VOLUME 63 ISSUE 23 JUNE 9, 2026 P107
to give up. We're quick through-
out the course of the day, and
then
Briar is just untouchable in
these main events."
For Daniels, the day was all
about damage control, and he
controlled a great deal of dam
-
age by ending the night in third.
As
it was, the Estenson Rac-
ing Yamaha star never found
a competitive
pace around
the high-banked clay oval. He
was just 10th-fastest following
qualifying and only improved to
ninth-fastest after the heats.
His early form in the main
didn't suggest a huge improve
-
ment, as he ran in sixth position
for
more than half the race,
usually with FRA Trust Advisors'
Harley-Davidson's Aidan Roos
-
Evans et al. on his tail, attempt-
ing to push him further down
the order.
But he gradually fought his
way forward, passing Chad Cose
of Parker Racing Yamaha for
fifth on lap 17, Cameron Smith
of Fredericktown Yamaha for
fourth on lap 20, and finally
hang onto his season-long (but
rapidly eroding) points lead.
Kopp's best chance for victory
came long after he'd given up
on having any. Bauman con
-
cluded an inch-perfect ride at
the front
with a near fall in the
race's final corner. Still pushing
while on guard for a late lunge
from his opponent, not realizing
Kopp had been put some three
seconds behind him, Bau
-
man hit a hole and was
almost
thrown over his
bars just meters from the
checkered flag.
But he wasn't, and his
emerging narrative re
-
mained intact. He took
the checkers 2.7
sec-
onds ahead of Kopp.
"It's
kind of frustrat-
ing," Kopp said, "but
Briar's
riding unbelievable
right now. There's a reason
he's won championships, and
it's hard to run with somebody
who is that perfect for a whole
main event, right? We're trying. I
mean, my team, we're not going
70 DECLAN BENDER
4TH SUPERTWINS
While it hasn't been the season Declan
Bender had hoped for, the OTB Racing
pilot is steadily moving his way up the or-
der. He started the year with a DNQ and
then logged consecutive finishes of 16th,
14th, 12th, 12th and 10th. That upward
trend took a big jump up in Tennessee,
when he temporarily fought for the lead
and ultimately came home fourth. He
said, "Honestly, it's been a good day,
100 percent. I mean, a little bummed
to fall back from the podium spot those
last few laps. But other than that, I can't
really be upset. The beginning of the
season has shown that. We've made
small steps forward over the course of
the season, but nothing too crazy. But
today, straight from the get-go, I just
felt good. Honestly, we made a lot of
progress, and I am excited. We were in
the mix in the main but just didn't quite
have the pace to keep up. We'll be ready
for Lima in two weeks."
MYOWNRACE
(L-R) Kopp,
Bauman
and Daniels
made up the
SuperTwins
podium.
