The 2026 AFT season officially gets underway March 4 in Daytona. Here’s what you need to know before we go racing.
By Chris Martin
Dallas Daniels and the Estenson Racing Yamaha squad, which has backed Daniels’ entire professional career, came into the 2025 Progressive American Flat Track season extraordinarily motivated. At that point, they were just months removed from a season-long and ultimately unsuccessful bid to overthrow Jared Mees and his all-conquering Indian FTR750 before the legend retired, and Mees’ mount was rendered obsolete when AMA Pro Racing shifted the Mission AFT SuperTwins class to an all-production-based ruleset.
What was especially painful was the fact that the bid failed only because of a training accident that reopened the door for Mees, after Daniels had established a strong lead in championship, and just before what was expected to be a favorable streak of rounds for the Illinois native.
Fueled by frustration and with Mees and Indian no longer blocking their way, Daniels and the Yamaha MT-07 DT were seen as the clear preseason favorites by nearly everyone involved, including rival teams and riders.
And when the dust had settled at the end of the ’25 campaign, Daniels did indeed stand tall with the number one plate in hand, but only with overwhelming effort.
Daniels was pushed to the brink and arguably outclassed race to race; Indian’s exit also paved the way for the delayed rise of Harley-Davidson’s once-maligned XG750R, which proved to be an absolute weapon in the sport’s remade landscape.
Two-time Grand National Champion Briar Bauman used the XG to particularly good effect, winning eight races to Daniels’ six, and fell just a dismaying Springfield weekend short of upping his career premier-class title count to three.
But ultimately, Daniels’ talent, best measured by his insane consistency (he’s taken 28 podiums in his last 29 starts with the sole exception being a fifth in which he was knocked down by rival Bauman), earned him the 2025 crown and gives him the early nod as the championship favorite once again in ’26, but not nearly with the same confidence as a year ago.
The challenge that awaits him will only level up.
Harley-Davidson’s Hydra
As impressive as he’s been, effectively a title contender since first stepping up to the premier class in 2022 after winning back-to-back AFT Singles titles in 2020 and 2021, Daniels still has room to grow. Despite being a near-automatic podium presence, he readily admits that things rarely clicked a season ago. But those struggles forced him and his team to grow closer, adapt, and explore novel solutions with the bike.
He’s even stronger now after enduring the Herculean task than he would have been had he run roughshod over the competition as expected.
But as with the mythological hero, Daniels’ triumph has brought with it added difficulty. If you’ll recall the second of the Twelve Labours of Hercules (stay with me here for a moment), each time Hercules severed one of the Lernaean Hydra’s heads, the beast grew back two in its place.
The second Labour of Daniels provides a similar dilemma.
In 2025, the supremely gifted Bauman, reunited with famed crew chief Dave Zanotti and mechanic Michelle Disalvo and riding under the combined Rick Ware Racing/Latus Motors banner, was every bit as spectacular as he was while outdueling Mees for consecutive titles in 2019 and 2020.
Bauman is back again with RWR in ’26, now with a year of XG750R experience under his belt and teamed up with new crew chief Bryan Bigelow. Together, they project as a powerhouse pairing fully capable of building on Bauman’s return to championship contention.
Meanwhile, a second formidable monster has emerged from the wake of Daniels’ defeat of Bauman. Latus Motors has retained the services of Zanotti and Disalvo and will field a separate XG750R-based effort in ’26. They’ll take the pedigree of four GNCs, and nearly 40 premier-class main-event wins, and apply that knowledge toward the development of heralded premier-class prospect Kody Kopp.
Back in their amateur days, Daniels and Kopp were frequently described as the future of the sport. Well, that future is now. Kopp, naturally, is a huge talent, a record-smashing, three-time AFT Singles Champion who is returning to the Progressive AFT scene full-time in 2026 after spending most of last season road racing under the watchful eye of “King” Kenny Roberts.
Kopp’s 6-foot-2 frame suggests he’ll be even better suited to a big twin than he was to a 450, and definitely better than a tiny 350cc Talent Cup machine. While it might be a stretch to expect title contention in his first SuperTwins season, multiple podiums and even a win or two are reasonable expectations. He’ll also add excitement as a super spoiler, ready and able to take vital points at a moment’s notice.
That leaves Mission Roof Systems’ Brandon Robinson as the third head of Harley’s hydra. However, if we can reconfigure the Greco-Roman mythological analogy, it might be better to see the Pennsylvanian as a flat track demigod; while he hasn’t consistently reached the heights of the sport’s Mount Olympus residents, he stands on a level above its mere mortals.
Robinson’s collective accomplishments will someday land him in the AMA Hall of Fame. And to his credit, he’s assembled that quality of résumé while competing during the overlapping eras of Jake Johnson, Mees, Bauman and now Daniels. But that fact has left precious little margin for error in the hunt for an elusive maiden Grand National Championship.
Robinson can beat anyone on his day. However, it’s proven considerably more difficult to maintain a title-winning pace across all four disciplines for the entirety of a season. Looking ahead to this season, wins are likely and podiums virtually guaranteed.
To date, he’s finished as the series’ runner-up once, ranked inside the top-three five times, and the top-five eight times. He again faces a narrow path to the championship, but he will be there lurking and ready to strike should Daniels and/or Bauman slip up.
Transforming Promise into Production
Among those not yet mentioned, two are the most likely to become full-blown threats to the established order.
Rackley Racing’s Davis Fisher would have been forgiven if it took him the better part of the ’25 season to come to grips with the powerful-yet-notoriously-finicky KTM 790 Duke platform following years aboard the remarkably user-friendly Indian.
Instead, Fisher came out swinging with a 4-3 double opener in Daytona and carried on to grab four podiums and six finishes of fourth or better during the season.
That effort was good enough to secure his third consecutive top-five Grand National Championship ranking in what was arguably his most impressive campaign to date. It’s reasonable to assume he’ll be even more menacing with an off-season to double down on what went right a year ago.
That said, it still wasn’t enough to hold off surging rookie Trent Lowe on the factory-backed Turner Racing/Al Lamb’s Honda Transalp.
After a decent-ish first half, the Big Red SuperTwins program soared to a new stratosphere with the introduction of an all-new chassis, which debuted during round nine of 16 at Lucas Oil Speedway.
From that point on, Lowe was a regular near the top of the leaderboards. That form ultimately culminated in Honda’s first premier-class twin-cylinder victory of the millennium, earned when Lowe edged Daniels to the checkered flag by 0.026 of a second at the fabled Springfield Mile.
Eager to capitalize on that momentum, Lowe, along with just about everyone else behind the program, is back again in 2026 with high hopes of translating the bike’s obvious promise into genuine championship contention.
Podium Potential
Still others have the potential to run up front when conditions are right.
Brandon Price opened the season with OTB Racing Yamaha after claiming a pair of podiums for the team in 2024. When he stepped away due to medical concerns early in the year, the team drafted in Declan Bender, who had been watching from the sidelines despite a strong rookie season in ’24, as a replacement, and he rewarded the team with a run to the podium at the DuQuoin Mile.
Price, meanwhile, unexpectedly returned to action late in the year and scooped up a second and a third at Springfield.
Rather than choose between them, OTBR will field a two-rider effort in 2026.
Speaking of potential, 2023 Nicky Hayden AMA Flat Track Horizon Award winner Evan Renshaw is set to step up to Mission AFT SuperTwins duty on the Moto Anatomy x Royal Enfield Twins FT this season.
Renshaw entered the pro ranks with significant hype in 2024. Despite showing flashes (including a podium finish among multiple top fives), he never fully found his footing in AFT Singles action. However, like Kopp, the lanky Renshaw could prove better suited to a twin, which might allow his natural ability to shine through more brightly.
Royal Enfield is counting on it. They have traditionally sought larger riders to manhandle a bike developed by and for the similarly sized Johnny Lewis.
Lewis has spun Renshaw’s lack of SuperTwins experience as a plus; in his eyes, it provides the experienced rider coach with a blank slate with which to meld to the Royal Enfield rather than wasting time erasing habits learned on other equipment.
On the opposite end of the experience spectrum is the California Kid, Chad Cose. Cose focused his professional efforts on the premier class from 2009-18, at last earning his maiden pro podium in the final full SuperTwins season. Since then, he’s made himself a winner multiple times over in AFT Singles and Production Twins duty. Now Cose is set to return to Mission AFT SuperTwins action in 2026 on a Parker Racing Team Yamaha MT-07.
Meanwhile, with James Ott still on the mend after getting hurt at the tail end of his breakout, double-podium rookie campaign, G&G Racing Yamaha has signed Canadian Hunter Bauer to step up to the premier-class ranks in his place for 2026.
Kicker AFT Singles
As with Daniels in the premier class, Estenson Racing Yamaha also entered the 2025 AFT Singles season with the odds-on favorite in Tom Drane. Unlike Daniels, Drane made good on the predictions of a blowout, ultimately erasing all championship drama with an eight-win, 15-podium, 86-point drubbing of the field.
And even though the Australian proved himself capable of mixing it up with the lead pack in his late-season Mission AFT SuperTwins debut, he’s back to defend the number one plate in single-cylinder duty in 2026.
Still, there’s hope for a more exciting title fight this time. Arguably, the best news about Drane staying put is the chance for another chapter in his ongoing rivalry with Chase Saathoff.
Saathoff’s championship hopes were extinguished by injury last season, but he’s back to full strength now. He’s made the move to 1st Impressions Husqvarna, where he has multi-title-winning tuner Andrew Butler in his corner, not to mention Jared Mees, who is watching over the team in an advisory capacity.
Trevor Brunner is back as well, now riding a KMA Racing Yamaha YZ450F. It took a bit to get his 450 legs back in ’25 following his single-season dalliance in SuperTwins. But by the end of the season, he was racking up podiums with regularity and scored a win at Lucas Oil Speedway to further his streak of earning at least one victory in all six of his AFT Singles campaigns.
However, and with all due respect to Saathoff and Brunner, it’s not unreasonable to suggest that Drane’s biggest threat might come from Kage Tadman, who signed up to join fellow super-soph Walker Porter at the American Honda-backed Turner Racing team.
Tadman shocked the paddock a year ago when he won in stunning fashion in his first two attempts after joining the tour four races in. In the end, he managed five podiums and nine top-fives, finishing fourth in the final season ranking. Riders often make the single biggest improvement of their careers between their rookie and second seasons. If Tadman follows that same development curve, he could prove a force to be reckoned with indeed.
As usual, the class is deep with others who have the skills to fight for the podium, including Mission Roof Systems’ Tarren Santero, OTB Racing’s Bradon Pfanders, BigR Racing’s Jared Lowe, and Schaeffer’s Motorsports’ Evan Kelleher.
And always, keep an eye out for the rookie class, which includes Saathoff’s new teammate, Jack Brucks, and BigR Racing’s Jackson Sangals.
Past, Present and Future
Beyond the headlining classes, AMA Pro Racing has continued to evolve the sport in its ongoing effort to both lean into its historical significance while seeking new ways to increase its relevance with manufacturers and spectators.
2026 sees the addition of two major initiatives designed to inject new blood, draw more eyeballs, and attract greater support.
Two years after the introduction of AFT AdventureTrackers, the class is set to be joined by another new category, similarly designed to connect with a broader segment of fans. AMA StreetTrackers looks to tap into the sport’s Class C roots by racing close-to-stock, production-based bikes not far removed from the motorcycles lining the parking lots outside the racing facilities.
Additionally, AMA Pro Racing has partnered with Cory Texter Race (CTR) Promotions to establish a springboard for the nation’s most promising amateur racers. Seven rounds this Progressive AFT season will be immediately preceded by AMA-sanctioned Mission Foods CTR Showcase Events featuring the 450 Road to AFT class, which shares its technical rules with the all-new AFT 450 ProSport class.
The top 12 finishers in each Road to AFT main will automatically qualify for an AFT 450 ProSport license and be granted entry to the following day’s national, providing them an opportunity to showcase their talents before the AFT paddock.
This new era begins just days from now with the first of the Showcase Events taking place this Wednesday, March 4, followed immediately by the Royal Enfield Short Track at Daytona I & II double season opener on Thursday, March 5, and Friday, March 6.CN
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