Daniels Expands Points Lead with Double Podium at Sacramento Mile

13-09-2021

Daniels Expands Points Lead with Double Podium at Sacramento Mile

Estenson Racing’s Dallas Daniels came away with a pair of podiums in two thrilling battles on the legendary Sacramento Mile last weekend at the Progressive American Flat Track Doubleheader in Sacramento, California. With one round remaining, the defending AFT Singles Champion’s third- and second-place finish was a big boost to his 2021 title hopes. Teammate Mikey Rush scored a pair of fourth-place finishes in the multi-rider drafting war. Mission SuperTwins rider JD Beach finished fifth in Saturday’s Mile but unfortunately, the challenging conditions on Sunday resulted in 10th. Kolby Carlile also came back from adversity with an 11-9 result.

Riding the wave of his stellar sweep of Springfield, Daniels showed strength straight away at the Sacramento Mile I and topped the timesheets. When the racing got underway, it was an absolute dog fight with multiple riders in line on the grooved track fighting for victory. The defending champ was shuffled to fourth in his Semi, which gave him a less than ideal second-row spot on the grid, but he was able to get a good start and work his way to the front. On the last lap, he was second and tried to draft to victory, but came just short of a three-rider photo finish in third.

Daniels came out swinging on day two with a win in his Semi. The Sacramento Mile II Main Event was another multi-rider fight, and once again, the Illinois rider was right there for that drag race to the finish crossing the line .023 of a second behind the race winner. In the end, it was an important points haul for the 18-year-old, giving him a 20-point lead heading into the finale.

Rush was also in the hunt for victory at his home race in Northern California. The veteran finished second and third in his Semis and got a good start in both Mains. He was right there in the mix in that wild first Main Event. He worked to position himself in a spot for the run to the checkers but came up a little short of the podium finish. In the second Main Event, he was right there as well but ultimately crossed the line fourth.

In the Mission SuperTwins class, Beach’s prowess of getting good starts paid off. He had a good start in his Semi in second but unfortunately got bumped off the groove and was shuffled back to fifth, which put him on the back row of the grid. The dirt track/road racer got another great start in the Main Event in sixth. He was bumped off the groove again to seventh but put his head down and fought his way to a top-five finish for his best result with the team on a Mile. Beach got another great start into the top five in the second Main Event, but the day race made for challenging conditions at the Cal Expo, and he was unable to finish and was credited with 10th.

Carlile had a tough first day on the Sacramento Mile but did what he could to salvage 11th with some issues that had him unable to ride to his full potential. He and the team came back for Sunday’s second round and put together a good setup to have him fighting in the Main Event. He was having a good race and was working his way forward until, unfortunately, he had a technical issue. The race was red-flagged, and he was able to restart at the back on his backup bike and rebounded to end the day ninth.

The Estenson Racing team gets a month’s break before they return to battle at the Progressive American Flat Track season finale at the Charlotte Half-Mile on October 8 at the Charlotte Motor Speedway.

Tommy Hayden

Estenson Racing Team Manager

“The first night in Sacramento went pretty well for us. In the 450 race, both guys were looking good all day. Mile racing on the 450 is really tight, and it really comes down to getting yourself in the right position and drafting. I thought our guys had themselves in a good position and could easily win either way. The SuperTwins guys had a pretty good day as well. It seemed like the track was suiting our bike pretty well. JD showed some good speed all day and in the Main Event, was in a pretty good battle for the podium. Unfortunately, Kolby had some kind of small issue but did what he could to finish.

“It was another good points day for us on the second day at Sacramento. For Dallas on the 450, both races were really tough. Both of our guys were in the lead pack battling for the lead the whole race, but again, it really just came down to strategy and drafting. Dallas looked like he was in a good spot but just came up a little bit short. Looking at the big picture, to leave here with a twenty-point lead, we’re happy about that. We’re going to keep working and will go and try to finish things off in Charlotte.

“Mikey was just on the back end of the podium finish again. He was riding well all day and looked good. Had things been any different on the strategy on the last lap, I think he could have been a little closer to the win. With the SuperTwins, the race was going pretty decent, and I think both guys were heading towards a battle for the podium. Unfortunately, they both had a couple of issues with each of their bikes that made for a tough day.”

Dallas Daniels

Estenson Racing AFT Singles

“It was a good weekend overall with a couple of podiums, and looking at the main goal, it was really important for the championship to get some good points. After finishing third, I knew I needed to try something different, so we talked about the strategy and tried some things out. The whole race, I was testing more than racing, whereas Saturday, I was just trying to be in the lead. Coming off of the last corner, I was like, ‘alright, here we go. This is perfect timing!’ I came up just a little short, but that’s Mile racing. I had no idea that if I won, we would’ve won the title, That really doesn’t mean anything right now, but it will mean something in a few weeks when we will be looking to take this championship. It felt good to be up front all weekend.”

Mikey Rush

Estenson Racing AFT Singles

“I had a good weekend at the Sacramento Mile. The team had my bike dialed in, and I finished second in the Semi. I was fighting a close battle for the win in the Main Event, but unfortunately ended up getting fourth and then got another fourth-place finish on day two. The team made good progress with the bike setup, and the track crew did a good job with prepping the track and keeping the moisture down with the heat we had Sunday. I’m looking to finish out the year strong at the last round in Charlotte.”

JD Beach

Estenson Racing Mission SuperTwins

“This was my first time at the Sacramento Mile, so I was really excited heading into the weekend. It’s such a legendary track, so it was cool to finally get to race here. From what I’ve watched in the past, the track developed into the typical Sacramento Mile -- a tiny groove that had tons of grip, but if you got off it, you were in trouble. The crew worked hard all day Saturday, and we slowly got the bike better every time out on track. I got a good start and was able to finish fifth in the first Main Event.

“Then on Sunday, man, it was just an up and down day. We had some good luck then some bad, but that’s racing. Lining up for the Main I was on the outside where I wanted to be and launched off the line from the last row up to fourth or fifth. For the staggered restart after the red flag, I got stuck on the bottom again and just spun out as I did in my Semi. Once I got going, I hit a hole going into Turn 3 and bent my front wheel, and it was race over. It’s really upsetting to end the weekend like that after the team worked so dang hard all weekend, but we’re going to put it behind us and come back at Charlotte.

Kolby Carlile

Estenson Racing Mission SuperTwins

“Saturday was really tough for me. I felt good and was able to qualify sixth in the first session, but then we had an issue that set me back for the rest of the day. Then on Sunday, my day started off tough again. I couldn’t get a good comfortable setup for the bike that would allow me to push. My crew Brandon (Bergen) and Ken (Nelson) worked hard, and they were able to give me a really good setup for the Main Event. I felt like I had some good pace and was working my way through some guys, and then sadly, I had a technical issue down the front stretch. Thankfully, I was able to hop on my backup bike and finished the race, and got some good points. It’s good to leave the weekend on a good note, just having a good setup for the bike and feeling good heading into the last round in Charlotte.”