Image: MXN.

CDR Yamaha’s defending Motul MX Nationals champion Dean Ferris continued to dominate the Motul MX Nationals MX1 field with a perfect pair of comfortable moto wins at Conondale’s Green Park today.

The former MXGP star dominated the opening moto around the picturesque, hilly circuit, taking charge from hole-shotter Aleksandr Tonkov (MEGA Bulk Fuels Monster Energy Kawasaki) early in the moto, before focusing on putting clear air between himself and the rest of the field on his way to the win.

Former MX1 champion as Kirk Gibbs (KTM Motocross Racing Team) and Todd Waters (Crankt Protein Honda Racing) rounded out the top three, trailed by Kade Mosig (DPH Motorsport Yamaha) and Brett Metcalfe (SD3 Husqvarna), who charged from outside the top 10 to break the top five.

In his first appearance for the year, Penrite Honda’s Jesse Dobson impressed with a sixth place, overtaking Luke Styke (KTM Motocross Racing Team) and Luke Clout (Crankt Protein Honda Racing) for position. Nathan Crawford (MEGA Bulk Fuels Monster Energy Kawasaki) finished ninth and and 10th was Keiron Hall (Synep Racing Husqvarna).

Kyle Peters (Wilson Coolair Motul Suzuki) came from the rear of the field to after an early mistake to finish 12th, while Tonkov, who led the opening lap, dropped all the way down to 14th by the checquered flag.

The second moto again saw Ferris grab another commanding 15-second win and maintain his perfect overall status for the 2017 season to date, winning five from six motos.

Ferris jumped out front early on his factory-backed YZ450F and was never challenged, with Gibbs claiming a consistent second place. Rookie standout Crawford recovered for a brilliant third place and finished the day an impressive fourth overall.

Waters followed Crawford to the line, ahead of Styke and Dobson, while Mosig, Clout, Tonkov and Peters rounded out the top 10 this time around to cap off round three of the season in the premier class.

Overall, Ferris took maximum points after winning Super Pole earlier in the day. Gibbs and Waters rounded out the podium, while in the championship hunt, Ferris leads Gibbs by 31 points, with Mosig third overall.

Image: Marc Jones.

In the MX2 class, Serco Yamaha class rookie Mitch Evans swept both races in spectacular fashion as he chased down his team-mate Jackson Richardson in both outings.

In the opening race North Queenslander Evans hunted down Richardson in the closing laps to take the win, while Wilson Todd (DPH Motorsport Yamaha) took a hard-earned third.

An inspired ride from Aaron Tanti (WBR Bulk Nutrients Yamaha) saw him finish fourth, with Kyle Webster (Penrite CRF Honda Racing) crossing the line for fifth.

Davey Motorsports KTM’s Hamish Harwood finished sixth, with his teammate Egan Mastin seventh. Jayden Rykers (Raceline Pirelli KTM), a fast-starting Richie Evans (Yamaha) and Dylan Wills (Synep Racing Husqvarna) rounded out the top 10.

The second moto was almost of case of déjà vu, with Evans chasing down Richardson on the final lap to take the race win and his second round clean-sweep in a row.

Crossing the line third was Mastin, ahead of Todd and Webster. Rykers finished sixth as he fended off Wills for position, with Richie Evans, Harwood and Ricky Latimer (Yamaha) rounding out the top 10.

Finishing 11th, despite a flat tyre in the moto, was the again impressive Tanti, although the result didn’t reflect his form in the moto.

Yamaha filled the podium for the round, with Evans joined by Richardson and Todd on the dais. Evans now holds the red plate and a nine-point lead in the standings over Todd, with Richardson a further nine in arrears.

In a tight MXD round fight, Victorian Raceline Pirelli KTM rider Morgan Fogarty took his first overall on count-back from Yamalube Yamaha Racing’s Cody Dyce.

The pair traded moto wins and runner-up positions to lock their scores up on 67 points. Queenslander Isaac Ferguson (KTM) rounded out the overall podium with a consistent 4-4 scorecard from the two motos.

Jai Constantinou (BCP Honda) took home fourth overall with a 5-7 result, ahead of Callum Norton (KTM), who finished the day with a solid podium performance after finishing 13th in the opening moto.

In the series points, Dyce now leads from Jy Roberts (Husqvarna) and Fogarty, after previous red plate-holder Cooper Pozniak (Yamalube Yamaha Racing) went 28-10 following a damaging opening moto crash in the first turn. The series will continue at Horsham, Victoria, on Sunday, 21 May.