Three years ago, Briar Bauman wasn't on the list of would-be champions in American Flat Track—in fact, he was just trying to scrape together purse money to make it to the races. That's all Bauman needed, because his first love is simply being at the track and hanging with his flat track family (including girlfriend Shayna Texter, a Red Bull KTM contender in the Singles class). Then Briar started to put results on the board. He picked up a factory Indian ride this year and skyrocketed right to the top of the charts. With two races remaining in 2019, he holds a big points lead in the Twins division. That should add a lot of pressure, but he's stayed true to his old model: having fun with his friends at the racetrack is priority number one, and the rest comes easy. In this podcast, Jason Weigandt chats with Bauman about handling the points lead, the stumbles on his march to the top, and his relationship with current AFT Champion Jared Mees, who has gone from friend and mentor to title rival. Oh, and those special nights when he and his brother Bronson battle for the win in the Twins class while Shayna fights for the victory in the Singles class! It's all coming at Briar quite fast, but you'll enjoy learning how he keeps it in perspective.

The Racer X Exhaust podcast is presented by Yoshimura.