Yamaha Atlanta Short Track presented by Cycle Gear/American Flat Track

Dixie Speedway

Woodstock, Georgia

March 23, 2019

Provisional Free Practice 1 AFT Twins Results (all on Dunlop tires):

1. Briar Bauman (Ind), 18.856

2. Brandon Robinson (Ind), 18.888

3. Jared Mees (Ind), 18.984

4. Jarod Vanderkooi (Har), 19.074

5. Bronson Bauman (Ind), 19.094

6. Henry Wiles (Ind), 19.106

7. Sammy Halbert (Har), 19.185

8. Larry Pegram (Ind), 19.235

9. Robert Pearson (Ind), 19.280

10. Jay Maloney (Ind), 19.290

11. Kayl Kolkman (Yam), 19.316

12. Justin Jones (Kaw), 19.321

13. Jeffrey Carver Jr. (Ind), 19.324

14. JD Beach (Yam), 19.376

15. Ryan Varnes (Kaw), 19.389

16. Bryan Smith (Kaw), 19.429

17. Brandon Price (Ind), 19.442

18. Stevie Bonsey (Yam), 19.481

19. Cory Texter (Yam), 19.484

20. Jake Johnson (Yam), 19.548

21. Kolby Carlile (Yam), 19.560

22. Cody Johncox (Yam), 19.736

23. James Monaco (Ind), 20.565

Provisional Qualifying 1 AFT Twins Results (all on Dunlop tires):

1. Brandon Robinson (Ind), 18.818

2. Briar Bauman (Ind), 18.954

3. Bronson Bauman (Ind), 18.987

4. Henry Wiles (Ind), 18.996

5. Jared Mees (Ind), 19.039

6. Jay Maloney (Ind), 19.100

7. Jarod Vanderkooi (Har), 19.122

8. Robert Pearson (Ind), 19.153

9. Sammy Halbert (Har), 19.194

10. JD Beach (Yam), 19.219

11. Ryan Varnes (Kaw), 19.238

12. Jake Johnson (Yam), 19.248

13. Jeffrey Carver Jr. (Ind), 19.258

14. Brandon Price (Ind), 19.293

15. Larry Pegram (Ind), 19.296

16. Bryan Smith (Kaw), 19.309

17. Kolby Carlile (Yam), 19.441

18. James Monaco (Ind), 19.449

19. Cory Texter (Yam), 19.475

20. Justin Jones (Kaw), 19.491

21. Stevie Bonsey (Yam), 19.561

22. Kayl Kolkman (Yam), 19.597

23. Cody Johncox (Yam), 19.601

Provisional Qualifying 2 AFT Twins Results (all on Dunlop tires):

1. Henry Wiles (Ind), 18.743

2. Briar Bauman (Ind), 18.785

3. Brandon Robinson (Ind), 18.873

4. Jarod Vanderkooi (Har), 18.878

5. Jeffrey Carver Jr. (Ind), 18.954

6. Larry Pegram (Ind), 18.980

7. Jared Mees (Ind), 19.018

8. Sammy Halbert (Har), 19.042

9. Jake Johnson (Yam), 19.046

10. Ryan Varnes (Kaw), 19.113

11. Robert Pearson (Ind), 19.130

12. Jay Maloney (Ind), 19.165

13. James Monaco (Ind), 19.178

14. JD Beach (Yam), 19.183

15. Bryan Smith (Kaw), 19.187

16. Brandon Price (Ind), 19.198

17. Bronson Bauman (Ind), 19.207

18. Kayl Kolkman (Yam), 19.256

19. Stevie Bonsey (Yam), 19.286

20. Cory Texter (Yam), 19.376

21. Kolby Carlile (Yam), 19.420

22. Justin Jones (Kaw), 19.430

23. Cody Johncox (Yam), 19.554

Provisional AFT Twins Semi 1

Results (all on

Dunlop tires):

1. Henry Wiles (Ind), 10 laps

2. Brandon Robinson (Ind), -00.066 seconds

3. Jeffrey Carver Jr. (Ind), -00.863

4. Sammy Halbert (Har), -01.498

5. Bronson Bauman (Ind), -02.227

6. Jay Maloney (Ind), -02.538

7. Brandon Price (Ind), -02.914

8. Robert Pearson (Ind), -03.116

9. JD Beach (Yam), -03.285

10. Kolby Carlile (Yam), -04.496

11. Stevie Bonsey (Yam), -05.310

12. Cody Johncox (Yam), -5 laps, -**.***

Provisional AFT Twins Semi 2

Results (all on

Dunlop tires):

1. Briar Bauman (Ind), 10 laps

2. Jared Mees (Ind), -01.015 seconds

3. Jarod Vanderkooi (Har), -02.839

4. Bryan Smith (Kaw), -02.989

5. Larry Pegram (Ind), -03.531

6. Ryan Varnes (Kaw), -03.702

7. Cory Texter (Yam), -05.045

8. Jake Johnson (Yam), -05.885

9. Kayl Kolkman (Yam), -05.896

10. James Monaco (Ind), -06.105

11. Justin Jones (Kaw), -07.119

Provisional

AFT Twins Main

Results (all on Dunlop tires):

1. Brandon Robinson (Ind), 25 laps

2. Jared Mees (Ind), -00.621 seconds

3. Briar Bauman (Ind), -02.616

4. Jarod Vanderkooi (Har), -03.583

5. Henry Wiles (Ind), -03.690

6. Jeffrey Carver Jr. (Ind), -05.649

7. Sammy Halbert (Har), -05.745

8. Larry Pegram (Ind), -06.679

9. Bryan Smith (Kaw), -07.684

10. Robert Pearson (Ind), -08.032

11. Bronson Bauman (Ind), -08.566

12. Jay Maloney (Ind), -09.486

13. Brandon Price (Ind), -09.975

14. Ryan Varnes (Kaw), -13.161

15. James Monaco (Ind), -14.580

16. Jake Johnson (Yam), -15.877

17. Cory Texter (Yam), -17.408



(Above) Brandon Robinson taking his mechanic Brent Armbruster for a victory lap. Photo by Scott Hunter, courtesy of AFT.

More, from a press release issued by AFT/AMA Pro Racing/DMG:

DAYTONA BEACH, Fla. (March 23, 2019) – Brandon Robinson (No. 44 Kennedy Racing/Armbruster Racing Indian FTR750) accomplished what few riders have in recent American Flat Track history in Saturday night’s thrilling Yamaha Atlanta Short Track presented by Cycle Gear.

Robinson successfully tracked down, and ultimately dispatched, dominant double defending Grand National Champion Jared Mees (No. 1 Indian Motorcycle/Progressive Insurance FTR750) to win the 25-lap AFT Twins presented by Vance & Hines Main Event at at Dixie Speedway in Woodstock, Ga.

Prior

to Robinson’s heroics, Mees appeared set to issue a stark reminder of

that dominance when he broke free early and worked up a gap to separate

him from the remainder of the field. However, Robinson slowly reeled

Mees in throughout the Main, finally arriving on the champ’s rear wheel

with just over five laps remaining.

On

lap 22 of 25, Robinson made the race’s decisive maneuver, pulling off a

skillful outside overtake to steal away the position. Mees had no

response, as Robinson immediately dropped him en route to a 0.621-second

margin of victory.

The

victory marks Robinson’s first AFT Twins triumph since he won the Lima

Half Mile midway through the 2016 season. He said, “Timing was

everything. Jared is one of the smartest, toughest competitors on the

circuit. I knew if I showed my cards too early, he could make a

countermove and try to get me back. I just waited. He had a little

mishap, and I was able to roll around the outside of him. I just put my

head down and set sail those last couple laps and tried to be as smooth

as possible and everything just played out perfectly. I’m stoked right

now — this is awesome!”

Heading into the Main Event, DAYTONA TT winner Briar Bauman

(No. 14 Indian Motorcycle/Progressive Insurance FTR750) appeared

capable of carrying that season-opening momentum like a freight train.

He ranked near the top of the charts all day and won his semi with

relative ease. However, a difficult start in the Main threw him into a

frenetic fight for position.

At

the end of the evening, he emerged on the podium with a hard-earned

third after running as low as eighth early in the race. However, Bauman

was never in contention for the win and finished nearly three seconds

back of Robinson.

Jarod Vanderkooi

(No. 20 Harley-Davidson Factory Flat Track Team XG750R Rev X) pulled

off a second consecutive charge up through the field to finish fourth,

while ST master Henry Wiles (No. 17 Bandit Industries/DPC Racing/Wilco Racing Indian FTR750) completed the top five.

Roof Systems AFT Singles presented by Russ Brown Motorcycle Attorneys

Dalton Gauthier (No. 122 D&D Cycles/Gobert Smash Honda CRF450R) took the final step in completing a comeback story two years in the making.

Returning to the scene of his last Roof Systems AFT Singles presented by Russ Brown Motorcycle Attorneys

victory before being forced to serve a suspension for violating the

sanctioning body’s substance abuse policy for the better part of the

2017 and 2018 seasons, Gauthier registered a towering victory in

Saturday night’s 15-lap Main Event.

Gauthier

leapt out to the lead early and was never seriously challenged, upping

his advantage to over a second before easing off slightly to secure the

checkered flag.

If

the “Comeback Kid’s” runner-up result in the season-opening DAYTONA TT

didn’t serve as warning enough to the AFT Singles field for what they

were up against in his return, they understand now.

After

finally taking that final step — the top step on the podium to be

clear — Gauthier said, “It’s a crazy feeling — I was out for two

seasons. I won here in 2017, and thought I could do some damage today,

honestly. I was fast qualifier, won the heat race, won the semi — just

like 2017. And then I got the holeshot, led every lap, and won the Main.

It’s a pretty awesome feeling. I can’t thank (tuner) Rob Mclendon

enough for everything he’s done for me.”

If anyone had any hope of beating Gauthier on this night, it was Morgen Mischler

(No. 69 Waters Autobody Racing/D&D Powersports KTM 450 SX-F). That

is until he was swamped leaving the line and found himself buried in the

pack as they stormed into Turn 1.

Mischler

was in astonishing form from there, making quick work of some of the

best flat trackers on the planet to slash his way up to second. However,

running down Gauthier was simply too big of a task.

The last rider Mischler made his way past on his way to second was reigning AFT Singles champion Dan Bromley

(No. 1 Red Bull KTM Factory Racing 450 SX-F). Bromley just continued to

do what he does — collecting yet another podium result to put toward

his title defense. After earning last year’s crown on the strength of 13

podiums in 18 races, Bromley is now two for two in 2019.

Ryan Wells (No.

94 Estensen Racing Yamaha YZ450F), who originally finished fourth, was

disqualified for exceeding the maximum allowable weight for a rear wheel

assembly following post-race technical inspection.

Roof Systems teammates Oliver Brindley (No. 24 Roof Systems of Dallas/Fox Solutions Yamaha YZ450F) and Kevin Stollings (No. 99 Roof Systems of Dallas/Hinson Honda CRF450R) round out the top five for the Roof Systems AFT Singles class.

The Yamaha Atlanta Short Track presented by Cycle Gear will debut on NBCSN Sunday, March 31, at 4:30 p.m. ET/1:30 p.m. PT and will re-air on Wednesday, April 3, at 3:00 p.m. ET/12:00 p.m. PT.

Next Up:

Be sure to tune into the feature telecast of the DAYTONA TT presented by Russ Brown Motorcycle Attorneys tomorrow at 4:00 p.m. ET/1:00 p.m. PT on NBCSN.

American Flat Track will take a few weeks off before returning to action for the Texas Half-Mile presented by Russ Brown Motorcycle Attorneys at Texas Motor Speedway in Fort Worth, Texas, on Saturday, April 20. As always, live coverage will be available at FansChoice.tv. Tickets for the Texas Half-Mile are on sale now and can be purchased at www.americanflattrack.com.

How to Watch:

NBCSN and FansChoice.tv

are the official homes for coverage of American Flat Track. For the

2019 season, NBCSN’s coverage of AFT moves to highly-coveted, weekend

afternoon programming slots within two weeks of each event. The complete

schedule for AFT on NBCSN can be viewed at http://www.americanflattrack.com/events-nbcsn/.

FansChoice.tv remains a cornerstone of AFT’s digital strategy,

providing live streaming coverage of every event on AFT’s live page

while previous events and exclusive features are available on AFT’s VOD

page.

About American Flat Track:

American Flat Track is

the world’s premier dirt track motorcycle racing series and one of the

longest-running championships in the history of motorsports. Sanctioned

by AMA Pro Racing in Daytona Beach, Fla., the series is highly regarded

as the most competitive form of dirt track motorcycle racing on the

globe. For more information on American Flat Track, please visit http://www.americanflattrack.com, like us on Facebook, follow us on Twitter, check us out on Instagram, live stream the events at FansChoice.tv and catch all the American Flat Track racing action on NBCSN.