18.06.2023

TOP-FIVE FINISHES FOR RED BULL KTM'S MAX WHALE AND KODY KOPP IN DUQUOIN MILE

Round 9 – American Flat Track Championship
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DUQUOIN, Ill. – Red Bull KTM Factory Racing teammates Max Whale and Kody Kopp raced hard at Round 9 of the 2023 American Flat Track Championship, with Whale finishing in fourth and Kopp fifth position following a thrilling AFT Singles Main Event at the DuQuoin Mile.
After qualifying ninth, Whale made strong progress throughout the event with his KTM 450 SX-F, as he secured second position in the second heat race of the night. This earned the Australian entry into Dash-for-Cash, which resulted in P4. More advancements were made as the Main Event arrived, with Whale situated in a five-rider dual for the top spot, eventually crossing the line in P4 by a slender 0.081s margin.

Max Whale: "We improved every time we hit the track here at the DuQuoin Mile and got everything working really well. We started strong, made it into the Dash again, which was good, and then just worked hard – got into a groove in the Main Event, tried to get to the front as quick as I could. I ended up in a battle with five guys, which was awesome, a lot of fun, and I crossed the stripe in fourth. We’ve worked hard as a team and are stoked to head into Lima!”

Defending AFT Singles Champion Kopp began the round with P2 in qualifying, before racing to third place in his heat race. A hotly-contested Main Event saw Kopp battle hard as the top six were separated by less than a half a second, with the number one plate-holder ultimately crossing the line in fifth place – only 0.106s from victory – to keep himself right in title contention.

Kody Kopp: "Ended up P5 today, which is the best result we’ve had in a while, although there are a bunch of rounds coming up that I’m looking forward to. I wanted to get through these miles, because the results have been frustrating, and the consecutive off the box finishes have hurt the points chase. We'll keep our heads up though, go into the next round which we won last year, and hope to do the same thing this time around."

Next Race: Lima Half-Mile – Lima, Ohio – June 24, 2023

Round 9 Results

AFT Singles Main Event
1. Tom Drane, Yamaha
2. Chase Saathoff, Honda
3. Trent Lowe, Honda
4. Max Whale, Red Bull KTM Factory Racing
5. Kody Kopp, Red Bull KTM Factory Racing
OTHER KTM

8. Dalton Gauthier, KTM
13. Travis Petton IV, KTM
15. Declan Bender, KTM
16. Shayna Texter-Bauman, KTM
18. Landen Smith, KTM
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Images (3)

MAX WHALE - RED BULL KTM FACTORY RACING
6 000 x 4 000
MAX WHALE 02 - RED BULL KTM FACTORY RACING
1 000 x 1 778
KODY KOPP - RED BULL KTM FACTORY RACING
1 500 x 1 000

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