Cycle News

Cycle News 2026 Issue 36 September 9

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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ROUNDS 15-16 / SEPTEMBER 5-6, 2026 ILLINOIS STATE FAIRGROUNDS / SPRINGFIELD, ILLINOIS FLAT TRACK I PROGRESSIVE AMERICAN FLAT TRACK P78 race's final lap. A huge 12-rider pack slugging it out for the win came apart in a late crash involving Mark Tep- per Racing KTM's Logan Eisen- hard and Picotte Motorsports GasGas' Jordan Beaulac. The incident raised a red flag, so the results were determined by the previous lap, on which Saathoff and Tadman both crossed the line inches ahead of Drane. And thus Saathoff, despite typically coming out the worse in his repeated sparring ses- sions with Drane over the years, got the last laugh of 2026 and perhaps of their AFT Singles careers, depending on where the two go from here. "I'm definitely worn out now," Drane said. "It's been a long weekend, but I'm super happy to get on the podium on the twin. I didn't feel the best in the heat career Mile wins and the class's two longest podium streaks, Drane had an opportunity to further his case against former AFT Singles legends Daniels and Kody Kopp by breaking their shared record for single-season victories. Drane did it, scoring his ninth win of 2026 with his seventh consecutive Mile win, which was also his sixth straight in Springfield. He did so in a typical Springfield barnburner, edging 1st Impressions Husqvarna's Chase Saathoff, JMC Motorsports KTM's Trevor Brunner, and Turner Racing American Honda's Kage Tadman by 0.037, 0.067 and 0.085 of second, respectively. The Australian's plans to record a 29th victory and 11th at a Mile on Sunday were undone by a red flag that came out with Drane leading the way on the Fisher said, "I feel like I passed [Drane] in different places each time, so he couldn't really learn what I was doing. Each time he would pass me in turn three, but on the last lap, I passed him to turn one and held it down the straight and pretty much carried it to the finish line. "He drafted by me right at the finish line, and I didn't know who won. I kept looking to the infield and saw the fans pointing to me. We just started celebrating from there. It's awesome." AFT Singles While Drane had already se- cured his repeat crown before arriving in Springfield, like his teammate Daniels, the Estenson Racing Yamaha ace had busi- ness to attend to on Saturday. Already the winningest rider in class history, with the most Drane (1) won Saturday's Triple Challenge in the Singles class.

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