Dallas Daniels (32), Trent Lowe
(48), Briar Bauman (3), Declan
Bender (70), Henry Wiles (911),
and Brandon Price (92) race down
the front straightaway during
the Mission AFT SuperTwins Main
Event in Springfield during the
Springfield Mile II event. [Photo: American Flat
Track / Tim Lester]
DAYTONA BEACH, Fla.
(September 9, 2025) –
The Grand National
Championship will be
decided when the 2025
Progressive American Flat Track
season, sanctioned by
AMA Pro Racing,
concludes with the
Arby's Lake Ozark Short Track
presented by Arrowhead Brass
at Lake Ozark
Speedway in Eldon,
Missouri on Saturday, September
13.
And the season finale will once
again play out in suitably
festive surroundings, serving as
a centerpiece of this year’s
19th Annual Lake of the
Ozarks BikeFest, an
event destined to attract some
125,000 motorcycle enthusiasts
to the area from September
10-14.
The Grand. National.
Championship.
Any concerns that
Mission AFT SuperTwins
would lose a bit of intrigue and
drama after ten-time class king
Jared Mees rode
off into the sunset have not
just been proven unfounded but
resoundingly so.
Over the course of an
unforgettable ‘25 title fight,
Mees’ latter-day foils,
Dallas Daniels (No. 32
Estenson Racing Yamaha MT-07 DT)
and Briar Bauman
(No. 3 RWR/Parts Plus/Latus
Motors Harley-Davidson XG750R),
established their own rivalry
which could potentially define
the sport for the next decade.
Their battles have been epic and
at times not without controversy
or acrimony. Momentum has been
seized and reseized. And each
has faced down adversity while
making their respective bids to
assume Mees’ throne this
season.
The tides turned yet again – and
in a big way – at the
Springfield Mile doubleheader.
Bauman powered into Springfield
on a high following his
triumphant performance in
Peoria. He left in
disappointment, an 11-point
advantage transformed into a
13-point deficit. That margin
puts his chances for a third
Grand National Championship in
serious peril, a reality he’s
all too aware of.
However it plays out, Bauman has
already done as much this season
to cement his legacy as an
all-time great as any of his
prior campaigns, including the
two in which he defeated Mees
for the title.
This season, Bauman and his Rick
Ware Racing team took a
previously winless
Harley-Davidson XG750R and made
it a genuine title threat on the
strength of seven wins to date.
But it goes beyond the numbers –
the manner and style in which
he’s done it left even the
gifted Daniels and the
powerhouse Estenson Racing team
behind him at times bewildered.
Perhaps paradoxically, Bauman
was never more impressive than
he was in Springfield, where he
routinely sliced and diced the
world’s elite motorcycle flat
trackers up through the corners
just to cling to contention down
the straights.
However, overpowered on Saturday
and luckless on Sunday, Bauman
now faces a steep climb to the
title this weekend despite his
overall brilliance in 2025.
1.56%
Just how steep?
If Bauman wins this weekend –
and he should be viewed as the
favorite considering the
desperation of his situation
along with his status as the
winningest Short Track rider in
series history – he’ll end the
year with 307 points and a
tiebreaking eight wins.
That would mean Daniels would
have to finish seventh or better
to accumulate at least 308
points, and along with it, the
2025 Grand National
Championship.
And just how likely is that?
Consider the following:
Daniels has participated in 64
Main Events throughout the
entirety of his near four-season
premier-class career. During
that span, he has finished
outside the top five just
once. That outlier took
place during the 2022 Volusia
double finale weekend, in which
he crashed from fourth and
ultimately finished 12th.
Since that time, the Estenson
Racing star has finished fifth
or better in 47 consecutive
races – 42 of those on the box.
As has been said many times – by
Bauman and many others – it’s
not so much Daniels’ speed
(which is remarkable) or his
talent (which is considerable),
but rather his unprecedented
consistency that is his greatest
attribute as a title fighter.
One bad day. One bad race. One
bad moment. Give Daniels an
opportunity, and he’ll make you
pay.
Bauman had a bad day in
Springfield.
However, it’s not over just yet.
Pile on the pressure of a
lifelong goal, and the chance
that the unthinkable happens
might increase a percentage
point or ten.
It’s happened before; the racing
annals overfloweth with stories
of less likely scenarios coming
to fruition.
Give The Man His Due
Brandon Robinson
(No. 44 Mission Roof Systems
Harley-Davidson XG750R) has
spent the bulk of the season
lost in the shadow of the
fascinating Daniels/Bauman
showdown.
However, step back and admire
another campaign that has only
furthered his argument for
eventual inclusion in the AMA
Motorcycle Hall of Fame.
26 points up on fourth, Robinson
has already locked in his fifth
Grand National Championship
ranking of third or better. He’s
also added five more podiums to
his career tally, including a
long-sought first win on the
Harley-Davidson XG750R he helped
usher into the series eight
years back.
While no doubt frustrated after
taking a step back from 2024’s
title contention, Robinson has
quietly penned another strong
season in a career that’s
gradually elevated him up to
some pretty lofty statistical
territory.
Lowe Man Wins
Much has been made – and
deservedly so – of Trent
Lowe (No. 48 American
Honda/Progressive Insurance
Honda Transalp) scoring Honda’s
first twin-cylinder
premier-class win of the
millennium with his Springfield
surprise.
But perhaps lost in that
excitement was just how much his
huge weekend transformed his
championship standing outlook.
Prior to Springfield, Lowe was
locked in a tight fight for
sixth with James Ott
(No. 19 G&G Racing
Yamaha MT-07), Dan
Bromley (No. 62 Memphis
Shades/Vinson Construction
Suzuki GSX-8S), and Max
Whale (No. 18 Moto
Anatomy X Powered by Royal
Enfield 650).
Meanwhile, Davis Fisher
(No. 67 Rackley Racing/Bob
Lanphere’s BMC Racing KTM 790
Duke) and Jarod
VanDerKooi (No. 20
Fastrack Racing/Wally Brown
Racing KTM 790 Duke) still held
outside hopes of edging Robinson
for third at the time.
Lowe’s stunning success combined
with twin misfortune for Fisher
and ‘VDK,’ has painted a very
different picture with just one
race to go. As it stands, it’s
now Lowe who sits fourth with
172 points, followed closely by
Fisher (169) and VanDerkooi
(167).
Even before the breakthrough
victory, Lowe’s top-five finish
at the Lucas Oil Short Track was
likely good enough to consider
2025 a positive one of the Big
Red SuperTwins program. The
victory more than assured that.
But fourth in the overall
standings? That would certainly
be something.
Rookie of the Year
Lowe’s Springfield triumph also
handed him a commanding lead in
the chase for Mission AFT
SuperTwins Rookie of the Year
honors.
Lowe and Ott have gone back and
forth in a two-rider tilt all
year long, but Lowe’s big win
pushed him 18 points out in
front with just the finale to
go. In other words, it would
take a monster result from Ott
and utter catastrophe from Lowe
to prevent the Honda pilot from
being named premier-class Rookie
of the Year.
That said, congratulations to
Ott, who has been hugely
impressive in his own right.
With one race left to shine, the
Californian has already racked
up four top fives on the G&G
Yamaha – highlighted by a pair
of podiums – in his first
Mission AFT SuperTwins
campaign.
It’s Best to Rest Before
BikeFest
There will be no shortage of
entertainment options at the
19th Annual Lake of the
Ozarks BikeFest in
general and the Lake Ozark Short
Track in particular.
Along with the season-ending
action on track culminating in
the crowing of the 2025 Grand
National Champion, fans will be
treated to Jumbotron-enhanced
viewing, dedicated motorcycle
parking, numerous food and
beverage options, the Fans Zone
– complete with a face painter –
and a fireworks display to
conclude the evening’s
activities.
Your Ticket to the Land
of Oz(ark)
General Admission
tickets are just $40
(kids 12 and under free with a
paid adult General Admission
ticket). Students can get a GA
ticket for just $20 ticket at
the gate with a student ID,
while qualified individuals can
take advantage of the
Military/First Responder
discount to purchase $20 General
Admission tickets via the GovX
link found on the event ticket
pages.
Reserved Grandstand
tickets, which are located along
the front stretch of the
racetrack with ideal sightlines,
are just $50 (all ages).
H.O.G. members can purchase a
H.O.G. Membership Ticket
for $30 (all ages), which grants
access to both a dedicated
parking area and dedicated
grandstand seating, along with a
meet and greet and photo
opportunity with the
Harley-Davidson racers and a
private infield tour.
Finally, there’s the
Opening Ceremonies Trackside Fan
Experience ($99), which
includes General Admission
seating with full pit pass
access, a guided tour of the
infield podium and start/finish
line, photo opps, and up-close
viewing of Opening Ceremonies
and the night’s race action.
Visit
https://www.tixr.com/groups/americanflattrack/events/lake-ozark-short-track-126438
to purchase your tickets today.
Gates will open for fans at 3:00
p.m. ET (12:00 p.m. PT) with
Opening Ceremonies set to begin
at 8:00 p.m. ET (5:00 a.m. PT).
How to Watch
FloRacing
For those that can’t catch the
live action from the circuit,
FloRacing is
the live streaming home of
Progressive AFT. Motorsports
fans can subscribe to FloRacing
to enjoy over 1,000 live
motorsports events in 2025.
FloSports is available by
visiting
https://flosports.link/aft
or by downloading the FloSports
app on iOS, Android, Apple TV,
Roku, Amazon Fire and
Chromecast.
FS1
FOX Sports
coverage of the Arby's
Lake Ozark Short Track presented
by Arrowhead Brass,
featuring in-depth features and
thrilling onboard cameras, will
premiere on FS1
on Saturday, September
20, at 11:00
a.m. ET (8:00 a.m.
PT).
For more information on
Progressive AFT visit
https://www.americanflattrack.com.
