Tom Drane Heads Bridgeport Half-Mile | third whale

U.S. Progressive Flat Road Championship 2023
Bridgeport Half Mile

Tom Drane clinched another victory – his third – this time at the Bridgeport Half-Mile – alongside teammate Trevor Brunner of Estenson Racing Yamaha, with Max Whale stepping onto the podium.

After dominating his heat and Al Lamb’s Dallas Honda Challenge, the young Australian entered the Main Event as a strong favorite to end the evening at the top of the box. And while that was ultimately proven true, he had to earn it.

Drane found herself mired in fifth place after a less than ideal opening round. He then had to work hard to close the gap and fight systematically to get past Jared Lowe (No. 63 Mission Foods/Helmet House Honda CRF450R), Chad Cose (No. 49 Team 1st Impressions/Husqvarna Racing FC450), and Chase Saathoff (No. 88 American Honda/Mission Foods CRF450R) before finally turning his sights on the man.

It happened to be his teammate, Trevor Brunner (No. 21 Estenson Racing Yamaha YZ450F), who pulled over a second on the field in his first attempt to win the season.

Drane pushed back Brunner’s hopes for at least another weekend. He reeled with his steady friend Estenson Racing and then threw a bunch of slip work at him before finally overhauling him in a pass where the two made contact in the middle of the corner.

Once out in front, the Drane freight train continued at full speed forward and he took the checkered flag with almost a second in his hand.

Tom Drane

“I just worked during the race, trying to catch up. And then right at the end, I got close enough to move – I didn’t mean to hit him, but it was just racing. I cannot thank the whole team for all the work they put in throughout the day. Their work makes all this possible. I will keep going, keep the confidence and go into the next race like this one.”

Max Whale (No. 18 Red Bull KTM Factory Racing 450 SX-F) clinched two Aussies in the top three, finishing his quest in seventh place by edging past Saathoff in the last corner to claim the final spot on the podium.

Trent Lowe (No. 48 American Honda/Mission Foods CRF450R) made an impressive climb of his own, fighting past the LCQ and soon taking 13th place to break into the top 5.

Lowe’s run across the field came at the expense of defending champion Kody Kopp (No. 1 Red Bull KTM Factory Racing 450 SX-F), who marked his normal form most nights.

The Red Bull KTM star finished sixth after winning the previous three races. But despite the small drop in form, Kopp still boasts a championship lead, currently standing 45 points (255-210) ahead of Saathoff. Brunner is in third place with 208 points, while the soaring Drane has come close to second with an impressive 207.

Single main results AFT

AFT Singles Chart – Top 20

SuperTwins Mission presented by S&S Cycle

Rising star Dallas Daniels (#32 Estenson Racing Yamaha MT-07 DT) won a resounding Drag Specialties Bridgeport Half-Mile as the AMA Pro Racing-certified progressive American Flat Track that made its unforgettable debut at the Bridgeport Speedway in Swedesboro, New Jersey.

Daniels’ victory came within 0.095 seconds of his Mission SuperTwins presented by S&S Cycle title contender Jared Mees (No. 1 Indian Motorcycle/Rogers Racing/SDI Racing FTR750), with JD Beach (No. 95 Estenson Racing Yamaha MT-07 DT), Davis Fisher (No. 67 Rackley Racings Robinson Brands/Bob Lanphere) ) all compete to win.

The victory couldn’t have been more timely for ace Estenson Racing, as he simultaneously blocked Mees’ momentum and regained the title lead, if only by two points (280-278). The result is arguably even more important to his psyche after he finished second in an earlier series of head-to-head matches against the legendary driver.

Mees, who controlled the middle of the race after overtaking leader Beach early, was unable to drop the herd the way he did last time. That’s partly because Beach, Daniels, and Fisher – all trying to prevent that escape – keep trying to slide beneath Mees. Those efforts will sometimes see a non-Mees racer sneak in first momentarily but never in a way where the lead change gets stuck.

That is until Daniels finds a high that allows him to roll through corners and knock down straight lines. That line eventually allowed him to overtake Mees and immediately opened up a small advantage.

But the scrambled Mees adapted and leaned back for one final blow. It happened on the last corner of the race, where the champion tried to slide onto the leader’s flank, but Daniels held on to it and held Mees in a split second at the line.

The win was Daniels’ first Half-Mile win in the top division, taking him to a Grand Slam TT win. It also saw him increase his season-long podium record to 13th in the process.

Dallas Daniels

“It was a heckuva year. These Half-Miles are kryptonite for Yamaha and for me on a twin bike. I remember at 450, I won six Half Miles in a row in 2020, but when I got the twins, it was a bit difficult. Jared just kicked our ass. He’s won every Mile and almost every Half Mile. This is his forte right here. I had to go back and get that one. I was too worried. That peak – you really have to scroll it. It’s all about momentum. For a few laps, I was just trying to get to the top to be able to do it. I know once I clear their front I can roll. It just feels so good. How wonderful.”

Beach, Fisher and Robinson finished third to fifth, respectively, with Briar Bauman (No. 3 Spare Parts Plus / Jacob Jacob KTM Company 790 Duke) leading the second half of the top 10 in sixth place.

Jarod Vanderkooi (No. 20 JMC Motorsports/Fairway Ford Indian FTR750) was seventh, followed by Henry Wiles (No. 17 BriggsAuto.com/Martin Trucking Indian FTR750), Ben Lowe (No. 25 Rackley Racing/Mission Foods Indian FTR750) and Cameron Smith (No. 34 Martin Trucking/Fredericktown Yamaha MT-07).

Main results of SuperTwins

SuperTwins Ranking – Top 20

Next

The stars of the Progressive American Flat Track will take part in one of the most famous races in motorsport with this year’s popular SC2 Peoria TT at the Peoria Motor Club in Peoria, Illinois, on Sunday, July 30.