Impressions AFT Singles
Challenge going away.
The only hitch in his evening
was a shock crash he suffered
while working the sighting lap
ahead of the Main Event. No
worries – Kopp popped back up,
straightened out his handlebars,
grabbed the holeshot, and pulled
an immediate gap at the front.
Up by 1.5 seconds in the race’s
opening minute, Kopp continued
to pile it before finally taking
the checkered flag with nearly
five seconds in hand.
Already the all-time winningest
rider in AFT Singles history,
Kopp came into the week with 21
wins to his name and leaves
Daytona with a career tally of
23. That puts him four victories
up on second-ranked
Shayna Texter-Bauman
and a full ten ahead of the next
closest riders (premier-class
ace Daniels and ‘19 class champ
Gauthier).
Five of those wins came here in
Daytona. After earning the
latest of those triumphs, he
said, “I’ve never won a race
after crashing on the sight lap!
There’s a first for everything.
That start was hectic because my
lever was bent to the moon, so I
couldn’t really feel anything.
But we straightened it out and
went for it. I couldn’t ask for
a better week to come back and
have some fun with the boys. Now
it’s time to go lean on the
asphalt and keep learning over
there.”
Even beyond Kopp’s runaway, the
contest was a rather
processional one; the entire top
five – Chase Saathoff
(No. 88 RWR/Parts Plus
Honda CRF450R), Tom
Drane (No. 59 Estenson
Racing Yamaha YZ450F),
Dalton Gauthier (No. 79
D&D Certified Racing KTM 450
SX-F), and Bradon
Pfanders (No. 83
Hannum’s HD/Pfanders Racing KTM
450 SX-F) – ran their own races
pretty much throughout.
There was more significant (and
more typical) fighting further
down the field. Tyler
Raggio (No. 55
Raggio/Sluggo/Unsettled Racing
KTM 450 SX-F) held off
Trevor Brunner (No. 21
American Honda/Mission Foods
CRF450R), while Tarren
Santero (No. 75 Mission
Roof Systems Honda CRF450R)
slashed his way up from the back
of the field after being forced
to burn his provisional start in
the season’s opening week.
Evan Renshaw
(No. 65 1st Impressions Race
Team Husqvarna FC450) was the
final rider remaining on the
lead lap in ninth, while rookie
Ethan Kitchen
(No. 105 Lucky Thumb M/C Yamaha
YZ450F) rounded out the top
ten.
Even though Kopp technically
leads with a perfect 46-point
opener, the effective title lead
falls to Drane, who put together
a solid effort to open his ‘25
title campaign with 35 points.
Gauthier is next with 30, one
point up on championship hopeful
Saathoff at 29.
Meanwhile, in the Royal
Enfield Build. Train. Race.
(BTR) Main Event,
Taia Little
(No. 11 Royal Enfield/Parts
Unlimited) got her revenge in
the rematch, narrowly fending
off Thursday winner Emma
Gottsch (No. 5 Royal
Enfield/Parts Unlimited) to take
the checkered flag first.
Mya Maffei (No.
28 Royal Enfield) completed the
podium in third.
Next Up:
The 2025 Progressive American
Flat Track season will resume in
three weeks’ time with the
Yamaha Senoia Short
Track on Saturday,
March 29 at Senoia Raceway in
Senoia, Georgia. Visit
https://www.tixr.com/groups/americanflattrack/events/senoia-short-track-122449
to secure your tickets today.
For those that can’t catch the
live action from the circuit,
FloRacing is
the live streaming home of
Progressive AFT. Sign up now and
catch every second of on-track
action starting with Practice &
Qualifying and ending with the
Victory Podium at the end of the
night at
https://flosports.link/aft.
FOX Sports
coverage of the Royal
Enfield Short Track at DAYTONA I,
featuring in-depth features and
thrilling onboard cameras, will
premiere on FS1
on Saturday, March 15,
at 12:00 p.m. ET
(9:00 a.m. PT), with the
Royal Enfield Short Track at
DAYTONA II set to air
the following day, Sunday, March
16, at 1:00 p.m. ET
(10:00 a.m. PT).
For more information on
Progressive AFT visit
https://www.americanflattrack.com.
