Yamaha went on to claim eight
of nine total podiums at the Miles
a year ago, highlighted by Daniels'
two wins. That record proved a
critical factor in Daniels' success-
ful Grand National Championship
bid
during a season in which the
rival Harley-Davidson XG750R
earned the most wins of any bike,
and its leading protagonist, RWR
H-D's Briar Bauman, earned the
most wins of any rider.
Daniels came in with hopes of
a repeat performance in a cham
-
pionship defense that's found him
confronted
by not just a peak-per-
forming Bauman, but also rookie
title
leader Kody Kopp on the Latus
Motors Racing Harley-Davidson.
VOLUME 63 ISSUE 27 JULY 7, 2026 P87
season win. Following six straight
finishes of eighth or worse, Pfanders
has now strung together consecutive
top fives, with his home-state race
coming up next. He said, "I knew I
had the pace to run up front all day,
but I just couldn't pull the trigger in the
heat race. In the main event, I got an-
other so-so start and worked my way
forward. We got up to fifth with about
a minute to go, but I was struggling
with the bike. The track started tak-
ing rubber; it got really slick, and the
moisture went away. I just couldn't
keep the bike in line. It wanted to go
sideways on me the whole [race]. But
I was able to keep myself with that
front draft and was right there at the
end. I had a big moment coming to
the checkered flag. I got into some-
body's rear tire coming down the front
straightaway to the checkered flag.
But overall, it was a good day."
165 BODIE PAIGE
3RD SINGLES
Just three races into his Kicker AFT
Singles career, RWR/American Hon-
da's Bodie Paige looks to be one of
the class's elite riders already. With a
runner-up and two thirds to his name,
Paige might have been able to do
even better if not for an incident that
tested his focus and determination…
not to mention pain tolerance. Still
in obvious distress, he said, "I had a
neutral on the warmup lap, and I stuck
my foot in a hole in turn three. It hurt
pretty bad. It went numb straight away.
I'm just in a lot of pain right now. It
was tough, but, I mean, hats off to the
boys, they rode a great race. Thank
you to everyone who supported me."
MYOWNRACE
Daniels lost some
ground to Kopp in
the championship,
now trailing the
SuperTwins rookie by
eight points.
