Briar Bauman (No. 3 RWR/Parts Plus/Latus Motors Harley-Davidson XG750R) immediately stole the initiative back from Mission AFT SuperTwins title rival Dallas Daniels (No. 32 Estenson Racing Yamaha MT-07 DT) in the tense rematch that was Saturday evening’s Lima Half-Mile II, Round 7 of the 2025 Progressive American Flat Track season, sanctioned by AMA Pro Racing.
While the opening lap featured a four-wide charge down the Allen County Fairgrounds backstretch, it wasn’t long before Bauman blasted away at the front. Meanwhile, Daniels was headed in the opposite direction, falling back to third and looking incapable of matching the torrid pace required to fight for victory.
As the two-time Grand National Champion Bauman steadily built up a two-second-plus advantage in first, Daniels eventually found his groove and worked his way around Brandon Robinson (No. 44 Mission Roof Systems Harley-Davidson XG750R) to take control of second.
Daniels continued his charge forward, picking up a tenth here and there on the leader, gradually reducing that gap until it was back under a second with a minute remaining on the clock.
Despite the Estenson Racing star further ratcheting up the pressure and closing in nearly to within striking distance on the final lap, Bauman stayed steady and streaked past the checkered flag 0.383 seconds before his rival.
Besides taking the momentum back from Daniels, the victory also saw Bauman complete the remarkable feat of securing four Lima Half-Mile wins on four different makes of equipment (Kawasaki, Indian, KTM, and Harley-Davidson).
After scoring his 30th premier-class victory, Bauman said, “That was a battle. Well, it wasn’t a battle. I got clean air, and I didn’t really want to do that tonight. I think it was harder to lead than it was to follow in the second half of the race because you could see what the guy in front of you was doing and maybe inch up a little bit. Dallas did that quick. If he would have had a few more laps, he probably would have had me, but he didn’t.
“Man, I was going to win last night – I know I was – but the clutch went out. I was pretty bitter. I wanted to win tonight really bad, and the Rick Ware Racing/Parts Plus/Latus Motors team did such a good job with this thing.”
What figured to be a lonely ride to third proved anything but for Robinson. Late in the race, he was hounded by the Declan Bender (No. 70 Memphis Shades/Corbin/OTB Racing Yamaha MT-07), who earlier escaped a battle with James Ott (No. 19 G&G Racing Yamaha MT-07) and Jarod VanDerKooi (No. 20 Fastrack Racing/Wally Brown Racing KTM 790 Duke) to give Robinson fits for the final spot on the podium.
Bender momentarily fought past into third on more than one occasion but couldn’t quite make the pass stick, having to accept (a still highly impressive) fourth in what was a memorable debut weekend with On the Box Racing.
Ott carried on to fifth while VDK was dropped to seventh by Trent Lowe (No. 48 American Honda/Progressive Insurance Honda Transalp).
Dan Bromley (No. 62 Memphis Shades/Vinson Construction Suzuki GSX-8S), Max Whale (No. 18 Moto Anatomy X Powered by Royal Enfield 650), and Davis Fisher (No. 67 Rackley Racing/Bob Lanphere’s BMC Racing KTM 790 Duke) completed the top ten.
Bauman now leads Daniels 149-139 in what’s shaping up to be a spectacular duel. Robinson is once again up third at 102, following a difficult weekend for Fisher, who has dropped back to fourth at 93.
AFT Singles presented by KICKER
With two victories in two days, Tom Drane (No. 59 Estenson Racing Yamaha YZ450F) has at last unlocked the form so many expected from him in 2025. That’s a scary prospect indeed for the opposition, considering the ‘locked’ version was already leading the AFT Singles presented by KICKER title chase.
On Friday, Drane built upon the impressive 2024 Lima performance that saw him defeat Kody Kopp here a year ago, running strong all day and claiming two of the three Mission Triple Challenge Main Events to secure the overall victory.
He elevated his game to yet another level on Saturday. Before the race, chief rival Chase Saathoff (No. 88 RWR/Parts Plus Honda CRF450R) said he had to get the holeshot to have a shot. He accomplished that goal but could still do nothing but watch as Drane shot through in the race’s third corner. The Estenson Racing pilot then proceeded to ride off into the distance to the tune of a 5.419-second margin of victory.
Afterward, Drane said, “That was a really good race. I just put my head down from the very start. I knew I had the pace to do it. I just had to get a break and get away as fast as I could. I didn’t want to get into any battles. I wanted to get out front, have my clear air, and pull away.”
Saathoff was forced to turn his attention behind instead of ahead just to hold down second. That proved a stout challenge in itself with heralded rookie Walker Porter (No. 100 American Honda/Mission Foods CRF450R) scrapping for second in the early going while clocking the fastest lap of the race.
Porter’s more experienced teammate, Trevor Brunner (No. 21 American Honda/Mission Foods CRF450R), then took the baton and pressured Saathoff to the flag, finishing just 0.184 seconds behind in third.
Porter found himself caught up in a spirited three-way fight for fourth with fellow rookie sensation Kage Tadman (No. 288 Roof Systems/Old Oak Ranch KTM 450 SX-F) and the rolling Aidan RoosEvans (No. 26 FRA Trust/ATV’s and More Yamaha YZ450F).
Two-time winner Tadman ultimately claimed the spot, while Porter worked back past RoosEvans to collect a debut weekend top five.
Evan Renshaw (No. 65 1st Impressions Race Team Husqvarna FC450) fought his way from the LCQ to seventh while Bradon Pfanders (No. 83 Hannum’s HD/Pfanders Racing KTM 450 SX-F) and couple more rookies in Ryder Reese (No. 244 Mission Foods/Roof Systems KTM 450 SX-F) and Skylar Sentell (No. 249 Hoffer Performance/Stauffer Motors KTM 450 SX-F) provided even more evidence that the future of the sport is bright indeed by finishing eighth through tenth, respectively.
As a result of his huge weekend, Drane now leads Saathoff by 16 points (130-114). Brunner remains third at 98.
Next Up:
Progressive American Flat Track will do battle at a high-speed Mile for the first time this season with the Memphis Shades DuQuoin Mile, at the DuQuoin State Fairgrounds in DuQuoin, Illinois, next Saturday, July 5. Visit https://www.americanflattrack.com/events/2025/view/du-quoin-mile-2025 to secure your tickets today.
For those that can’t catch the live action from the circuit, FloRacing is the live streaming home of Progressive AFT. Sign up now and catch every second of on-track action starting with Practice & Qualifying and ending with the Victory Podium at the end of the night at https://flosports.link/aft.
FOX Sports coverage of the Lima Half-Mile I, featuring in-depth features and thrilling onboard cameras, will premiere on FS1 on Saturday, July 5, at 9:30 a.m. ET (6:30 a.m. PT), with the Lima Half-Mile II scheduled to air one week later, on Saturday, July 12, at 10:00 a.m. ET (7:00 a.m. PT).
For more information on Progressive AFT visit https://www.americanflattrack.com.
