DAYTONA BEACH, Fla. — Jared Mees claimed sole possession of the career Grand National Championship Half-Mile wins record with a showcase performance in Saturday night’s Orange County Half-Mile.
The event was Progressive American Flat Track’s first race at Orange County Fair Speedway in Middletown, N.Y., in 35 years.
The combination of Mees’ immense ability, experience and support provided the reigning Mission SuperTwins presented by S&S Cycle champion with a decisive edge on a hyper-slick surface that tested the upper limits of the field’s collective skill.
Even a late red flag that wiped out the multi-second lead Mees had diligently assembled did little to dent the factory Indian star’s dominance on the evening. He simply powered off the staggered start and marched away while his primary rivals waged war for second behind him.
The last time the series visited the century-old venue, the legendary Scott Parker earned one of his record-setting 35 career half-mile wins. Mees’ victory tonight was his 36th HM win, which established the new all-time mark.
Mees’ monumental night also saw him wrest the points lead away from Dallas Daniels for the first time this season.
Prior to the red flag, the young title hopeful was caught up in a heated scrap for second with the rolling Briar Bauman. After the restart, his season-long podium streak came under serious threat with the additions of Brandon Robinson and JD Beach to the fray.
Bauman slashed up to second and controlled the spot to the flag.
Afterward, the Rick War Racing ace proclaimed himself a contender from here on out now that the bike is properly dialed, a sentiment backed up by a win, two seconds, a third, and a fourth in his last five attempts.
Daniels, meanwhile, had to hustle his way back past Robinson over the race’s final two laps to narrowly finish third, upping his active podium streak to 12 in the process. Still, it wasn’t quite enough to retain his championship standing, as Mees now leads the chase 257-255.
After claiming his seventh victory of the season, Mees said, “We’ve just got to keep plucking away. Dallas has been riding phenomenally all year. It’s almost underrated how consistent he’s been this season. It’s making me dig down as deep as I can, and I’m really enjoying the battle. We’ve got a lot of racing to go, and I’ve got a couple tracks coming up that are more his forte than mine with the TTs. It’s an honor to keep the ball rolling, really.”
Robinson and Beach completed the top five, while Billy Ross took the best finish of his premier-class career in sixth.
Jarod Vanderkooi finished seventh, followed by Davis Fisher, Henry Wiles and Bronson Bauman.
Parts Unlimited AFT Singles Results
Kody Kopp claimed the 13th victory of his Parts Unlimited AFT Singles presented by KICKER career in Saturday’s Orange County Half-Mile, and this one may have been the best yet.
The entire evening felt as if it was shaping up as a collision course between Kopp and Tom Drane.
While that initially proved true, what wasn’t expected was that their clash would be for second with Chase Saathoff blasting away a couple second out in front. Saathoff’s long-awaited maiden Progressive AFT victory was delayed yet again, however.
Once in the clear after shaking free of Drane, Kopp set about tracking the Turner Honda pilot down.
The KTM star quickly gobbled up the gap and then searched for a way into first. He found one quickly enough although perhaps not exactly as scripted. The defending champ caught a rut in the middle of the corner and was sent wide, forcing Saathoff to chop the throttle to prevent contact.
Once into first, Kopp flexed his sheer pace advantage and walked away with his sixth victory of the season.
“In clay car-track racing you have to go for those little sliders,” Kopp said of his overtake for the lead. “It worked out. My bike just wheelied and put me straight into the wall. I reached out on the straightaway — put a hand out apologizing. But that’s racing. He’s in the pro class. I guess he was mad about it, but all right.”
Drane held on for third ahead of Sathoff’s teammate, Trent Lowe. Fifth went to a strong-running Aiden RoosEvans, who pushed his way into the early podium battle before settling in for his best career Parts Unlimited AFT Singles finish to date.
Trevor Brunner ended up sixth with Dalton Gauthier, Tarren Santero, Hunter Bauer and Travis Petton IV rounding out the top 10.
Kopp’s big title lead got that much bigger with his triumph. He now leads Saathoff by nearly two full races (241-194).
Kopp’s teammate, Max Whale, could only muster an 18-place finish after crashing on the opening lap and then soldiering on less than 100 percent following the restart. As a result, he dropped all the way from second to seventh in the tight race for position behind Kopp.