Mission AFT SuperTwins riders
Briar Bauman (3), Dallas Daniels
(32), Brandon Robinson (44) lead
the rest of the pack during
Round 10 in Sturgis Monday
night. [Photo: American
Flat Track/Tim Lester]
DAYTONA BEACH, Fla.
(August 4, 2025) – They
say good things come in threes.
That is certainly the case at
the 85th Sturgis
Motorcycle Rally, as
this week in Sturgis, South
Dakota, includes three
Progressive American Flat Track
rounds, sanctioned by
AMA Pro Racing.
And the first of those three –
tonight’s Jackpine
Gypsies Short Track I –
both featured the
Mission Triple Challenge
format and added a
third class to the mix with the
much anticipated return of the
AFT AdventureTrackers™.
Meanwhile, two-time
Grand National Champion
Briar Bauman
(No. 3 RWR/Parts Plus/Latus
Motors Harley-Davidson XG750R)
is currently on a mission to up
his Mission AFT
SuperTwins title tally
to match the #3 on his number
plate.
He took another step in that
direction with his sixth victory
of the season, which came
following a(nother) knock-down,
drag-out battle with chief rival
Dallas Daniels
(No. 32 Estenson Racing Yamaha
MT-07 DT).
Main Event 1
For the second time this season,
the series used the new-for-‘25
Mission Triple Challenge format.
Three successive Main Events – a
10-lap sprint, a 15-lapper that
paid double points, and a final
20-lap Main which concluded the
night with triple the points –
determined the evening’s overall
winner.
All of this action was somehow
contained by the
Jackpine Gypsies Motorcycle
Club’s ultra-tight
Short Track, which at 1/5-mile
is claimed to be the shortest
ever negotiated by
twin-cylinders throughout the
long history of the Grand
National Championship.
The first Main Event barely gave
the combatants a chance to
breathe, taking just over two
minutes to complete. But despite
the diminutive track and short
duration, Bauman still had
enough room and time to deliver
a relative blowout. The RWR ace
grabbed the holeshot and
immediately pulled clear of the
frantic melee behind.
Daniels found himself an early
fourth, overtaken at launch by
ST master Henry Wiles
(No. 911 DL Racing/HYMMC Yamaha
MT-07) and Brandon
Robinson (No. 44
Mission Roof Systems
Harley-Davidson XG750R).
It took Daniels just two laps to
drive up the inside of both, but
by then Bauman was nearly a
second out in front.
But even with clear air in front
of Daniels, Bauman would
eventually work that advantage
up to 1.329 seconds by the time
he took the checkered flag.
Robinson came home third,
followed by a charging
Max Whale (No. 18 Moto
Anatomy X Powered by Royal
Enfield 650) and Davis
Fisher (No. 67 Rackley
Racing/Bob Lanphere’s BMC Racing
KTM 790 Duke).
Main Event 2
Daniels nearly pulled off the
holeshot, but that merely put
him in a position for Bauman to
push him wide and allow a
resourceful Robinson through
into second. Undeterred, the
Estenson Racing pilot quickly
regrouped and powered under
Robinson to close right in on
Bauman’s rear wheel.
Before he could attempt a
strike, however, the race was
red-flagged as a result of a
crash on the part of
Declan Bender (No. 70
Memphis Shades/Luczak Racing
Yamaha MT-07).
While Bauman and Daniels picked
their battle back up after the
restart, Whale joined the party
with the impressive utilization
of an high-risk, high-reward,
high line. But before the
shootout could really take
shape, another red was shown,
this time due to a crash that
involved Bender (again) and
Fisher.
While Bauman grabbed the lead
off the start for a third time,
he got extremely loose and
Daniels instantly pounced.
Bauman would go on to survive
scares in the same corner on the
subsequent two laps as well,
allowing his rival to earn the
win with more than a half second
to spare.
Despite the repeated bobbles,
Bauman maintained second,
followed by Whale, Robinson, and
Jarod VanDerKooi
(No. 20 Fastrack
Racing/Wally Brown Racing KTM
790 Duke).
Main Event 3
Bauman and Daniels saved the
best for last, going back and
forth down to the final lap.
The two swapped first place
multiple times on the opening
handful of laps before Daniels
finally established himself in
first and locked down the
inside.
Unlike the earlier fights, the
title fighters didn’t have this
one all to themselves with
Robinson, Trent Lowe
(No. 48 American
Honda/Progressive Insurance
Honda Transalp), and Whale in
close contention, eagerly
awaiting any mistake that would
allow them to potentially pull
off an upset.
And that opportunity seemed
almost likely, with Bauman
riding on the ragged edge in
hopes of finding a way – any way
– past Daniels.
But rather than make a mistake,
Bauman made it happen, ripping
through with six to go. Robinson
followed him past Daniels, but
the Yamaha rider put himself
right back into second and
looked to turn the tables once
again.
However, try as he might,
Daniels couldn’t work out a path
to the win and was forced to
watch from close behind as
Bauman claimed his sixth overall
win of the year.
Bauman said, “Dallas took me to
school in the second Main Event.
To come back and get him… he
usually just builds momentum and
gets better throughout the
night. My Rick Ware Racing/Part
Plus/Latus Motors team worked
really, really hard. We
changed quite a bit of stuff
even though we’ve been fast all
day… Dallas is so good. I’ve
never been this stressed out all
the time, but we’re out here,
baby, and we’re working for
it.”
Robinson finished third in Main
Event 3 and the overall results.
Lowe finished fourth in Main
Event 3 to move up to sixth in
the final round results, while
Whale took fifth in the race and
fourth overall.
Wiles was awarded fifth overall
following his 7-6-6 night.
Bauman now leads the Mission AFT
SuperTwins championship fight
over Daniels by just eight
points (208-200). Robinson is a
distant third at 135.
AFT Singles presented by
KICKER
The Mission Triple Challenge
delivered another barnburner in
AFT Singles presented by
KICKER action, with
three different riders earning a
win, including the round’s
overall victor, Chase
Saathoff (No. 88
RWR/Parts Plus Honda CRF450R).
Main Event 1
The night’s first Main Event saw
Trevor Brunner
(No. 21 American Honda/Mission
Foods CRF450R) overcome a
determined challenge from
Saathoff, who stormed by at one
point only to be quickly dropped
back to second.
Saathoff made another last-lap
stab at the win, but Brunner
held strong to grab the win by
0.230 seconds.
Aidan RoosEvans
(No. 26 FRA Trust/ATV’s and More
Yamaha YZ450F) slipped free from
the big pack behind him to earn
a fairly safe third a little
over a second back of the win.
Rising stars Kage Tadman
(No. 288 Roof Systems/Rice's
Rapid Motorsports KTM 450 SX-F)
and Walker Porter
(No. 100 American
Honda/Mission Foods CRF450R)
came home fourth and fifth, with
Tadman fighting past his fellow
rookie on the final
circulation.
Meanwhile, title leader
Tom Drane (No. 59
Estenson Racing Yamaha YZ450F),
who was feeling under the
weather throughout the day,
could only manage a sixth-place
result
Main Event 2
Under the weather or not, Main
Event 2 saw Drane revert to his
more typical form, blasting up
to second off the start and then
sailing past Brunner to capture
the lead just two laps in.
With the Australian walking off
at the front, Brunner turned his
attention to locking down second
with Saathoff and Tadman in hot
pursuit. That is until the race
was red-flagged due to a bizarre
crash that saw RoosEvans yanked
clear of his bike when his left
leg was somehow snared by the
machine of Bradon
Pfanders (No. 83
Hannum’s HD/Pfanders Racing KTM
450 SX-F).
Following the staggered restart,
Drane resumed his position at
the front. However, this time he
found himself under serious fire
from Tadman. The rookie tapped
back into his California style,
railing around the outside of
both Saathoff and Brunner to
zero in on Drane.
While he even nosed ahead at one
point, Tadman couldn’t quite
make a move stick and Drane went
on to claim the victory.
Brunner finished third ahead of
Saathoff, while Tarren
Santero (No. 75 Mission
Roof Systems Honda CRF450R) –
who made his way into the Main
Event program via the LCQ –
finished fifth.
Main Event 3
After twice being denied,
Saathoff pulled it all together
when it mattered the most. The
RWR pilot switched up his
tactics to employ a Tadman-like
high line and used it to work
his way past Brunner, Tadman
himself, and, soon enough, Drane
to grab the lead.
Even when all alone in the lead,
Saathoff continued to ride high,
moving more than a second out in
front of archrival Drane in the
process.
Behind, Tadman and Brunner went
back-and-forth for several laps
while contesting third before
up-and-comer Tadman finally
established himself in the
position.
A late charge from Drane saw him
pull back alongside Saathoff
with just two laps to go.
However, Saathoff simply refused
to allow him through as the two
waged yet another epic final-lap
clash.
Tadman came home in third
followed by Brunner and
RoosEvans.
The overall podium mirrored that
of Main Event 3, with Saathoff
earning his second win of the
season, Drane scoring his sixth
consecutive podium, and Tadman
picking up the third podium of
his stellar rookie season.
Brunner finished fourth in the
race as well as the overall
results, while RoosEvans was
fifth in Main Event 3 and sixth
overall. Fifth place overall
went to Pfanders thanks to the
combined points added up from
his 8-6-6 evening.
Saathoff said, “This is very
meaningful. I took a chance in
that race off the start, and I
just rolled with it. Man, I
didn’t want to have to close the
door on Tom that hard, but I was
there for the win, and I wasn’t
giving it up on the last lap.
Hats off to my whole team. I
can’t thank everybody enough.
I’m so happy to have done it
here.”
Despite suffering the narrow
defeat, Drane continues to lead
the title fight quite
comfortably, boasting 191 points
to Saathoff’s 172. Brunner is
third at 151.
AFT AdventureTrackers™
While the Mission AFT SuperTwins
and AFT Singles utilized the
Mission Triple Challenge format,
the AFT
AdventureTrackers
determined its first winner of
the season in a single 10-lap
Main Event, with 500-pound,
near-stock Dual Adventure bikes
going bar-to-bar in a
two-wheeled cage match.
The sky-high capabilities of
these versatile bikes – some of
which were either ridden on the
streets or sourced from dealer
showroom floors as recently as
yesterday – was expertly
demonstrated by a field stacked
with elite racers.
None did so more effectively
than Jesse Janisch
(No. 33
WFOracingonline.com/Öhlins
Harley-Davidson Pan America
1250). The 2022 Mission
Production Twins champion
leveraged a low line to cut
under early leader Dan
Bromley (No. 62 Big
Momma and Daddy Deep Pockets
Suzuki V-Strom 1050) with eight
laps remaining.
2018 AFT Singles champ Bromley
spent the remainder of the race
muscling his bike around in a
fruitless bid to square up
Janisch.
Afterward, Janisch said, “We’ve
been having a blast. I got to
ride the thing all day yesterday
out in the hills, enjoying the
scenic views of Sturgis, which
was amazing. I’ve got to thank
everyone who helped us out. I
had a good battle with Dan, and
I’m stoked to get the first
one.”
2019 AFT Singles champion
Dalton Gauthier
(No. 79 Triumph Racing Triumph
Tiger 900 GT Pro) claimed the
final spot on the box following
a three-way scrap that also
included fourth-place finisher
Hunter Bauer
(No. 24 Vinson
Construction/Memphis Shades BMW
F 900 GS) and fifth-place
finisher Henry Wiles
(No. 911 Walter Bros.
Harley-Davidson Pan America
1250).
In fact, Wiles appeared to have
third all but sewn up, however,
a mechanical issue on the final
lap allowed Gauthier to steal
back the position at the last
possible moment.
Next Up:
The stars of Progressive
American Flat Track will be back
in action tomorrow as the
Jackpine Gypsies Short
Track II concludes this
early-week ST doubleheader on
Tuesday, August 5.
To purchase Jackpine Gypsies
Short Track II tickets, visit:
https://www.tixr.com/groups/americanflattrack/events/2025-jackpine-gypsies-short-track-ii-144071.
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 Jackpine
Gypsies Short Track I,
featuring in-depth features and
thrilling onboard cameras, will
premiere on FS1
on Saturday, August 16,
at 10:00 a.m. ET
(7:00 a.m. PT), with the
Jackpine Gypsies Short Track II
set to air the following day,
Sunday, August 17,
at 1:00 p.m. ET
(10:00 a.m. PT).
For more information on
Progressive AFT visit
https://www.americanflattrack.com.
