(Pictured left to right: Brandon Price #92, Dallas Daniels #32, Brandon Robinson #44)

DAYTONA BEACH, Fla. (March 03, 2025) – We are now just days away from the opening of a new era of the Grand National Championship. The 2025 Progressive American Flat Track season, sanctioned by AMA Pro Racing, will kick off under the lights of the Flat Track at Daytona International Speedway with the Royal Enfield Short Track at DAYTONA I & II on Thursday, March 6, and Friday, March 7, in Daytona Beach, Florida. 

While much is new, the tradition of the season-opening Daytona Bike Week doubleheader endures, as the event remains a centerpiece attraction for the 84th annual Daytona Bike Week and the 500,000 motorcycle enthusiasts it attracts annually to the area. 

This season will see the world’s greatest motorcycle dirt track racers vie for the throne vacated by the retirement of ten-time Grand National Champion Jared Mees. And they’ll do so under revised rules of engagement, as Progressive AFT’s premier Mission AFT SuperTwins class moves forward with all-production based regulations, prompting significant change up and down the grid. 

From Hunter to Hunted 

The exit of Mees shifts the target firmly over to his former chief rival, Dallas Daniels (No. 32 Estenson Racing Yamaha MT-07 DT), who has been saddled with the burdened of odds-on favorite status even without the honor of carrying the #1 plate. 

For what it’s worth, Daniels himself isn’t a big fan of the many predictions in his favor. Earlier this offseason he said, “I don’t like hearing, ‘Oh, you’re the favorite. You’re definitely going to win next year… Your bike is the best bike. Blah, blah. blah.’ That’s not true. The guys I’m racing against are really good, and they’re going to have good bikes. I think it's a great time for flat track. It's a deep field, and it's going to be an exciting year. We’ve got to do our job and show up ready.” 

But whether he wants it or not, the opposition views him as the primary obstacle standing in their way, and all will be doing their very best to take down the presumed heir apparent.  

He’s not entirely unfamiliar with the role, having successfully defended his title in AFT Singles presented by KICKER competition back in 2021. But a quest for the Grand National Championship is on a different level altogether in terms of profile and pressure, particularly when it represents an attempt to complete a life-long goal for himself – one that would also mark the first ever premier-class title for Estenson Racing and the first for Yamaha in more than 50 years.  

Whatever level of pressure there may be, don’t feel sorry for Daniels. Pity the opposition.  

He’s the favorite for a reason… several in fact. Beyond his remarkable natural skills, he comes into the 2025 season comfortable in the fact that he’s supported by a championship-caliber team and crew and armed with a championship-caliber racebike in a season otherwise defined by mass transition. 

Consider this: Among last year’s top 15 championship finishers, only Daniels and seventh-ranked Brandon Price (No. 92 Memphis Shades/Vinson Construction/OTBR Yamaha MT-07) return with the same bike and team combination from a season ago. 

And don’t expect Daniels to allow any potential title challengers the luxury of easing into their new surroundings. He opens the ‘25 season with an active and already historic podium streak – one that survived even a lightning quick return to action just weeks after suffering a broken leg, numerous bruises and contusions, fluid in his lungs, and a separated shoulder in a practice crash that ultimately sunk his bid for the 2024 Grand National Championship. 

He expects to hit the dirt in midseason form this week. If he does, a double podium in Daytona would see him reset the reunification era (post-2009) record for consecutive podiums. 

Here’s the current ranking of longest podium streaks from 2010 to the present: 

• Jared Mees: 14 (2023) 

• Dallas Daniels: 13 (2023)/Dallas Daniels: 13 (2024 – ACTIVE) 

• Jared Mees: 11 (2018) 

• Jared Mees: 10 (2017-2018) 

• Jared Mees: 9 (2021) 

• Briar Bauman: 9 (2020) 

• Jared Mees: 9 (2016-2017) 

• Jared Mees: 8 (2019-2020) 

• Briar Bauman: 7 (2021) 

• Briar Bauman: 7 (2019) 

• Briar Bauman: 7 (2019 – again) 

The DAYTONA Short Track has traditionally been kind to him with three wins and a third the past two seasons.  

Like we said, he’s the favorite for a reason. 

Brandon Price #92

Price Check 

As mentioned above, Daniels is not the only contender well positioned to exploit their adversaries’ time of flux.  

Brandon Price has earned runner-up Main Event finishes in four separate seasons throughout his Mission AFT SuperTwins career. And he’s finished within a second of victory more times than that, yet he still seeks a maiden premier-class win. 

Incidentally, one of those second-place finishes came here one year ago. That one was earned even as he was acclimating to a new team and equipment while the majority of his fellow frontrunners were in stasis. The tables have been turned for 2025. 

Could this be the year – and perhaps even the weekend – in which Price finally adds his name to the illustrious list of GNC Main Event winners? 

This Story Shall Yet End in Glory  

The leading sources of intrigue be closely tracked in the opener (and likely all season long) are the parallel paths of championship contenders Brandon Robinson (No. 44 Mission Roof Systems Harley-Davidson XG750R) and Briar Bauman (No. 3 Rick Ware Racing/Parts Plus/Latus Motors Harley-Davidson XG750R). 

Rarely has a machine been provided with such a golden opportunity for a successful reclamation story as what’s been laid out before the Harley-Davidson XG750R in 2025. 

Introduced to considerable fanfare in 2016 and 2017, the XG750R was hit with the double misfortune of serving as the successor to one of the most iconic racebikes in motorsports history, while, at the same time, doing so pit up against what would soon prove to be another racebike deserving of that same rarified estimation. 

In hindsight, the decks were stacked against the production-based XG750R from the outset in its comparison its predecessor, the Harley-Davidson XR750, and its natural nemesis, the Indian FTR750, both of which were dedicated race platforms designed in a time before the sport’s rules were fine-tuned to level that playing field.  

Brandon Robinson #44

Even backed by the might of the Harley-Davidson factory team, the results more than bore that fact out. 

• As the sport now moves to all-production based rules, the XR750 rolls off into the sunset with 502 victories and 37 Grand National Championships in 54 years of competition. 

• The Indian FTR750, meanwhile, exits the stage with 104 victories and a record of eight Grand National Championships in eight attempts. 

• By contrast, to date, the XG750R still seeks its first premier-class win having earned seven podiums along the way. 

The XG750R fares better if you consider its results minus the Indian. 26 times it has finished the first non-FTR750 and 119 times as one of the first three non-FTR750s. Those numbers are admittedly somewhat skewed by the seasons (2020-2021 in particular) in which the field was nearly entirely represented by FTR750s. 

A better gauge for the XG750R’s potential, however, can be found in its record in AFT Production Twins class competition, where it – you guessed it – competed only against other production-based bikes as it will now do in the premier-class moving forward. 

There its reputation was already effectively rehabilitated as it proved to be a fine match for Yamaha’s MT-07. 

In four seasons, the XG750R earned 22 victories, 62 podiums, and two AFT Production Twins titles.  

Equally telling is the fact that six different riders (Dalton Gauthier, James Rispoli, Chad Cose, Jesse Janisch, Billy Ross, and Mikey Rush) won races aboard it as it became an increasingly popular choice among the riders as it continued to develop and prove its worth. 

The XG750R has never been in a stronger position to succeed at the sport’s highest level, chosen this time around by two of the sport’s truly elite riders – riders who are backed by elite teams and crews who realistically aim for wins and championships. 

With Robinson and Bauman at the controls, the Harley-Davidson XG750R seems destined to have its legacy rewritten. In fact, the expectation is the bike’s long-awaited first Mission AFT SuperTwins victory feels practically like an inevitability, more a question of when than if. 

 Briar Bauman #3

Land of Opportunity 

From 2017-2024, Jared Mees racked up an incredible 58 victories, averaging more than seven per season during that span. 

Mees’ win at the ‘24 season finale saw him end his incredible career at 78 victories, placing him in a tie for second most all-time with Chris Carr and left trailing only Scott Parker, while also moving ahead of Parker for the all-time GNCs record at ten. 

While the reigning-yet-not-defending-champ made record-book watching a weekly pastime for Progressive AFT fans and media, Mees’ retirement means the field no longer has a rider ranked inside the career top ten for race wins. 

Main Event Victories: 

 1. Scott Parker: 94
 2. Chris Carr/Jared Mees: 78
 4. Jay Springsteen: 43
 5. Ricky Graham: 39
 6. Kenny Coolbeth, Jr.: 37
 7. Bubba Shobert: 34
 8. Kenny Roberts/Bryan Smith: 33
 10. Will Davis: 31
 …
 13. (tie): Briar Bauman: 26
 25. (tie): Brandon Robinson: 16
 39. (tie): Dallas Daniels: 10
 105. (tie): Davis Fisher/Jarod VanDerKooi: 1 

However, his retirement also means those seven+ annual  wins will now go to others. As a result, there will be the possibility of significant upward mobility on the wins chart for those who remain.  

Bauman, in particular, is well within reach  of the top ten. And once there, the top five could also be realistically attained in the not too distant future. 

Mees also averaged more than 13 podiums per season during that magical run with Indian – and never fewer than 11 in any of those campaigns. That’s a lot of champagne to go around this season.  

Fortunately, there is no shortage of riders looking to capitalize on the opportunity before them. 

Chief among them are Davis Fisher (No. 67 Rackley Racing/Bob Lanphere’s BMC Racing KTM 790 Duke) and Jarod VanDerKooi (No. 20 Fastrack Racing/Wally Brown Racing KTM 790 Duke). 

Jarod Vanderkooi #20

No rider in the 2025 field other than Daniels, Robinson, or Bauman has ranked above either Fisher or VanDerKooi since the 2020 season. During that time, they both earned their maiden premier-class wins and finished inside the championship top five at least once. 

Those feats were accomplished aboard independent Indian FTR750s, ostensibly putting them on equal terms with the likes of Mees and Robinson, albeit with fewer resources and/or a lack of factory support at their disposal. 

Now they’ll both move forward on KTM 790 Dukes, which offers the possibility of a mechanical advantage – at least on occasion – rather than simply striving for equity. 

Fisher’s Rackley Racing squad will benefit from the addition of Jimmy Wood, who played a critical role in Mees’ unprecedented success. Meanwhile, VanDerKooi will reap the development gains made by Bronson Bauman at Fastrack Racing over the prior two seasons with Bauman stepping back to partial season duty in ‘25. 

Both KTM programs will have support from Wally Brown Racing, which debuted its Duke-based racebike to Progressive AFT competition in sensational fashion in ‘22, winning in AFT Productions Twins and finishing on the Mission AFT SuperTwins podium in its first apperance. 

The field boasts several other riders with podium potential on a diverse range of machinery.  

Australian Max Whale (No. 18 Moto Anatomy X Powered by Royal Enfield 650) was identified by Johnny Lewis to be the perfect fit for the Royal Enfield. 

Recent AFT Singles stars James Ott (No. 19 G&G Racing Yamaha MT-07) and Trent Lowe (No. 48 American Honda/Progressive Insurance Honda Transalp) step up to premier-class action looking to make their make their respective marks.  

Meanwhile, veteran pilot Dan Bromley (No. 62 Memphis Shades/Vinson Construction Suzuki GSX-8S) brings Suzuki back into the fold on a GSX-8S-based racebike. 

Record-Book Watch 

As it turns out, Mees’ retirement doesn’t mean we’re completely finished tracking all-time marks. 

His final outing gave him a share of the all-time lead in Short Track race wins at nine. That’s a distinction that could prove short lived: 

Short Track Wins 

 1. Chris Carr/Henry Wiles/Jared Mees: 9
 4. Jake Johnson: 8
 5. Brandon Robinson: 6
 6. Kenny Roberts/Steve Eklund/Sammy Halbert/Briar Bauman: 5
 10. Gary Nixon/Terry Poovey/Jay Springsteen/Will Davis/Kenny Coolbeth, Jr./Dallas Daniels: 4
This season’s opening five races all take place at Short Tracks, meaning that Robinson (6), Bauman (5), and Daniels (4) all have a chance to arrive at the top spot (or even sail past it in the case of Robinson and Bauman) as early as the next few weeks. 

There’s DAYTONA Short Track history to consider as well. 

Sammy Halbert #69

Jake Johnson leads the way with five wins (at least when also including the DAYTONA Short Track races held at Municipal Stadium).  

Right on his heels is Robinson, who joined Sammy Halbert at four career DAYTONA Short Track wins a year ago. 

Daniels too has established himself a Daytona master in record time, earning three of the last four wins at Daytona International Speedway’s quarter mile dirt track. 

Other Attractions 

There will be plenty to keep fans entertained off the track this week, including numerous vendors, plenty of food and beverage options, DJ’d music, and extensive motorcycle parking. 

There will be a fireworks display at the conclusion of Thursday's Main Event program, while Friday will feature Jeep Beach. 

The double opener will also be graced by a pair of celebrity custom bike builders as Grand Marshals, with the renowned Billy Lane of Choppers Inc. serving in that capacity on Thursday, followed by Paul Teutul Jr. of American Chopper fame on Friday. 

 
Get Your Tickets Here 

Progressive AFT has taken fan engagement to a whole new level by including paddock access with every event ticket purchase. 

Upper Rim Road Standing Room Only tickets are just $30 (kids 12 and under free with the purchase of an adult ticket) each day, while Reserved Grandstand and Premium Reserved Grandstand tickets are only $10 and $20 more (All Ages), respectively, per day. There’s also a Military/First Responder Discount available, allowing GOVX fans to purchase up to two Reserved Grandstand tickets for $20 each. 

The Opening Ceremonies Trackside Fan Experience offers reserved seating, a guided tour of the infield podium and start/finish line complete with photos ops, and up-close viewing of Opening Ceremonies for $125 per day. 

Fans can save $10 by purchasing Thursday and Friday tickets together via the Multi-Day Discount. 

Finally, fans planning to attend both the Progressive American Flat Track and MotoAmerica season openers at Daytona International Speedway can do so for a combined $99 via the American Super Ticket. 

To purchase Royal Enfield Short Track at DAYTONA I tickets, visit: https://www.tixr.com/groups/americanflattrack/events/daytona-short-track-i-118986. 

To purchase Royal Enfield Short Track at DAYTONA II tickets, visit: https://www.tixr.com/groups/americanflattrack/events/daytona-short-track-ii-119108. 

To receive the Multi-Day Discount for the Royal Enfield Short Track at DAYTONA I & II, visit: https://www.tixr.com/groups/americanflattrack/events/daytona-short-track-i-and-ii-118862. 

To purchase the American Super Ticket, visit: https://bit.ly/4eBHQ1N 

Gates will open for fans at 4:00 p.m. ET/1:00 p.m. PT with Opening Ceremonies scheduled to begin at 7:00 p.m. ET/4:00 p.m. PT on both days. 

How to Watch 

FloRacing 

For those that can’t catch the live action from the circuit, FloRacing is the live streaming home of Progressive AFT. Motorsports fans can subscribe to FloRacing to enjoy over 1,000 live motorsports events in 2025. FloSports is available by visiting https://flosports.link/aft or by downloading the FloSports app on iOS, Android, Apple TV, Roku, Amazon Fire and Chromecast. 

FS1 

FOX Sports coverage of the Royal Enfield Short Track at DAYTONA I, featuring in-depth features and thrilling onboard cameras, will premiere on FS1 on Saturday, March 15, at 12:00 p.m. ET (9:00 a.m. PT), with the Royal Enfield Short Track at DAYTONA II set to air the following day, Sunday, March 16, at 1:00 p.m. ET (10:00 a.m. PT). 

For more information on Progressive AFT visit https://www.americanflattrack.com.