DAYTONA
BEACH, Fla. (May 3,
2026) – California
native Briar Bauman
(No. 3 Super.com/RWR
Harley-Davidson
XG750R) completed
the Golden State
double-double with a
victorious
performance in the
CRESCO CAT Rentals
Silver Dollar Short
Track, Round 5 of
the 2026 Progressive
American Flat Track
season, sanctioned
by AMA Pro Racing.
For the second
consecutive season,
Bauman backed up his
Mission AFT
SuperTwins win at
Ventura Raceway with
another at Silver
Dollar Speedway to
sweep the series’
West Coast swing.
Saturday evening’s
masterclass in
Chico, California,
was a certified
competition crusher.
The two-time Grand
National Champion
made quick work of
reigning champ Dallas
Daniels (No. 1
Estenson Racing
Yamaha MT-07) and
points leader Kody
Kopp (No. 12 Latus
Motors Racing
Harley-Davidson
XG750R) before proceeding to set
sail at the front.
For the
third consecutive race,
Kopp did what he
could to cling on in
second. He even
managed to mount
something of
a charge
at mid-distance,
bringing
a near-two-second
gap back down to
just over a second.
However, Bauman put
in a final push to
break it open
late en route to a
2.614-second margin
of victory.
After earning the
36th premier-class
win of his decorated
career, Bauman said,
“Last week, I knew
that we were ready.
And now these guys
know that we are
ready. I’m fired
up. It’s so hard to
lead on these types
of
racetracks. I’ve never
looked back that
much in my life. But
Kody is so witty,
and his dad is so
good, and Dave
Z(anotti) is so
good, I knew they
were going to find
something. So I kept
looking, but I
finally found
something that was
good enough to get
us to the
win. I’m super
excited for the
team.”
Meanwhile, Kopp’s
fellow rookie, Aidan
RoosEvans (No. 26
FRA Trust Advisors
Harley-Davidson
XG750R), came
through in a big way
for Harley as well
as the championship
aspirations of
Bauman and Kopp.
Despite being
subjected to intense
pressure from
directly behind,
RoosEvans held
strong to finish
ahead of Daniels
while putting
the finishing
touches on a
Harley-Davidson
XG750R sweep of the
podium.
The champ had to
work hard
to even will himself
in a position to
fight for the box.
He found himself in
a perilous position
early with multiple
riders nipping at
his heels for fifth
in the early going.
And even after he
settled in,
Daniels couldn’t manage
to find a way past
RoosEvans, finishing
off the podium for
the first time in
ten races.
In truth, the
Estenson Yamaha ace
was fortunate to
stay ahead of a
charging Davis
Fisher (No. 67
Rackley Racing/Bob
Lanphere’s BMC
Racing KTM 790
Duke). Fisher raced
up from the back
row,
having burned his provisional
start
after encountering mechanical
issues in both his
heat and the LCQ.
Sixth went to Trent
Lowe (No. 48
American
Honda/Mission Foods
Honda CB750 Hornet),
followed closely by
Ben Lowe (No. 25
Rackley Racing/Roof
Systems KTM 790
Duke).
Evan Renshaw (No. 95
Moto Anatomy X
Powered by Royal
Enfield 650) earned
his best
premier-class result
to date in eighth
while part-timer
Bronson Bauman (No.
37 Dick Ford Racing
Yamaha MT-07)
finished ninth.
Canadian Hunter
Bauer (No. 24 G&G
Racing Yamaha MT-07)
finished tenth, and
as a result,
rookies accounted
for a full half of
the top ten.
Top rookie Kopp
continues to lead
the Grand National
Championship chase
at 103
points. Daniels is
still second with
91, while Bauman
continues to
close at 85.
KICKER AFT
Singles
It took five races,
but defending KICKER
AFT Singles champion
Tom Drane (No. 1
Estenson Racing
Yamaha YZ450F)
finally became the
first repeat winner
of the ‘26 season.
That achievement was
very much in doubt,
however, up until
the final minute of
the contest. The
Australian was
hounded and harried
deep into the race
by archrival Chase
Saathoff (No. 88 1st
Impressions Race
Team Husqvarna
FC450), who rode
like a pilot
desperate to claim a
first victory of the
year.
With the leaders’
bikes bucking as
they pressed hard to
break free at the
front, Saathoff
repeatedly
threatened to
execute a high-low
pass on Drane. But
rather than risk
striking too soon,
Saathoff looked to
stay patient and
bide his time.
However, that
strategy ultimately
backfired when his
preferred line went
away from him late,
allowing Drane to
make his escape.
“That was a really
good race,” Drane
said. “I knew I had
to get out there and
get a really
good start. Once I
did that, I put my
head down. Chase
was definitely
pressuring me,
working
the high-side on me,
but I was able to
get the job done.
I couldn’t have done
it without my
Estenson Racing
Monster Energy
Yamaha team – they
gave me a great bike
today.”
Drane and Saathoff
were joined at the
front during the
race’s opening
stages by young
Walker Porter (No.
10 American
Honda/Mission Foods
CRF450R), who
continued to flash
podium speed.
He’s yet to fully
cash in on that
pace, however. The
Turner Racing Honda
sophomore was
overhauled by title
hopeful Trevor
Brunner (No. 21 KMA
Racing/March
Equipment Yamaha
YZ450F) with just a
handful of
laps remaining to
steal away the final
spot on the box.
Porter did manage to
narrowly fend off
Tarren Santero (No.
75 Roof
Systems/Vinson
Construction Honda
CRF450R) to post a
new career-best
professional finish
of fourth.
Jared Lowe (No. 63
Big R Racing/Vinson
Construction Honda
CRF450R) came home
sixth, finishing
ahead of Kage Tadman
(No. 28 American
Honda/Mission Foods
CRF450R), whose
California win
streak was snapped
at three.
Justin Anselmi (No.
15 Team TDR Yamaha
YZ450F), Evan
Kelleher (No. 31
Schaeffer's
Motorsports KTM 450
SX-F), and Jack
Brucks (No. 113 1st
Impressions Race
Team Husqvarna
FC450) rounded out
the top ten.
Drane extended his
points lead with the
win, now boasting a
16-point advantage
over Brunner
(98-82). Saathoff is
third with 78
points.
AFT ProSport
450
Progressive American
Flat Track fans got
another peek into
the future in
Saturday night’s AFT
ProSport 450
showdown. Twelve of
the sport’s most
promising amateurs
earned an
opportunity
to showcase their
skills alongside the
world’s elite
professional
motorcycle dirt
trackers by way of
Friday’s
AMA-sanctioned
Mission Foods CTR
Showcase Event at
Silver Dollar
Speedway.
And two of those
twelve stepped
forward to deliver a
jaw-dropping
show in Saturday’s
Main Event. Adam
Costan-Wood (No. 88
Turner Racing Honda
CRF450R) and
Jett Katarzy (No. 17
1st Impressions
Husqvarna FC450)
expanded the rivalry
of Turner Racing and
1st Impressions
Racing to include
the AFT ProSport 450
class, battling back
and forth throughout
the 12-lap event.
Ventura
winner Katarzy made
what he hoped would
prove the race’s
decisive pass with
three
laps remaining before
a minor mistake
allowed Coston-Wood
to power back
past.
Katarzy put his head
down to reel his
rival back in and
threw in a
last-gasp,
last-corner strike
that Coston-Wood
rebuffed by a
miniscule
0.053-second margin
at the stripe.
Colt Shafer (No. 45
Colton Shafer Racing
Husqvarna FC 450)
claimed third after
coming out on top of
his own duel with
Christian Knox (No.
69 Knox Racing KTM
450 SX-F), while
Braxton Ragan (No.
84 UnSettled Racing
Honda CRF450R)
completed the top
five.
Next Up
Progressive American
Flat Track is headed
to ThrottleFest in
Mechanicsville,
Maryland, on
Saturday, May 16.
Visit https://www.tixr.com/groups/americanflattrack/events/2026-throttlefest-saturday-184353 to
purchase your
tickets today.
How to
Watch
FloRacing
For those
that can’t catch the
live action at the
track, FloRacing is
the live streaming
home of Progressive
American Flat Track.
Motorsports fans can
subscribe
to FloRacing to
enjoy over 1,000
live motorsports
events in
2026. FloSports is
available by
visiting https://flosports.link/AFT2026 or
by downloading the
FloSports app on
iOS, Android, Apple
TV, Roku, Amazon
Fire and
Chromecast.
FS1
FOX Sports coverage
of the Silver Dollar
Short Track,
featuring in-depth
features and
thrilling onboard
cameras, will
premiere on FS1 on
Sunday, May 10, at
11:30 a.m. ET (8:30
a.m. PT). The full
listing of American
Flat Track’s
television premieres
can be found at https://www.americanflattrack.com/events-foxsports.
