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/1542014
P118 INTERVIEW I 2025 MISSION AFT SUPERTWINS CHAMPION DALLAS DANIELS the back foot and then work, work, work, work, work. Finally, by the heat races and the dash, we'd start to get a grasp on it and be on our way to finally getting something underneath me that I felt I could perform on. "I think I had trouble coming to grips with the fact that I wasn't the same person. Obviously, we were struggling with the motorcycle as well. That hurt my confidence. It was just kind of a double-edged sword." That ever-present struggle and ceaseless drive to fight through it was epitomized at the Spring- field Mile—the biggest, most prestigious, and most consequential event on the calendar. Down double-digit points with just three rounds to go, Daniels was expected—again, expecta- tions—to take full advantage of his Yamaha's top- end advantage over Bauman's Harley-Davidson and slash that championship deficit. Despite heading up a Yamaha 1-2-3 at the DuQuoin Mile, Daniels struggled to find his form on Saturday at Springfield. He was just 11th fast - est in the second qualifying session that directly preceded the first of the three Mission Triple Chal- lenge main events that would combine to decide the Springfield Mile I's overall winner. in the dirt, mired in controversy and anger, after Bauman knocked Daniels down after misjudg- ing his line in the comically tight confines of the Jackpine Gypsies Short Track. Both riders were forced to the back of the field for the restart. From there, Bauman snaked his way up to third while Dallas made his way to fifth. That result gave Bauman an 11-point advantage following 11 of 16 rounds and set their smolder - ing rivalry ablaze. Now better positioned to view it with clear eyes (and the championship), Daniels admitted, "It was probably good for the sport at the time. It was good to have two rivals kind of going at it and racing hard on the track. "And that track promoted that type of racing. I'm very surprised that was more or less the only time that really happened that week. "But it was tough, you know. Just because the year wasn't really going how I planned up until that point. I didn't expect to totally dominate, but I would have wanted to have more wins by that point in the season. I was in a position where I needed to start winning, and that night I felt like I could. And then there I was, put on the ground by the guy I was battling for the title. It was a tough pill to swallow." While Bauman was his most immediate rival, Daniels also battled himself all season long. Things just never gelled the way they were meant to. Nothing ever came easy for the Estenson Rac - ing Yamaha crew—certainly not as they had the year before. "Every race was just a grind. We'd start off on