It’s safe to say that Dalton Gauthier looked to be the odds-on favorite going into the 2017 American Flat Track AFT Singles Championship. But if there were any doubters then Gauthier has made them take notice…if not quite silencing them just yet. The sport’s up-and-coming rider from Pennsylvania has had a perfect start to his 2017 AFT Singles season with back-to-back wins. It was an ideal night at the Atlanta Short Track as well, as Gauthier led every session and won every race, including the most important one. 

So, two great weekends in a row. How are you feeling?

Pretty good. Two weekends of winning is pretty decent for me, I would say. In this main event I knew I had to get a good start, so that’s what I did and got out front early. I knew my bike was perfect setup-wise. If I got out front I knew I could walk those guys.

It was pretty much 50 percent of my dad setting the bike up tonight and 50 percent of me as a rider I think. It worked out well. It’s actually my dad’s birthday today so it was a pretty sweet present for him. I’m super-stoked on two wins in a row. It’s the first time ever in my career that I won back-to-back.

Do you feel like these tracks (TT and Short Track) suit your style? Or you’re just ‘on it’ this year?

I worked my tail off this winter. I think I’m an overall good rider on every surface, every track. When I grew up racing, my dad took me everywhere when I was younger. Due to finances we couldn’t go out west and stuff in my first pro season, but it definitely helped going to all the different tracks when I was younger and different sizes and different surfaces. I think I’m a specialist on everything – short track, TT, half mile, mile. I’m pretty confident this year; definitely helps when you’ve got really good equipment. Super-stoked on that, too.

Do you feel that you’ve raised your game this year? 

Yeah, I think it’s the best I’ve ever been so far, physically and mentally. It helps a lot when you’ve got a really supportive team and supportive family. It helps you mentally a lot. Last year I felt pretty good about leading the season in points, but we had some mechanicals and I didn’t have a solid twins’ ride. I think this year we got a solid program together. Hopefully we can be riding twins next year.