03.07.2022
Round 8 - American Flat Track Championship
WEEDSPORT, N.Y. – Making it three-in-a-row in AFT Singles competition, Red Bull KTM Factory Racing’s Kody Kopp has further extended his points lead in the 2022 American Flat Track Championship after claiming Main Event victory No. five with a dominant performance at the Round 8 New York Short Track in Weedsport, New York.
Kopp set himself up well for the evening, claiming the second-fastest time in qualifying. Sitting pole in Semi 2, he blasted off the line aboard his KTM 450 SX-F and controlled the lead for all eight laps. The young rider then went on to sweep the Dallas Lamb Challenge, once again leading all laps of the race. Continuing to showcase his dominance throughout the evening, Kopp rocketed out of pole position to lead all 21 laps of the AFT Singles Main Event for the third-straight round.
Kody Kopp:“I'm just really feeling comfortable with my team and my bike right now. We have a winning package that I feel like we can show up to any track and do very good at, and I just have to thank my team. They've put in a lot of work this year, and it's starting to really pay off.”
In his first race back since knee surgery, teammate Max Whale put in a powerful performance in the Semi and Main event, despite qualifying 14th earlier in the day. After getting off to a sixth place start in Semi 2, he took fourth at the checkers. He kept the momentum going in the main. Starting from the second row of the grid In the Main Event, Whale promptly powered his way into the top-five and held steady. Nearing the halfway point, he lost a couple positions to settle into seventh but he put on a late-race charge to go after the sixth-place spot. Re-claiming sixth right before the line, Whale secured a valiant six-place result in his first race back from injury.
Max Whale:“First weekend back since the Red Mile incident and I had a tough weekend, just really struggled at the start. It took me a while to get back into the flow of things with my knee feeling a little bit uncomfortable but I improved all day, which I'm absolutely hyped about. Sixth-place is definitely not what I wanted, but it's a good start. It's been four weeks off the bike, which is probably the longest I've been off the bike in a very long time. I rode through the week but just still not 100 percent. Hopefully before the next one, we're 100 percent and ready to fight for the win.”
Kopp extends his lead in the AFT Single Championship standings, while teammate Whale sits in sixth.
Next Race: Port Royal Half-Mile – Port Royal, Pennsylvania – July 16, 2022
Round 8 Results – New York Short Track
AFT Singles Main Event (Round 8 – New York Short Track)
1. Kody Kopp, Red Bull KTM Factory Racing
2. Trevor Brunner, Yamaha
3. Hunter Bauer, KTM
OTHER
6. Max Whale, KTM
12. Travis Petton IV, KTM
13. James Ott, KTM
17. Damon Ream, KTM
AFT Singles Point Standings (After Round 8)
1. Kody Kopp, 180 points
2. Morgen Mischler, 138
3. Dalton Gauthier, 114
OTHER
6. Max Whale, 102
9. James Ott, 64
10. Hunter Bauer, 58
14. Travis Petton IV, 41
20. Ryan Wells, 18
22. Logan McGrane, 13
23. Damon Ream, 13
24. Tanner Dean, 11