STURGIS, S.D. — They say good things come in threes. That is certainly the case at the 85th Sturgis Motorcycle Rally, as this week includes three Progressive American Flat Track rounds, sanctioned by AMA Pro Racing.
And the first of those three – Monday’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 No. 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).
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 fifth-mile is claimed to be the shortest ever negotiated by twin-cylinders throughout the long history of the Grand National Championship.
The first 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).
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).
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.”
Bauman now leads the Mission AFT SuperTwins championship fight over Daniels by just eight points (208-200).
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).
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
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.
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.
