If the walls of Daytona International Speedway could talk, you would hear legendary tales featuring names like Petty, Earnhardt, Tomac and Russell. The World Center of Racing saw an addition in 2010 with the opening of the Daytona Flat Track outside NASCAR turns one and two. Sixteen years later, a new crop of talented athletes prepared to start building their own legacy with the inaugural Mission Foods Cory Texter Race (CTR) Promotions Showcase Event.
By Scotty Taylor | Photos by Madcap Imaging
A three-day flat track spectacular at the Daytona Flat Track, part of 2026 Daytona Bike Week, would culminate in the opening rounds of the 2026 American Flat Track season. Every good show needs a strong opening act, and this story began with top amateur riders having the opportunity to begin paving their own Road to American Flat Track. Californian Ryder Bitz-Hay became the first Road to AFT winner of the year with a wire-to-wire victory, literally riding off into the Florida sunset in the day’s final race. Bitz-Hay’s success ended what had been a perfect afternoon for Estenson Yamaha rider Sam Drane. The Australian, Drane, had a loaded Daytona Bike Week, also competing in Twins Cup action for MotoAmerica on the high banks. Drane’s week began triumphantly, topping the 450 Amateur and Open Amateur main events. Drane also picked up a win in the Mission Challenge Dash for Cash during the afternoon.
The Showcase event split riders into two groups with a morning session that highlighted AMA Youth classes, where Jayden Nickens and Cruise Texter joined Drane with multiple victories on the day. For Nickens, his 85cc victory came after a hard-fought battle with 2025 Amateur National Champion Jackson Joiner. The two got together going into turn one, fighting for the top spot, resulting in Joiner going down. Nickens’ victory in the Youth Premier main event was much more comfortable, as the Virginian was unfazed by multiple restarts and cruised to victory by over seven seconds.
The word “cruise” perfectly describes how Cruise Texter claimed his two victories during the day. Cruise Texter was dominant in the 50cc Chain and Mini Open classes. It appeared Cruise Texter could be in line for a perfect day, but a moment in lap traffic brought the 65cc main event to a dramatic conclusion. Cruise Texter, nicknamed “Shark Bait,” left blood in the water when attempting to make a move outside a lap rider. A patient attack and perfectly timed pass on the last lap by a looming Reef Pendergrass would secure him the 65cc victory.
Maddox Wingard was also successful in youth competition, picking up a win in the 50cc Air-Cooled class. Additional Group One winners would include Evan Myers in Open Novice and Brianna McHugh in the Women’s class. McHugh from Georgia would prevail over rising stars from the United Kingdom, Skye Adams and Jamie Kimber. Doug O’Boyle also found success in the 60+ main event during the morning session.
While Bitz-Hay and Drane may have seen the spotlight shine a little brighter on their success during the afternoon portion, several other competitors earned wins on the hallowed grounds of Daytona: Kenneth Shaffer (50+), Robby “Bobby” McLendon (40+) and John Poorman (30+) topped the AMA Vet Classes. Stephen Flach and Nicholas Myers won the event’s Vintage classes with Flach taking Vintage Light honors and Myers the Vintage Open winner. Joshua Pierce topped the 250 Amateur Class, and James Parker held off Jon Kruppenbacker for the Hooligan victory.
The next Mission Foods Cory Texter Promotions Showcase Event will commence at Senoia Raceway on March 20.
2026 CTR Showcase Event Round 1 Results
Road to AFT (Top 5)
- Ryder Bitz-Hay (KTM)
- Same Drane (Yam)
- Dillon Durelle (Yam)
- Wyland Seger (Hon)
- Jed Fyffe (Yam)
Click here for all the latest Flat Track racing news.
Click here to read the 2026 CTR Showcase Event Round 1 Results in the Cycle News Digital Edition Magazine.
