CDR Yamaha’s Josh Coppins has taken one step closer toward the 2012 Monster Energy MX Nationals, Australian Motocross Championship, following a hard-fought victory at Moree’s penultimate round on Sunday, 19 August.

The 35-year-old New Zealander now has a 14-point lead with one round remaining next weekend, setting himself up in the box seat for what is his final season of professional competition.

Coppins was inch perfect in an action-packed day at Moree, battling through the trio of motos with second in motos one and two, before he clinched the overall with a dominant win in the final outing.

Josh Coppins holds a 14-point lead over Todd Waters heading into Coolum's final round of the series. Image: Simon Makker/Makkreative.com.

“It wasn’t a bad day overall and good to win the last moto,” Coppins commented. “I had arm-pump in the first two motos, but the last one went to plan. It was good to win the final 30-minute moto and that’s three of them in a row now, so I’m happy.

“14 points ahead heading into Coolum isn’t a big lead, but I’d rather be 14 ahead than behind. I’m healthy, the bike’s good, so… I want to win [at Coolum] and the championship.”

Behind Coppins at Moree was title rival Todd Waters, the 21-year-old Motul Pirelli Suzuki rider himself picking up a moto win in the first of the round. Waters concluded his weekend with a third in moto two and second in the final moto.

Waters’ teammate Cody Cooper was third overall, while British champion Brad Anderson (Carlton Dry Honda Thor Racing) and Lawson Bopping (CDR Yamaha) continued their fight for third in the series, placing fourth and fifth respectively at Moree.

Coppins stood atop of the MX1 podium over Todd Waters and Cody Cooper. Image: Simon Makker/Makkreative.com.

Monster Energy Kawasaki’s defending champion Jay Marmont finished sixth overall on the weekend following a mixed round, but boosted himself up into sixth in the series. Marmont will miss out on the MX1 title for the first time since 2008.

It was a pivotal day in the Motul MX2 championship, with former series leader Luke Styke suffering a disastrous penultimate round for Serco Yamaha Metal Mulisha Racing. He entered the weekend with a 31-point advantage, but left with a deficit of 21.

New series leader and Sunshine Coast resident Ford Dale takes over the red plate ahead of Coolum next weekend. Dale won for Carlton Dry Honda Thor Racing at Moree, claiming a trio of moto victories in a career-defining day.

“It was awesome, because I came into the last few rounds just hoping to win races and let the rest fall into place behind me,” Dale reflected. “It’s all gone to plan, so I just can’t wait until Coolum last weekend and hopefully do the same thing.

Ford Dale, your new MX2 points leader, took the win over Josh Cachia and Kirk Gibbs. Image: Simon Makker/Makkreative.com.

“I’ve been working hard all year and have won the past five, but there’s another round to go and anything can happen. I feel for Stykes, but that’s racing. I’m always excited to race at Coolum, so I’ll take it one race at a time and see what happens.”

Styke was forced to settle for 13th overall after he suffered a non-finish in moto three. Earlier, he finished moto one in sixth despite a flat tyre and then finished 13th in moto two after stalling out of the start gates.

Second for the round in a continuation of his podium form was Josh Cachia for JDR/KTM Factory Racing, taking home two seconds and a third to conclude the weekend. Styke’s teammate Kirk Gibbs rounded out the podium with 9-3-2 finishes.

Completing the top five for the weekend was Monster Energy Kawasaki’s Kade Mosig and Raceline Pirelli Suzuki rookie Errol Willis, while Keiron Hall rode his Full Force Racing Yamaha YZ250 two-stroke to an inspiring sixth.

A new face rose to the top of the Pirelli MXD category at Moree, with Luke Clout returning from a lengthy stint in the US to claim MX Factory Honda’s first national victory with a clean-sweep of three wins. Clout was in spectacular form on debut, showing both speed and confidence to take home a perfect 75 points for the round.

Luke Clout swept the MXD class motos to take the in over Dylan Leary and Jay Wilson. Image: Simon Makker/Makkreative.com.

“It feels really good to get this win and the team has been really helpful all weekend,” Clout said. “I was impressed with the caliber of riders here after spending so much time in America, the racing was good and it worked out really good for me today.”

Second was Axis Motorsports Kawasaki’s Dylan Leary, finishing runner-up across all three motos in his best performance of the season to date. Completing the podium was round eight winner Jay Wilson for Raceline Pirelli Suzuki, with 3-5-5 finishes.

Kiwi Kayne Lamont stretched his series lead to 32 points with a single round remaining, the KTM riding claiming a conservative fourth place in the season’s penultimate weekend.

The final round of the Monster Energy MX Nationals, Australian Motocross Championship, will take place next weekend at Coolum in Queensland on 25-26 August.

2012 Monster Energy MX Nationals, Australian Motocross Championship
Round Nine – Moree, NSW

MX1 Overall Results:
1. Josh Coppins 69
2. Todd Waters 67
3. Cody Cooper 61
4. Brad Anderson 51
5. Lawson Bopping 49
6. Jay Marmont 44
7. Billy Mackenzie 41
8. Daniel McCoy 40
9. Craig Anderson 38
10. Dean Porter 31

MX2 Overall Results:
1. Ford Dale 75
2. Josh Cachia 64
3. Kirk Gibbs 54
4. Kade Mosig 52
5. Errol Willis 50
6. Kieron Hall 36
7. Luke Arbon 36
8. Adam Monea 35
9. Scott Columb 32
10. Rhys Carter 32

MXD Overall Results:
1. Luke Clout 75
2. Dylan Leary 66
3. Jay Wilson 52
4. Kayne Lamont 50
5. Wade Hunter 46
6. Dylan Long 45
7. Kale Makeham 45
8. Mitch Norris 39
9. Nicklas Scott 39
10. Sam Martin 36

MX1 Championship Standings (after 9 of 10 rounds):
1. Josh Coppins 549
2. Todd Waters 535
3. Lawson Bopping 469
4. Brad Anderson 463
5. Cody Cooper 449
6. Jay Marmont 332
7. Jake Moss 311
8. Daniel Reardon 301
9. Daniel McCoy 289
10. Dean Porter 288

MX2 Championship Standings (after 9 of 10 rounds):
1. Ford Dale 521
2. Luke Styke 500
3. Josh Cachia 493
4. Kade Mosig 447
5. Adam Monea 409
6. Kirk Gibbs 401
7. Cheyne Boyd 366
8. Scott Columb 318
9. Justin McDonald 287
10. Errol Willis 279

MXD Championship Standings (after 8 of 9 rounds):
1. Kayne Lamont 464
2. Dylan Long 432
3. Dylan Leary 418
4. Jay Wilson 392
5. Kale Makeham 382
6. Sam Martin 359
7. Mitch Morris 276
8. Joel Milesevic 230
9. Wade Hunter 222
10. Mitch Budd 180