Drane tops Gunnedah AFTN finale as Herrick wins title

Yamaha bLU cRU Aussie Flat Track Nationals
Rounds 5 & 6 – Gunnedah, NSW

Images by RbMotoLens

Thomas Herrick won the 2024 Yamaha Blu Cru Aussie Flat Track Nationals Pro 450 title in an absolute thriller over the weekend, battling past Jarred Brook in the final race to claim the championship ring at Gunnedah’s Balcary Park Raceway over November 16-17.

International sensation Tom Drane took out both the Flat Track and TT rounds with some entertaining duels with Max Whale and Drane’s American Estenson Yamaha teammate Dallas Daniels.

Kristian O’Donnell again dominated Pro Twins on the oval track to wrap up the championship in that class.

In Junior Lites Cooper Archibald successfully defended his title, with Riley Nauta and Neiko Donovan taking round wins.

In Junior 85’s Lockie Duggan held off a strong challenge from Levi Layton to pick up the championship by a mere four points as well as the round wins on both days.

Herrick had to overcome a 21-point deficit to Jarred Brook over the two days of racing and said the win felt like a massive weight had been lifted off his shoulders.

Thomas Herrick – AFTN Pro 450 Champion

“The anticipation was killing me, it was a month of waiting to find out how this was going to end! That was the most dramatic finish but I had to go for it. Jarred and I clashed a few times on track but that only made me more motivated, I really felt like I wanted it more. On top of that it was so much fun racing with Tom (Drane), Max (Whale) and Dallas (Daniels), they race hard and are very crafty.”

Round 5

The Balcary Park Raceway oil track at Gunnedah has been a happy hunting ground for Tom Drane (Yamaha) in the past, but it was his Estenson Yamaha teammate and visiting American star Dallas Daniels who drew first blood.

Daniels, who grew up racing with plenty of oil track experience in the USA, claimed the opening race from Drane and fellow international Max Whale (KTM) before Drane went on a winning spree in the following three races.

Images from Gunnedah Aussie Flat Track Nationals finale – Gallery B

November 20, 2024

Images from Gunnedah Aussie Flat Track Nationals finale – Gallery A

November 19, 2024

Behind him, the tension was building with the podium often split between Thomas Herrick (Husqvarna) and Jarred Brook (Husqvarna) – the duo locked in battle for the championship.

Whale also featured prominently on the podium, with ASBK Superbike regulars Cameron Dunker (Yamaha)and John Lytras (KTM) also posting solid top five performances.

In Junior Lites all four races were close and produced different winners in each, with Neiko Donovan (Husqvarna), Billy Ryan (KTM), Sam Drane (Yamaha) and Riley Nauta (KTM) all scoring a victory.

In Junior 85’s Lockie Duggan (Husqvarna) blitzed the round with a clean sweep of victories while in Clubman Benny Thistleton (KTM) took the round with two race wins and two second places.

Matt Davies took his custom framed Kawasaki to all three race wins on the track – but as his machine is ineligible for championship points.

The official winners were the CF Moto mounted Kristian O’Donnell with two wins with the remaining victory awarded to Tyler O’Donnell, with Kristian picking up the overall points award for the year.

Pro 450 Results – Round 5

Pos	Rider	Pole	1B	1A	2B	2A	3B	3A	4B	4A	Points
1	T Drane	5		50		55		55		55	220
2	M Whale			46		46		50		43	185
3	T Herrick			40		50		46		46	182
4	D Daniels			55		38		43		40	176
5	J Brook			43		40		38		50	171
6	C Dunker			38		43		40		36	157
7	M Mcnamara			36		34		34		32	136
8	J Lytras			22		30		36		38	126
9	B Burns			30		28		28		30	116
10	J Dall		16			32		32		34	114
11	T Donnelly			32		36		19		22	109
12	J Griffin			28		20		22		26	96
13	L Davis			24		24		26		19	93
14	J Carter			26		22		18		18	84
15	S Qualischefski			34		26		17			77
16	T Openshaw					19		30		24	73
17	R Tegart		15			17		20		20	72
18	M Booth					18		24		28	70
19	P Caslick		13		15		16		16		60
20	K O’donnell		14		16		15		15		60
21	E Grabham		11		14		12		13		50
22	W Secomb		8		9		14		14		45
23	L Moody		10		13		13		9		45
24	B Mccowat		7		12		11		11		41
25	C Williams		6		11		9		10		36
26	D Lionetti		9				10		12		31
27	R Jacobs		5		8		8		8		29
28	T Street		3		7		6		7		23
29	C Clegg		12		10						22
30	K Robinson		2		6		7		6		21
31	T O’donnell		4								4

Junior Lites Results – Round 5

Pos	Rider	Bike	Pole	R1	R2	R3	R4	Points
1	R Nauta	KTM	5	50	36	43	55	189
2	N Donovan	Gas		55	40	40	50	185
3	B Ryan	KTM		36	55	46	46	183
4	S Drane	Yam		38	46	55	40	179
5	C Archibald	Hus		46	50	36	43	175
6	H Hodgetts	KTM		43	43	50	38	174
7	N Jaeger	Hus		40	38	38	36	152
8	L Duggan	Hus		34	34	34	34	136
9	L Turner	Hon		30	30	32	32	124
10	M Carter	KTM		32	32	30	30	124
11	M New	KTM		28	28	28	26	110
12	M Kelly	Hus		26	26	26	28	106

Junior 85 Results – Round 5

Pos	Rider	Bike	Pole	R1	R2	R3	R4	Points
1	L Duggan	Hus	5	55	55	55	55	225
2	L Heaton-New	KTM		46	43	50	50	189
3	H Holmes	KTM		50	50	40	43	183
4	L Layton	KTM		36	40	43	46	165
5	A Ryman	Hon		43	46	36	38	163
6	J Cooper	Hon		38	38	38	40	154
7	T Edwards	KTM		40	20	46	36	142
8	J Louis	Hus		32	36	32	34	134
9	B Ford	Yam		30	34	34	30	128
10	J French	KTM		34	32	28	32	126
11	W Wiggins	KTM		28	30	30	28	116
12	B Layton	KTM		26	24	26	26	102
13	F Beard	KTM		24	28	24	24	100
14	R Duggan	Hus		22	26	19	20	87
15	J Johnstone	Hon		20	22	22	22	86
16	L Seam	Hon		19	19	20	19	77
17	J Perrett	Hon		18	18	18	18	72

Clubman Open Results – Round 5

Pos	Rider	Bike	Pole	R1	R2	R3	R4	Points
1	B Thistleton	KTM	5	50	55	55	50	215
2	B Trembath	KTM		26	50	46	55	177
3	N Girdler	Hus		46	38	50	43	177
4	R Sandow	Hon		40	43	43	46	172
5	A Fisher	KTM		36	34	34	36	140
6	L Hunter	Hon		38	28	30	40	136
7	J Griffin	Hon		32	24	32	34	122
8	J Mclean	Hus		43	36	40		119
9	A Muggleton	KTM		34	20	26	32	112
10	L Barnes	Kaw		30	30	28	24	112
11	D Seam	Hon			32	36	38	106
12	L Fairey	Hus		22	46	38		106
13	A Dall	Hon		55	40			95
14	S Richards	Yam		19	18	22	30	89
15	G Rautman	Kaw		18	19	20	26	83
16	R New	Hus		24	22		28	74
17	L Grimshaw	Hus		20	26	24		70
18	D Webb	KTM		28	17			45
19	B Irwin	KTM				19	22	41

Pro Twins Results – Round 5

Pos	Rider	Bike	Pole	R1	R2	R3	Points
1	K O’Donnell	CF		55	55	50	160
2	K Angel	Duc		46	46	46	138
3	S Richards	Yam		50	40	40	130
4	J Portelli	Har		43	43	43	129
5	D Klaver	Har		40	38	38	116
6	T O’Donnell	CF			50	55	105

Round 6

The championship decider on the TT track for Sunday threatened fireworks, with Jarred Brook (Husqvarna) and Thomas Herrick (Husqvarna) separated by only ten points.

Tom Drane (Yamaha) dominated yet again and featured in some spirited battles with Max Whale (KTM) up front, however the championship deciding action was happening a little further back and hit boiling point when Herrick and Brook came together in race two.

Brook copped a penalty and finished ninth while Herrick surged to second. The pair collided again fighting for the same piece of dirt in race three, with Herrick again coming out on top.

A strong finish in the red flag shortened decider sealed the title for Herrick, with Drane taking three wins with Whale grabbing one.

Cooper Archibald was crowned Junior Lites champion, defending his title

In Junior Lites Cooper Archibald (Husqvarna) successfully defended his title. He wasn’t able to stop Neiko Donovan (Husqvarna) on the TT track, who took three race wins with Sam Drane (Yamaha) scoring the other victory in race four.

Neiko Donovan collected the majority of wins

In Junior 85’s Lockie Duggan (Husqvarna) also went on a winning streak, picking up the first three races. Levi Layton (KTM) picking up the final race of the weekend with Lucy Heaton-New an impressive third in the final standings.

Lockie Duggan claimed the Junior 85’s crown

Duggan’s strong showing at Gunnedah saw him crowned champion for the year by a mere four points to Layton.

In Clubman Neil Girdler (Husqvarna) picked up three victories with Benny Thistleton (KTM) the other race winner and also champion for the year.

Pro 450 Results – Round 6

Pos	Rider	Pole	1B	1A	2B	2A	3B	3A	4B	4A	Points
1	T Drane	5		55		46		55		55	216
2	M Whale			50		55		50		50	205
3	D Daniels			40		43		46		46	175
4	C Dunker			46		38		40		43	167
5	T Herrick			38		50		34		40	162
6	J Brook			43		32		30		38	143
7	J Carter			28		36		38		36	138
8	J Lytras			36		40		43		19	138
9	M Mcnamara			34		34		36		30	134
10	T Openshaw			32		24		32		32	120
11	M Booth			22		26		28		34	110
12	J Dall			24		30		24		18	96
13	K O’donnell			30		19		20		24	93
14	R Tegart		15			22		19		28	84
15	P Caslick			20		20		22		22	84
16	L Davis			26		28		26			80
17	J Griffin		16			18		17		20	71
18	D Tolley			19				18		26	63
19	R Jacobs		13		15		14		16		58
20	T Donnelly		8		16		16		15		55
21	B Burns		12		14		15		14		55
22	E Grabham		10		10		12		13		45
23	D Lionetti		6		9		11		12		38
24	L Moody		11		12		13				36
25	K Robinson		4		7		9		11		31
26	T Street		5		6		8		10		29
27	W Secomb		14		13						27
28	C Williams		7		8		10				25
29	B Mccowat		9		11						20

Junior Lites Results – Round 6

Pos	Rider	Pole	R1	R2	R3	R4	Points
1	N Donovan		55	55	55	43	208
2	S Drane		40	46	50	55	191
3	R Nauta	5	36	50	40	50	181
4	B Ryan		50	40	43	46	179
5	H Hodgetts		46	43	46	40	175
6	N Jaeger		43	36	36	38	153
7	C Archibald		38	38	38	36	150
8	M Carter		32	34	34	34	134
9	L Duggan		34	32	32	32	130
10	L Turner		30	30	30	30	120
11	M Kelly		28	28	28	28	112
12	M New		26	26	26	26	104

Junior 85 Results – Round 6

Pos	Rider	Pole	R1	R2	R3	R4	Points
1	L Duggan	5	55	55	55	50	220
2	L Layton		46	50	50	55	201
3	T Edwards		50	46	46	43	185
4	L New		40	43	40	46	169
5	A Ryman		43	40	43	40	166
6	B Ford		36	34	38	38	146
7	J Cooper		38	36	32	36	142
8	F Beard		28	38	28	32	126
9	J French		22	32	30	34	118
10	B Layton		30	22	36	30	118
11	J Johnstone		34	30	26	22	112
12	H Holmes		32	28	22	28	110
13	W Wiggins		26	24	34	26	110
14	L Seam		24	26	24	24	98
15	R Duggan		20	20	20	20	80
16	J Perrett		19	19	19	19	76

Clubman Open Results – Round 6

Pos	Rider	Pole	R1	R2	R3	R4	Points
1	N Girdler		55	55	50	55	215
2	B Thistleton	5	50	50	55	50	210
3	A Fisher		43	43	43	46	175
4	R Sandow		46	38	38	43	165
5	B Trembath		36	46	40	38	160
6	L Barnes		30	40	46	40	156
7	J Griffin		38	34	36	36	144
8	D Seam		40	28	34	34	136
9	L Hunter		34	30	30	32	126
10	D Webb		32	32	32	30	126
11	L Grimshaw		28	26	26	28	108
12	C Potter		24	24	22	26	96
13	G Rautman		22	22	24	24	92
14	A Muggleton		20	36	28		84
15	B Irwin		18	19	20	20	77
16	J Jobling		19	18		22	59
17	R New		26	20			46
18	L Adamson		17	17			34

Herrick took the crown, ahead of Jarred Brooks and Cam Dunker — Herrick took the Pro 450 crown, ahead of Jarred Brooks and Cam Dunker

Pro 450 Final Championship Standings

Pos	Rider	Points
1	T Herrick	1021
2	J Brook	1012
3	C Cameron	947
4	T Drane	862
5	J Dall	794
6	M Whale	793
7	J Carter	624
8	D Wicks	576
9	P Caslick	566
10	T Openshaw	552
11	J Lytras	529
12	R Tegart	447
13	R Jacobs	433
14	R Mcqualter	414
15	K O’donnell	403
16	C Weale	402
17	M Booth	392
18	E Grabham	371
19	D Daniels	351
20	B Burns	335
21	C Lewis	306
22	M Mcnamara	270
23	L Moody	262
24	J Griffin	253
25	L Gough	193
26	D Borlase	193
27	M Kirkness	191
28	L Davis	173
29	T Donnelly	164
30	D Lionetti	155
31	J Oram	151
32	N Cardinale	150
33	T Cardinale	129
34	W Secomb	119
35	T O’donnell	111
36	M Price	102
37	J Passfield	95

Junior Lite Series Podium – 1) Cooper Archibald, 2) Neiko Donovan, 3) Riley Nauta

Junior Lites Final Championship Standings

Pos	Rider	Points
1	C Archibald	1074
2	N Donovan	1047
3	R Nauta	983
4	H Hodgetts	944
5	B Ryan	912
6	M Carter	738
7	S Drane	735
8	J Fyffe	662
9	M New	638
10	M Kelly	618
11	L Duggan	470
12	N Jaeger	305
13	J Park	302
14	J Paige	288
15	B Paige	286
16	L Turner	244
17	J Trembath	224

That series podium was a close one between Duggan and Layton, Lucy Heaton-New third

Junior 85 Final Championship Standings

Pos	Rider	Points
1	L Duggan	1119
2	L Layton	1115
3	L Heaton-New	1015
4	T Edwards	892
5	H Holmes	858
6	W Wiggins	747
7	B Layton	656
8	J Cooper	614
9	J French	532
10	B Ford	524
11	R Duggan	508
12	F Beard	468
13	L Seam	339
14	A Ryman	329
15	L Meyn	324
16	B Brookes	323
17	T Howard	306
18	C Williams	290
19	A Attard	246
20	T Afeaki	204
21	J Johnstone	198
22	J Straney	186
23	J Perrett	148
24	J Louis	134
25	K Hunter	132
26	O Thistleton	114
27	R Duggan	92

Clubman Series Podium – 1) Benny Thistleton, 2) Neil Girdler, 3) Rhys Sandow

Clubman Open Final Championship Standings

Pos	Rider	Points
1	B Thistleton	1132
2	N Girdler	1012
3	R Sandow	898
4	A Fisher	885
5	J Griffin	859
6	J Mclean	807
7	L Hunter	749
8	A Muggleton	705
9	L Barnes	665
10	L Fairey	642
11	D Webb	599
12	R New	490
13	A Dall	397
14	D Seam	392
15	B Trembath	337
16	G Rautman	327
17	S Richards	250
18	L Grimshaw	245
19	J Richardson	231
20	J Roberts	226
21	B Irwin	196
22	C Nelson	180
23	T Holdup	171
24	R Rautman	130
25	C Potter	96
26	A Morgan	76
27	J Jobling	59
28	L Adamson	34
29	A Corbet	22

Pro Twins Series Podium – 1) Kristian O’Donnell, 2) Kenny Angel, 3) Tyler O’Donnell

Pro Twins Final Championship Standings

Pos	Rider	Points
1	K O’Donnell	480
2	K Angel	449
3	T O’Donnell	375
4	J Portelli	372
5	D Klaver	313
6	S Richards	312
7	A Muggleton	110
8	B Hunt	36

Drane tops Gunnedah AFTN finale as Herrick wins title

Yamaha bLU cRU Aussie Flat Track Nationals - Rounds 5 & 6 - Gunnedahm NSW

Images from Gunnedah Aussie Flat Track Nationals finale – Gallery B

Images from Gunnedah Aussie Flat Track Nationals finale – Gallery A

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Drane tops Gunnedah AFTN finale as Herrick wins title

Yamaha bLU cRU Aussie Flat Track Nationals - Rounds 5 & 6 - Gunnedahm NSW

Yamaha bLU cRU Aussie Flat Track Nationals Rounds 5 & 6 – Gunnedah, NSW

Thomas Herrick – AFTN Pro 450 Champion

Round 5

RelatedPosts

Images from Gunnedah Aussie Flat Track Nationals finale – Gallery B

Images from Gunnedah Aussie Flat Track Nationals finale – Gallery A

Pro 450 Results – Round 5

Junior Lites Results – Round 5

Junior 85 Results – Round 5

Clubman Open Results – Round 5

Pro Twins Results – Round 5

Round 6

Pro 450 Results – Round 6

Junior Lites Results – Round 6

Junior 85 Results – Round 6

Clubman Open Results – Round 6

Pro 450 Final Championship Standings

Junior Lites Final Championship Standings

Junior 85 Final Championship Standings

Clubman Open Final Championship Standings

Pro Twins Final Championship Standings

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Yamaha bLU cRU Aussie Flat Track Nationals
Rounds 5 & 6 – Gunnedah, NSW