Max Whale
Max Whale showed the world exactly why he’d been frequently cited by fellow competitors as one of the most talented riders on the scene with a breakthrough 2020 season.
Whale quickly rose through the flat track ranks in his native Australia with a laundry list of amateur championships to his name. Wasting little time, in 2017 he set off to prove himself in the United States. He immediately made a splash Stateside as well, finishing as the runner-up in three AMA Amateur Grand National Championship divisions before turning pro in 2018.
Whale continued to impress, scoring a pair of top-five finishes in AFT Singles competition and earning Rookie of the Year honors.
However, despite that early success, he admitted the transition had proven more difficult than he anticipated. Whale had to adjust to the differences separating American and Australian flat track racing, such as the lack of front brakes, 19-inch tires, and clay-based circuits.
Whale showed steady, incremental progress as he further adapted in 2019, improving five spots in the championship order (9th from 14th the year before), while earning his first AFT Singles podium at the Laconia ST.
Whale made good on all the learning he had done in ‘20, streaking out to his maiden AFT Singles victory in the season opener at Volusia. He backed that up with four additional podiums, including a runner-up finish in the season finale to secure a second-place ranking in the final class championship standings.
In 2021, Whale joins Shayna Texter-Bauman on the Red Bull KTM Factory Racing Team.
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| Year | Cls | Stnd | Pts | St | Wins | Best Fin | Worst Fin | Avg Fin | Poles | Best Qual | Worst Qual | Avg Qual | Laps Led | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2020 | AFT Production Twins | 27 | 9 | 2 | 0 | 13 | 16 | 14.5 | 0 | 13 | 15 | 14.0 | 0 | |
| 2020 | AFT Singles | 2 | 215 | 15 | 1 | 1 | 12 | 5.5 | 3 | 1 | 14 | 5.1 | 27 | |
| 2019 | AFT Production Twins | 31 | 7 | 1 | 0 | 12 | 12 | 12.0 | 0 | 9 | 9 | 9.0 | 0 | |
| 2019 | AFT Singles | 9 | 143 | 15 | 0 | 3 | 16 | 9.5 | 0 | 3 | 17 | 11.1 | 0 | |
| 2018 | AFT Singles | 14 | 90 | 12 | 0 | 4 | 17 | 11.5 | 0 | 4 | 18 | 11.2 | 0 | |
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