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/1402132
ROUNDS 9-10 / AUGUST 13-14, 2021 WEEDSPORT SPEEDWAY / WEEDSPORT, NEW YORK P98 FLAT TRACK I PROGRESSIVE AMERICAN FLAT TRACK with the respective triumphs of defending AFT Singles champion Dallas Daniels and the always- entertaining Morgen Mischler. Estenson ace Daniels, who had proven to be a truly dominant force in the class in 2020, came into the New York Short Track doubleheader facing arguably his first true taste of adversity during his young professional career. With uncharacteristic fifth- and ninth-place finishes in his previous two outings, Daniels could do nothing but watch as streaking Red Bull KTM Factory Racing pilot Max Whale took possession of the points lead and extended it to a not-incon- siderable 15-point margin. Despite less-than-ideal starts and the usual dizzying array of chaos and talent that defines ing, as the versatile Beach put together a fine 6-5 weekend on the type of track that had previ- ously proven such a bugaboo for the Yamaha MT-07 DT. Also encouraged was ex- works Indian man Bronson Bau- man, who followed up a strong outing at Port Royal with another semi win and a Friday fourth at Weedsport Speedway. Despite losing a bit of mo- mentum at the doubleheader, Briar Bauman is still solidly in command. He now boasts a 22-point advantage (197-175) over Mees. Robinson is third at 168, followed by Vanderkooi (159) and Beach (136). AFT SINGLES The weekend theme of catharsis carried over to the undercard for runner-up honors. The three went into the final turn side-by-side, with Vanderkooi splitting them to finish 0.003 seconds ahead of Robinson and 0.064 seconds ahead of Halbert. The result marked Vanderkooi's eighth consecu- tive top-five finish, including four podiums (and three runners-up) over that span. Bauman, meanwhile, limped to sixth after coming together with Robinson on the opening lap and later encountering a major mechanical problem that put his ability to finish in doubt. Despite the problems, he nearly held on for fifth but was aced late by Estenson Racing's JD Beach. That result was a positive development for Estenson Rac- Morgen Michler won Saturday's Singles main, keeping his hopes alive in the championship.