The uber-talented Tom Drane is one of the most promising and accomplished racers to emerge in recent memory. The Australian started racing when he was seven years old and would spend the better part of next decade racking up a bevy of amateur titles, including 17 Australian Dirt Track Championships, 23 State Dirt Track Championships, and three AMA Flat Track Grand Championships. Drane also established himself as an ace on pavement, contesting the Indemitsu Asia Talent Cup and Australian 600 Supersport series in recent seasons. Upon turning 16 midway through the 2022 season, Drane made his Progressive AFT debut and did not disappoint. He won the AFT Singles Al Lamb's Dallas Honda Challenge and finished second in his first-career series’ Main Event at the Lima Half-Mile. He made a return trip to the States at the Springfield Mile and again took top honors in the four-lap challenge and might have been able to one up his Lima runner-up had the weekend not been cut short due to weather. Drane’s first full campaign in the States saw him live up to the immense potential he’d previously teased. After taking a handful of early-season weekends to get fully up to speed, the Aussie ripped off ten podiums – including four wins and four runner-ups – over the season’s final 12 races. That incredible form saw him climb to second in the final points standings and established him as Kody Kopp’s biggest threat heading into ‘24. As expected, Drane proved even more formidable in 2024. He posted more wins than any rider, Kopp included, at seven, while also securing 13 podium finishes. However, despite his incredible performance, he still came up just short of stealing away the #1 plate. He made good on that the following season, storming to eight wins among 15 podiums in AFT Singles competition to become the first non-American to win a Progressive AFT championship in the long and storied history of the sport. Drane is set to further rewrite the record books as he defends his #1 plate in 2026.