Cycle News is a weekly magazine that covers all aspects of motorcycling including Supercross, Motocross and MotoGP as well as new motorcycles
Issue link: https://magazine.cyclenews.com/i/1096603
FLAT TRACK AMERICAN FLAT TRACK CHAMPIONSHIP ROUND 2/MARCH 23, 2019 DIXIE SPEEDWAY/WOODSTOCK, GEORGIA P70 The AFT Singles race was a story of recovery as Dalton Gauth- ier (D&D Cycle/Gobert Smash, Honda CRF450R) improved his Daytona TT finish by one spot. Gauthier's last win came at the Dixie Speedway in 2017. The next week a failed substance test left the talented rider under suspen- sion until a week ago. Last week's winner Briar Bau- man (Indian Motorcycle/Progres- sive Insurance, Indian FTR750) and second-place finisher Henry Wells (Bandit Industries/DPC Rac- ing/Wilco Racing, Indian FTR750) looked poised to repeat their TT ef- forts, as Wiles qualified fastest over Bauman. Bauman posted a faster semi time over Wiles' semi time. Wiles led the 25-lap AFT Pro Twins presented by Vance & Hines Main into turn one with Robinson and Briar Bauman on his tail. Mees had a high line working and mo- tored around the outside and into the lead. Wiles and Robinson exchanged second a couple of times, as Bau- man faded into the field. Repli- cating a scene that happened throughout 2018, Mees smoothly gapped all the scuffling going on behind him. When Robinson was able to get by Wiles on lap five, he was able to slowly cut into the three-quarter of a second margin. Jeffrey Carver (Roof Systems of Dallas, TX/In- dian of Metro Milwaukee, Indian FTR750) was the next to get by Wiles. By the halfway point, Briar Bau- man had reversed his race and was on the way forward. Bauman CRASH-FEST There were a couple of big crash- es mixed into quite a few smaller crashes throughout the day. The worst crash came in the last AFT Singles heat where a multi-rider crash sent Jeremy Werner and Brandon Singer to the hospital. WHO'S IN? For the second race in a row, there were 17 riders in the AFT Pro Twins main. James Monaco (Pure Crop 1/Booker Express Transpor- tation, Indian FTR750) used his provisional start card and finished in 15th position. FAST TRACK The smooth, high-banked Dixie Speedway proved to be bullet fast. Henry Wiles was fast qualifier at 18.743 seconds, edging Briar Bauman's time of 18.785. Dalton Gauthier was the only single to time under 19 at 18.999. WHO'S COUNTING? While Indian FTR750 motorcycles, once again, swept the AFT Twins podium and had the most bikes in the Main (11), there were two Harley-Davidson XG750R's, two Kawasaki Ninja 650s and two Ya- maha MT-07s. In the AFT Singles main there were five Honda CRF450Rs, four KTM 450 SX-Fs, three Yamaha YZ450Fs, three Ka- wasaki KX450Fs, and one Suzuki RM-Z450. QUICK RESULTS Brandon Robinson's switch to Indian has born fruit quickly. "This was my sixth ride on the Indian, and I feel pretty damn comfort- able," said Robinson. "They did an awesome job on that thing. It is unreal; it's so comfortable. It's like a badass XR750. I'm pretty stoked on it. We are only getting better at this point. We're back. The TT is not my strong point, so I'm trying to get better. If I can come out with what I did in Daytona, it will be all right. Going forward on the ovals, I feel like I'm a threat. There are 14 of them so we will be there to challenge for more wins and podiums." GET TO THE POINTS First- and third-place finishes have left Briar Bauman leading in the early points race. "Every point is important," said Bauman. "I am trying to take it weekend by week- end. As hard as it is to not think about it, it's really crucial. Some of the guys behind me didn't have good nights at Daytona. If we can stay right behind them or ahead of them, we will be in a good position." Brandon Robinson is six points back in second with Henry Wiles just two more back in third. Jarod Vanderkooi's two fourth-place finishes have him in fourth ahead of a three-way tie for fifth among Jared Mees, Bronson Bauman, and Jeffrey Carver. In the AFT Singles points, Dalton Gauthier has jumped out to an 11-point lead over Jesse Janisch and Dan Bromley. Mikey Rush sits fourth ahead of a tie for fifth between Morgen Mischler and Oliver Brindley. NO TRACTION CONTROL The Estenson Racing Team struggled to find traction on the Briefly...