DAYTONA BEACH, Fla. (July 16,
2022) – Progressive American
Flat Track
star Briar Bauman
(No. 3 Indian
Motorcycle/Progressive Insurance
FTR750) scored his second
straight victory at the
Mission Port Royal Half-Mile
presented by Appalachian
Harley-Davidson thanks
to a virtuoso performance at
Port Royal Speedway
on Saturday evening in Port
Royal, Pennsylvania.
The two-time Mission
SuperTwins presented by S&S
Cycle champion had
suffered through something of a
wins drought by his standards
after taking last year’s Port
Royal Half-Mile, claiming just
one triumph in the following 15
races. However, Bauman looks to
be well and truly back to peak
form now, adding a second
consecutive win to record this
season.”
The 22nd premier-class win of
Bauman’s career carried some
extra significance, coming on an
evening in which the paddock
earlier paid tribute to Ryan
Varnes by donning his number #68
en masse for a memorial lap led
by the late rider’s family.
After taking the checkered flag
in the Main Event, Bauman took
Varnes’ girlfriend, Jennifer
Hoshauer, for the victory lap.
“Honestly, it’s an emotional day
for the sport of flat track,”
Bauman said. “I can’t thank
everyone who participates in
flat track enough right now. I
can’t believe how strong the
Varnes family is… All the fans
were supporting us during our
lap of honor. I don’t normally
do burnouts – I don’t know if
I've ever done one – but I just
felt like we needed to do it. It
was for Ryan.”
Reigning Mission SuperTwins
champion Jared Mees
(No. 1 Indian
Motorcycle/Progressive Insurance
FTR750) pushed Bauman early
before falling into the clutches
of Jarod Vanderkooi (No.
20 Mission Roof Systems Indian
FTR750).
Following some back-and-forth,
Vanderkooi expertly exploited
the extreme high line to rail
around Mees with a minute
remaining on the clock and then
held strong to secure his second
runner-up result in a row.
While unable to respond, Mees
still powered to his third
third-place finish in
succession. As a result, Mees
continues to lead the title
fight but by just eight points
over archrival Bauman (173-165).
For the contest’s opening half,
Estenson Racing Yamaha teammates
Dallas Daniels
(No. 32 Estenson Racing Yamaha
MT-07 DT) and JD Beach
(No. 95 Estenson Racing Yamaha
MT-07 DT) ran in tight formation
in fifth and sixth,
respectively. However, after
that point, they went in
opposite directions.
Daniels overtook Brandon
Robinson (No. 44
Mission Roof Systems Indian
FTR750) for fourth and made up
ground on the podium before
ultimately finishing just over a
second off the box. Meanwhile,
Beach twisted his ankle and was
unable to maintain his pace,
dropping all the way back to
12th by the race’s conclusion.
Robinson rounded out the top
five, followed home by
Mission Production Twins
Challenge entrants
Jesse Janisch
(No. 33 Vance & Hines
Harley-Davidson XG750R) and
Dan Bromley
(No. 62 Memphis
Shades/Corbin/Vinson Yamaha
MT-07).
Meanwhile, Davis Fisher
(No. 67 Bob Lanphere’s BMC
Racing Indian FTR750),
Robert Pearson (No. 27
Rackley Racing/John Franklin
Indian FTR750), and
Bronson Bauman (No. 37
Latus Motors Racing
Harley-Davidson XG750R)
completed the top ten.
Mission Production Twins
presented by Vance & Hines
Jesse
Janisch
(No. 33 Vance & Hines
Harley-Davidson XG750R)
outlasted Dan Bromley
(No. 62 Memphis
Shades/Corbin/Vinson Yamaha
MT-07) to score his third win of
the Mission Production
Twins presented by Vance &
Hines season.
Bromley announced at Port Royal
that he was back for the
remainder of the season and
proceeded to prove in the Main
Event that he was back in a big
way. The home-state hero stormed
to the holeshot and worked up a
gap of nearly a half second over
Janisch by the race’s
mid-distance with the rest of
the field even further back in
his wake.
Rather than fold, Janisch
mounted a comeback, reeling
Bromley back in and arriving at
his side with just over two
minutes remaining. At that
point, both riders bucked and
weaved mere inches apart, with
Bromley even reaching over and
giving Janisch a friendly tap.
Janisch finally completed the
extended overtake and then put
his head down to claim a clear
victory with almost two full
seconds in hand.
With title rival Cory
Texter (No. 1 G&G
Racing/Yamaha Racing Yamaha
MT-07) finishing a couple more
seconds back in third, the win
saw Janisch retake the
championship lead by a single
point (174-173).
“Man, that was some good
racing,” Janisch said. “About
halfway through the Main,
(Bromley) made one little
mistake, and I was searching so
much trying to find something
that would work a little better.
Right when he made that mistake,
I kind of found it. I started
working on him. Hats off to the
team. The bike is awesome. It’s
like a dream come true season so
far.
“This one is for (Ryan) Varnes.
That front straightaway memorial
we did for him was amazing.”
2020 class champion
James Rispoli (No. 43
Wally Brown Racing/Haversack KTM
890 Duke) finished in fourth
after getting shuffled back to
tenth in a hectic opening lap.
Despite the immediate
disadvantage, Rispoli charged
hard enough to push Texter late,
taking the checkered flag just
0.806 seconds off the podium.
The top five was completed by
Mikey Rush (No.
15 Hellipower Racing/Las Vegas
Harley-Davidson XG750R), who
equaled his best finish since
returning from the injury he
suffered at last season’s
finale.
Parts Unlimited AFT
Singles presented by KICKER
For the fourth consecutive
round, runaway Parts
Unlimited AFT Singles presented
by KICKER title leader
Kody Kopp (No.
12 Red Bull KTM Factory Racing
450 SX-FFE) went wire-to-wire to
victory.
In what has to pass as a form of
consolation to the field, Kopp’s
dominance was held somewhat in
check at Port Royal Speedway. In
contrast to the previous three
lopsided affairs, a group of
four riders managed to keep Kopp
in sight for race distance.
Dalton
Gauthier (No.
79 American Honda/Progressive
Insurance CRF450R had the pace
to keep Kopp honest,
consistently fighting back the
gap whenever Kopp threatened to
shake free. But in the end, the
KTM ace hit the stripe to claim
a 0.646-second margin of victory
over his American Honda-backed
adversary.
“It feels good to come back and
(win) here at Port Royal,” Kopp
said after taking the sixth win
of what’s quickly shaping up to
be a historic campaign. “This
track is pretty cool. I’m just
glad I got to take my sister on
a victory lap. Big thanks to my
team.”
Kopp’s teammate, Max
Whale (No. 18 Red Bull
KTM Factory Racing 450 SX-FFE),
earned his first podium since
returning from injury. Whale
battled with Gauthier early
before being forced to shift his
attention to fending off
Gauthier’s rookie teammate,
Chase Saathoff (No.
106 American Honda/Progressive
Insurance CRF450R), to hold onto
the final spot on the box.
Trent
Lowe
(No. 48 Mission Foods/Al Lamb’s
Dallas Honda CRF450R) rode in
podium contention for much of
the race before a late bobble
dropped him off the chase. He
still managed to claim a lonely
fifth, finishing nearly five
seconds ahead of sixth-placed
Trevor Brunner (No.
21 Estenson Racing Yamaha
YZ450F).
Second-ranked Morgen
Mischler (No. 13
American Honda/Progressive
Insurance CRF450R) finished a
spot further back in seventh as
Kopp extended his championship
advantage to more than two full
races, 205-150.
The Mission Port Royal
Half-Mile presented by
Appalachian Harley-Davidson will
premiere on FS1 on
Saturday, July 23, at 9:30 a.m.
ET/6:30 a.m. PT, including
exclusive features, cutting-edge
aerial drone and onboard
footage, and expert commentary.
Next Up:
Progressive AFT is now headed to
the world-famous Peoria
TT at the Peoria
Motorcycle Club in Peoria,
Illinois, on Saturday, July 30.
Visit
https://store.americanflattrack.com/ebooking/ticket/view/id/3695
to secure your tickets today.
You can catch the livestream of
all the weekend’s racing
activities on
FansChoice.tv.
FansChoice.tv provides
free-to-view livestreaming of
Practice and Qualifying.
FansChoice.tv subscribers will
then be able to watch the drama
unfold from Opening Ceremonies
through the Semis, Main Events,
and podium celebrations.
FansChoice.tv offers two
subscription options, granting
unlimited access to premium AFT
content. Monthly subscriptions
start at just $7.99, while a
six-month subscription is
available for $44.99.
For more information on
Progressive AFT visit
https://www.americanflattrack.com.
To score the latest gear for the
Progressive American Flat Track
fan, visit our official
merchandise store at
https://store.americanflattrack.com.
How to Watch:
FOX Sports and FansChoice.tv are
the official homes for coverage
of Progressive American Flat
Track. For the 2022 season, all
races will premiere in one-hour
telecasts on FS1 during highly
desirable weekend time slots.
The complete schedule can be
viewed at
https://www.americanflattrack.com/events-foxsports.
FansChoice.tv provides
livestreaming coverage of every
Progressive AFT round at
http://www.FansChoice.tv.
