PORT ROYAL, Pa. – Reigning Mission SuperTwins presented by S&S Cycle champion Briar Bauman denied Brandon Price his first Progressive American Flat Track victory in a spectacular inaugural Port Royal Half-Mile presented by Appalachian Harley-Davidson at Port Royal Speedway.
One day after dominating the pre-race test, Price looked more than capable of doing the same in Saturday’s main. The Mission Roof Systems pilot worked his way up from outside the top five and into the lead with apparent ease, grabbing the lead just a minute-and-a-half into the contest.
It took the remaining eight-and-a-half minutes for Bauman to reel him back in, frequently employing a very wide line that provided the requisite momentum when it came time for the decisive strike.
That strike was actually ‘strikes’ as Bauman threw in a pair of hard passes over the race’s final two laps to put Price behind him and keep him there to the checkered flag.
“I knew I needed to do it late. (Price) had been known today to not be afraid to kinda come up the inside and meet you at the exit,” said Bauman. “I knew if I was going to do it, I had to run scared and get out quick. I got him once, and then he was able to get back by me in three and four. So I did it again.
“I love this stuff. I love this state, and I love these types of tracks. It was kind of a bummer that I struggled for so long (throughout the day), but I don’t really get that fired up until the Main Event. I was happy to get fired up when it counted and make that one count.”
For Price, the runner-up represented yet another near-miss. On the upside, he also demonstrated both the speed and skill to push the world’s top dirt tracker to the brink.
“It’s a boost of confidence, but I’m gutted at the same time,” Price said. “I led pretty much the whole entire race. I felt him the last few laps, but he made a good move going into Turn 1. I tried to get him back but the track is very technical out there, and I just couldn’t get a drive off of Turn 4 to challenge him for the win.”
Jarod Vanderkooi translated his first-ever Mission Challenge win into the early lead. However, he ultimately found himself overhauled by Price, Bauman, and, finally, Jared Mees, who snatched away the final spot on the podium.
Fifth went to Davis Fisher by a scant .008 seconds over Bronson Bauman, who came out of his Semi looking like a Main Event favorite.
Brandon Robinson finished an uncharacteristic seventh. That off result allowed Bauman to rip open a rather significant championship lead, as Bauman now heads the order by a full 25 points (164-139) over Robinson with Mees in third at 133.
Max Whale took sole command of the AFT Singles championship by adding a third victory to his title campaign.
The win didn’t come easily. To earn it, the Australian was forced to go back and forth with a hard-charging Kody Kopp, whose performance went a long way to fully justifying the rookie’s abundant preseason hype.
Kopp led several laps and squared up Whale on a number of occasions as part of an adrenaline-fueled ride to a maiden Progressive AFT podium. While his sights were set on the win, Kopp was nearly displaced to third with high-line maestro Morgen Mischler ending a race-long charge 0.022-seconds short of the runner-up spot.
Trevor Brunner and Trent Lowe finished fourth and fifth, respectively. The two followed in Mischler’s wake, reeling in the leaders to put themselves in podium contention on a thrilling final lap that saw the top five finish within a second-and-a-half at the checkered flag.
“This track is really hard when you’re leading; I didn’t know what anybody was doing behind me,” Whale said. “I had a good start, but then I saw a red front fender come around the outside in (Turns) 1 and 2 and thought, ‘Oh — I’m going to have to see what that is next lap.’
“Kody rode a great race with very minimal mistakes, but I found a few lines in three and four and had a better run off 4 and ended up getting him. But he rode awesome.”
Whale’s big night was made that much bigger as a result of the relative struggles of defending class champion Dallas Daniels, who finished ninth, and rival Henry Wiles, who finished 15th.
Whale now leads Daniels by 15 points (151-136).
Dalton Gauthier earned his first AFT Production Twins presented by Vance & Hines victory of the season Saturday with a large contingent of home-state fans cheering him on.
Gauthier shook free from 2018 AFT Singles king and fellow Pennsylvanian Dan Bromley relatively early. He then went about building up his advantage en route to a blowout victory.
“It felt awesome winning in front of all the PA fans,” Gauthier said. “That was a fun race track, and I hope we come back next year. That helped my confidence so much. I’ve just been struggling so much this year. I’ve been trying my hardest, but I feel like I shouldn’t be trying sohard. Tonight, I just cruised out there. I can’t thank the Vance & Hines guys enough for giving me an awesome motorcycle.”
Title leader and holeshot expert Cory Texter made Gauthier’s breakthrough a bit easier by stumbling off the start from pole. By the race’s midpoint, Texter clawed his way into a three-way battle with Bromley and 2020 AFT Singles champ Dallas Daniels.
Despite taking part in his first-ever oval race aboard a twin-cylinder (he earlier won his class debut at the Atlanta Super TT), Daniels overcame the twin challenge presented by Texter and Bromley to lock down an most impressive runner-up finish.
As for Texter, the fact that a seventh podium in eight races felt like a bit of a disappointment is a testament to the type of season he’s putting together. Despite Gauthier’s Saturday night triumph, Texter walked away with a still-imposing 31-point lead in his favor.
Johnny Lewis fought his way forward throughout the Main, ultimately putting the Royal Enfield ahead of Bromley’s Yamaha for fourth by 0.007 seconds.