(Pictured: Briar Bauman #3 and Chase Saathoff #88)
DAYTONA BEACH, Fla. (March 29, 2025) – History was made in Saturday
night’s Yamaha Senoia Short Track when Briar Bauman (No. 3 RWR/Parts
Plus/Latus Motors Harley-Davidson XG750R) hustled the Harley-Davidson
XG750R to its maiden Mission AFT SuperTwins victory.
Bauman twice teased that possibility earlier this month at the 2025
Progressive American Flat Track double season opener, sanctioned by AMA
Pro Racing, but he still somehow managed to pull it off in stunning
fashion at Senoia Raceway in Senoia, Georgia.
In fact, Bauman appeared out of sorts prior to the Main Event,
finishing an uncharacteristic fifth in his heat race, while title leader
Dallas Daniels (No. 32 Estenson Racing Yamaha MT-07 DT) and fast
qualifier Jarod VanDerKooi (No. 20 Fastrack Racing/Wally Brown Racing
KTM 790 Duke) stole away the pre-race the momentum.
But as it played out, the Main delivered non-stop drama that actually
started prior the race itself. VanDerKooi went from pole position to the
back of the grid – along with Brandon Price (No. 92 Memphis
Shades/Vinson Construction/OTBR Yamaha MT-07), Henry Wiles (No. 911 J&M
Logging/Ray C’s Harley-Davidson Kawasaki Ninja 650), and Billy Ross
(No. 29 Mission Foods/Roof Systems Kawasaki Ninja 650) – after
arriving late to the staging area.
That development resulted in a frantic opening several laps in which
Daniels, Brandon Robinson (No. 44 Mission Roof Systems Harley-Davidson
XG750R), and Davis Fisher (No. 67 Rackley Racing/Bob Lanphere’s BMC
Racing KTM 790 Duke) ran three wide in their clash for the lead,
followed closely by an on-form James Ott (No. 19 G&G Racing Yamaha
MT-07)… and soon enough, a charging VanDerKooi.
Right around the time the race hit the halfway point, Robinson took
command. And then with three minutes to go, Bauman made his move.
Lurking just behind the leaders to that point, the two-time Grand
National Champion snaked his way up to second before making a strike for
first with less than two laps remaining.
Robinson reactively countered but Bauman was better positioned and
reasserted his claim. All the while, Daniels was in their immediate
wake, desperately seeking a way around both Harleys at Yamaha’s home
round.
Ultimately, Bauman edged Robinson at the stripe to take the XG750R –
which originally debuted back in 2016 – to its first-ever premier
class victory with an emphatic 1-2 finish.
Bauman was understandably ecstatic afterward. He said, “It’s so
much, right? It means the world to me, to my Rick Ware Racing/Parts
Plus/Latus Motors team. It means so much to Dave (Zanotti) and Michelle
(Disalvo) and everyone behind us. I struggled in our heat race pretty
badly, but the whole group came together and said, ‘Hey, what do we
need to do to make this thing better?’
“This means so much to me, and it means so much to my family. And,
like I said, I have a phenomenal team.”
Daniels came up 0.028 seconds short of breaking up the Harley first and
second but still managed to up his record-breaking podium streak to 16
in the attempt. Fisher finished fourth another half-second behind
Daniels, while VanDerKooi ended his blitz up through the field in fifth.
Trent Lowe (No. 48 American Honda/Progressive Insurance Honda Transalp)
continued his rather seamless transition to Mission AFT SuperTwins
competition and the Honda Transalp with a fine sixth only two seconds
removed from the win.
Ott followed him home in seventh with Dan Bromley (No. 62 Memphis
Shades/Vinson Construction Suzuki GSX-8S), Price, and Max Whale (No. 18
Moto Anatomy X Powered by Royal Enfield 650) completing the top ten.
Daniels continues to lead the early-season championship chase but only
by a single point over Bauman (62-61). Robinson and Fisher are tied for
third at 44.
AFT Singles presented by KICKER
While the season opener in Daytona effectively served as a recap of the
past three years of AFT Singles presented by KICKER domination by triple
champion Kody Kopp (No. 1 Bob Lanphere/KTM/Fastrack Racing KTM 450
SX-F), the Senoia Short Track properly set the stage for the season
ahead.
What it delivered was what was widely expected – a showdown featuring
preseason title favorites Chase Saathoff (No. 88 RWR/Parts Plus Honda
CRF450R) and Tom Drane (No. 59 Estenson Racing Yamaha YZ450F) – but it
took the entire day and a portion of the Main to arrive at that
inevitability.
The front row was held down by just two riders – Aidan RoosEvans (No.
26 FRA Trust/ATV’s and More Yamaha YZ450F) and Tyler Raggio (No. 55
Raggio/Sluggo/Unsettled Racing KTM 450 SX-F) – after heat race winners
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) were unable
to participate after colliding while running 1st and 2nd in the AFT
Singles 1st Impressions Challenge.
RoosEvans and Raggio shot off into the lead and took full advantage of
their turn in the spotlight, at least until Drane and Saathoff finally
came good when it mattered the most.
Saathoff utilized a high line to work his way from Row 3 and into the
lead less than two minutes into the Main. Aussie Drane forced his way
through to prevent his rival from executing his planned escape. The
Estenson Racing star then spent the remainder of the race showing the
Rick Ware Racing ace his front wheel, but he could never quite make the
inside angle stick.
Saathoff took the checkered flag by 0.312 seconds over Drane to earn his
first career Short Track win and become just the fifth rider in AFT
Singles history to complete the class Grand Slam.
He said, “I struggled all day long out here, and I told (Crew Chief)
Bryan (Bigelow) before that Main Event, ‘Dude, I might be on the third
row, but if you fix the problems that I’m having, it’s a guaranteed
win.’ And I never think like that; I’m very humble about that type of
stuff, but I definitely let the dog off the leash in the Main.”
Despite falling short of his bid to win, Drane took his ninth
consecutive podium, most ever in the class.
Completing a podium stacked three deep with significance was Evan
Renshaw (No. 65 1st Impressions Race Team Husqvarna FC450), who sailed
his way from 12th to 3rd thanks to an adventurous high line to secure
his first-career pro podium.
Meanwhile, RoosEvans equaled his career best AFT Singles finish in
fourth, matching the result he claimed here one year ago.
Trevor Brunner (No. 21 American Honda/Mission Foods CRF450R) took
fifth, followed by Declan Bender (No. 70 1st Impressions Race Team
Husqvarna FC450), who impressed mightily in last-minute substitute duty
filling in for Chad Cose (No. 49 1st Impressions Race Team Husqvarna
FC450).
Jared Lowe (No. 63 Big R/Little Debbie Racing Honda CRF450R), Raggio,
Evan Kelleher (No. 31 Schaeffer’s Motorsports KTM 450 SX-F), and Hunter
Bauer (No. 24 Vinson Construction/Reel Medics Yamaha YZ450F) rounded out
the top ten.
Drane now leads the championship with 54 points, followed by Senoia
winner Saathoff. Kopp continues to hold down third at 46 despite making
his roadracing debut in Texas today.
Next Up:
The world’s premier dirt track motorcycle racing series continues its
run of six consecutive Short Tracks to open the 2025 season on Saturday,
April 26, with its return to scenic Ventura, California, for the Ventura
Short Track at Ventura Raceway. Visit
https://www.americanflattrack.com/events/2025/view/ventura-short-track-2025
[6] 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 [7].
FOX Sports coverage of the Yamaha Senoia Short Track, featuring in-depth
features and thrilling onboard cameras, will premiere on FS1 on Sunday,
April 6, at 10:00 a.m. ET (7:00 a.m. PT).
For more information on Progressive AFT visit
https://www.americanflattrack.com [8].