Cycle News is a weekly magazine that covers all aspects of motorcycling including Supercross, Motocross and MotoGP as well as new motorcycles
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20 to the runner-up at each stop, nine points is a tenuous lead with two races still to go. While arguably fortuitous for Bauman and less-than-ideal for Mees, the loss of the Springfield Mile doubleheader seems to do serious damage to the dark horse championship hopes of Estenson Racing Yamaha's Dal- las Daniels and JD Beach. As stellar as Mees' recent record has been, the new rules put into effect in order to level the playing field this season had been most evident at the Mile tracks, where Yamaha had won two of three races in '22. While, admittedly, Mees and Mission Roof Systems' Brandon Robinson looked like the favor- ites in the lead-up to Saturday's main, Daniels and Beach were both firmly in contention and in serious need of big weekends to narrow their respective 16- and 29-point deficits. Instead, every rider was paid a single point and paid Saturday's posted purse based on their qualifying efforts, and two de- cent chances to make up ground were removed from the equation. It was an unavoidable situa- tion that robs the championship some multi-manufacturer/four- rider championship intrigue, but, at the same time, ratchets up the tension and drama on the Mees- Bauman front. Meanwhile, a static champion- ship situation in Parts Unlimited AFT Singles presented by Kicker only strengthens the position of runaway title leader Kody Kopp. The Red Bull Factory KTM pilot retains his 48-point lead, meaning, if the season holds just two more races, Kopp needs only acquire two more points to seal the championship. One 17th- place finish would be enough to achieve that, a tally that is almost guaranteed with a provisional start still in his pocket. The weekend's solitary main event delivered huge amounts of drama, but relatively little move- ment in terms of the champion- ship even though it had enor- mous potential to do so. Vance & Hines Harley-David- son's Jesse Janisch suffered a mechanical DNF early in the twice- stopped race, creating an opportu- nity for reigning Mission Production Twins champion Cory Texter to eat up nearly the entirety of the 24-point gap that separated the two. However, the G&G Racing Yamaha star struggled mightily to compete up front all day, instead struggling just to break inside the top 10. He ultimately finished ninth, clawing back just seven points on Janisch and leaving the Wisconsin native relatively unscathed. He now boasts a still- healthy 17-point advantage head- ing into the season's penultimate race in his home state. With title fighters and champion- ship regulars Janisch and Texter suffering from unusually off nights, class part-timers James Rispoli, Dan Bromley, Cole Zabala and Mikey Rush stole the show. Wally Brown Racing's Rispoli and Helipower Racing/Las Ve- gas Harley-Davidson-backed Rush initially battled it out before Memphis Shades/Corbin/Vinson Road Boring teammates Bromley and Zabala worked together to draft back into contention. A late red flag set up a final sprint to the stripe. Rush was forced to start from the back of the pack after his bike overheat- ed during the stoppage but still managed to slash up to fourth. Ultimately, Rispoli gave the de- veloping WBR KTM 890 Duke a second win, edging the Yamahas of Bromley and Zabala by 0.096 seconds and 0.145 seconds, respectively. Rispoli said, "When the red flag came out, I knew it would put these guys back in the game, and I was like, 'Man, we'll be off the podium if we do this wrong.' So I tried to put my head down. Wally Brown Racing has made so many updates to the motor- cycle and we're continuing to get better and better." Chris Martin VOLUME 59 ISSUE 36 SEPTEMBER 7, 2022 P37