03.09.2021
Rounds 13 & 14 - American Flat Track Championship
SPRINGFIELD, Ill. – Red Bull KTM Factory Racing’s Max Whale fought through a challenging night of racing on Friday to come away with a pair of top-10 finishes amidst a very chaotic Springfield Short Track double-header. Teammate Shayna Texter-Bauman had a positive night, earning a spot in both of the evening’s AFT Singles Main Events.
With one combined qualifying score earlier in the day, riders were faced with a busy day of racing as they encountered two semis and two separate Main Events serving as rounds 13 and 14 of the American Flat Track Championship. Whale, who came into the night with the AFT Singles Championship points lead, had a tough day from the get-go, qualifying an uncharacteristic ninth-place in the class. He battled from the second row of Semi 1 to finish inside the top-five for the first Main Event of the night. With a 10th place start in the main, Whale worked his way into seventh, where he remained for the duration of the race. As the result of a red flag, the race was ultimately cut short and Whale inherited a sixth-place finish.
With a quick reset before the start of Semi 3, Whale grabbed another top-five transfer into the second Main Event. The Aussie got off to a ninth-place start and after getting through an early red-flag restart, he made quick work of getting into the top-five and he battled in sixth for most of the race. With time expiring, another red flag flew and Whale found himself back at square one off the restart as he dropped from sixth to ninth in the final two laps. As a result, the earlier points leader finished ninth in the race despite his solid efforts in the race and he now sits seven points back in the championship standings.
Whale: “Springfield was a super tough meeting. The team worked really hard on the bike but I just really struggled with setup today. It was a big disappointment because of having two Main Events in one night, and we struggled in both. In the second one, I was running sixth and there was a red flag with two laps to go and I got pushed back to ninth. It’s super heartbreaking but we’ll come back stronger for Sacramento and finish the season off strong.”
Teammate Shayna Texter-Bauman had a positive night at the Springfield Short Track, successfully putting her KTM 450 SX-F FACTORY EDITION into both Main Events at the double-header. With a ninth-place start in Semi 2, Shayna put on an early charge to ultimately earn a seventh-place transfer into the first main. In the Main Event, she did her best to avoid chaos in the tight quarters, ultimately finishing 17th.
Lining up again in Semi 4, Shayna backed up her earlier performance with a solid seventh-place finish to give her a spot on the grid for Main Event 2. In another chaotic main, Shayna raced consistently through the first half of the race to ultimately secure another 17th-place finish on the night.
Texter-Bauman: “This is probably one of the most aggressive race tracks that we go to and for me, it’s not a track that I’ve been very successful at in the past so tonight, I’m happy to make both Main Events and go out there and ride well to earn the spot. I struggled a little bit come Main Event time, there was a lot going on and very chaotic, but overall, I’m super excited to make both Main Events and have a new baseline heading into Sacramento. I’m very encouraged to go out there at a track that I’ve done very well at in the past. Looking forward to finishing the season out strong.”
Next Race: Sacramento Mile Doubleheader – Springfield, Illinois – September 11
AFT Singles Main Event 1
1. Dallas Daniels, Yamaha
2. Michael Rush, Yamaha
3. Morgen Mischler, KTM
OTHER KTM
6. Max Whale – Red Bull KTM Factory Racing
13. Damon Ream, KTM
16. Hunter Baur, KTM
17. Shayna Texter-Bauman – Red Bull KTM Factory Racing
AFT Singles Main Event 2
1. Dallas Daniels, Yamaha
2. Trevor Brunner, Honda
3. Kody Kopp, Honda
OTHER KTM
5. Morgen Mischler, KTM
9. Max Whale – Red Bull KTM Factory Racing
12. Billy Ross, KTM
13. Damon Ream, KTM
16. Hunter Baur, KTM
17. Shayna Texter-Bauman – Red Bull KTM Factory Racing
AFT Singles Point Standings (After 14 Rounds)
1. Dallas Daniels, 231 points
2. Max Whale – Red Bull KTM Factory Racing, 224
3. Morgen Mischler, 195
OTHER KTM
12. Shayna Texter-Bauman – Red Bull KTM Factory Racing, 98