CDR Yamaha’s Dean Ferris stormed to another 1-1 result when the MX Nationals hit Nowra today
Dean Ferris now holds a 61-point lead over Kirk Gibbs in the MX1 Title Chase
The Thor MX1 class took to the Nowra circuit in freezing conditions this morning, however it took only a short time for things to heat up, with the heavy hitters immediately heading into practice and qualifying, followed by two races dominated by Ferris.
After 30 minutes on track for practice and qualifying it was MEGA Bulk Fuels Monster Energy Kawasaki’s newest recruit Brett Metcalfe who was fastest with a 1:42.856 lap time. Second was CDR Yamaha’s Dean Ferris (1:42.959) followed by Crankt Protein Honda Racing’s Todd Waters in third (1:43.078).
Fourth fastest on track was KTM Motocross Racing Team’s Kirk Gibbs, while Luke Clout was the fifth and final rider to progress through to GoPro Superpole.
When all riders had thrown down their individual hot laps, it was Honda mounted Waters who collected his second GoPro Superpole victory for the year and first pick of the grid, thanks to a lightening fast 1:42.718 lap time.
2017 MX Nationals – Round Six – Nowra – MX1 Moto 1
When the Thor MX1 class took to the line for their first moto of the day, the question everyone wanted to know the answer to was could anyone possibly beat CDR Yamaha’s Dean Ferris.
When gates dropped, it was Ferris who took the holeshot, but it was the first turn pile up that captured the crowd’s attention, with more than ten riders getting caught up in Nowra’s tight conditions.
When the majority of riders resumed racing, it was once again Ferris who in familiar fashion began to check out. Behind him, Waters was in second position, while CDR Yamaha’s Dylan Long who was fresh back from injury, occupied third.
After three laps, Ferris had stretched out his lead to a healthy few seconds from Waters and Long, however the rider who was really capturing the crowd’s attention was privateer Zak Small, who was in fourth position and battling hard with 2015 MX1 champ Kirk Gibbs.
Surprisingly, despite being caught up in a first turn crash, both Brett Metcalfe and Kade Mosig had made their way up to seventh and eighth after a handful of laps, where the pair began to battle for the positions in front of them.
Unfortunately for fastest qualifier Waters, a chain malfunction only five laps in saw a visibly dejected Honda rider headed back to the pits – leaving his factory Honda machine trackside. With Waters out and Ferris checked out, Long picked up a position and slotted in to second, while Gibbs also moved up a spot into third.
Behind Gibbs was Crankt Protein Honda Racing Team’s Clout in fourth, while Metcalfe came together with Mosig in the fight for fifth, which saw Mosig go down, then forced to re-join the race in tenth position.
As moto one progressed, a mistake from Long saw him drop back to fifth, which allowed Gibbs to find himself in a familiar position – second behind Ferris. Metcalfe also capitalised on the mistake from Long, moving in to the final podium position with more than ten minutes left on the clock.
After ten laps, the running order saw Ferris continuing to lead from Metcalfe who had made the move on Gibbs for second, Clout made his way into fourth followed by fellow MX1 rookie and Kawasaki mounted Nathan Crawford in fifth.
Long and KTM Motocross Racing Team’s Luke Styke occupied positions six and seven, while Wilson Coolair Motul Factory Suzuki’s Kyle Peters had fought his way back from dead last to eighth.
As moto one reached it’s closing stages, once again no one could get near Ferris, while behind him, the field had settled in to their respective positions, and the running order remained relatively unchanged.
So when the chequered flag flew it was no surprise to see CDR Yamaha’s Ferris cross the line victorious for the ninth time this season, second place was taken by MEGA Bulk Fuels Monster Energy Kawasaki’s Metcalfe on debut, while Gibbs wrapped up moto one in third.
Fourth place was Clout, followed by MX1 rookie Crawford in fifth. Styke, Peters, Brodie Sims, Keiron Hall and Zac Small completed the top ten.
2017 MX Nationals – Round Six – Nowra – MX1 Moto 2
In race two it was MEGA Bulk Fuels Monster Energy Kawasaki’s Crawford who took the second Raceline holeshot of the day, followed by Clout, Metcalfe, Mosig and of course CDR Yamaha’s Ferris.
To the spectator’s delight, the top five riders then began an all out battle for the race lead, and before long, Metcalfe cracked under the pressure and ran off the track, while Ferris moved past Mosig where he then began to eye off the rear wheel of Clout.
After two laps, Clout and Ferris began to close in on race leader Crawford, but with a championship on his mind, it was Ferris who made the move on Crankt Protein Honda Racing Team’s Clout and moved in to second.
From there Ferris continued his charge towards the front, and by the time riders headed in to lap four, the CDR Yamaha rider had made the pass on Crawford and taken the race lead.
With Ferris out in front, Crawford and Clout began to battle for second, while behind the rookie pair, Metcalfe and Mosig were locked into their own battle for fourth.
With experience in their favour, both Metcalfe and Mosig began to close in on the youngsters by the 12-minute mark, but it was Metcalfe who managed to pull the move on his teammate Crawford and move into third position behind Ferris and Clout.
Notable absentees from the front of the field in moto two were Gibbs and Waters, who after six laps were back in sixth and seventh positions and with their work cut out for them, should they want to make it to the front.
By the hallway mark in moto two, Ferris continued to lead from Metcalfe and Mosig who had managed to make the move on Clout. Behind Clout in fifth was Crawford, while Gibbs and Waters continued to circulate in sixth and seventh positions.
As moto two reached it’s closing stages Ferris once again showcased his unmatchable speed, while the rest of the field settled in to their respective spots behind him.
By the time riders had received the last lap board, Ferris had followed his race plan to perfection – checking out on the field for the tenth time this season, allowing the bar to bar action to happen behind him.
So when the chequered flag flew for the final time at Nowra, it was Ferris who finished race two victorious, second place went to an ultra experienced Kawasaki mounted Metcalfe, while DPH Motorsport’s Mosig wrapped up race two in third.
KTM’s Gibbs concluded the second race at Nowra in fourth after making the move Clout late in the moto, while Clout and Crawford finished in fifth and sixth places respectively. Waters, Styke, Peters and Hall completed the top ten in moto two.
But with 1,1 results it was Ferris who continued his incredible winning streak, taking his sixth round victory for 2017 at Nowra. Second spot on the podium went to MEGA Bulk Fuels Monster Energy Kawasaki’s Metcalfe, while KTM’s Gibbs completed the Thor MX1 podium.
Dean Ferris – CDR Yamaha – Round 6 Winner
“All the boys laid down a big challenge today – the first race was good but even in the second race I had my work cut out for me and even when I got into the lead Brett Metcalfe kept pushing. Overall though it was a good day – all of the guys at CDR Yamaha are putting in hours, and hours to make this happen. A 15 and 12 second win look great on paper but on this track, that takes an enormous amount of work and you are never safe. Nowra is a track that is very easy to lose time and difficult to make it back so it requires a lot of focus on the track to keep punching out consistently fast laps. It was a great way to start the second half of the year and showed the team and I have continued to work hard over the break and kept moving forward. I can’t thank everyone at CDR Yamaha enough for providing me with everything I need to race at my best. We now move onto Shepparton in two weeks’ time and it’s a completely different style of track so I’m looking forward to riding in the long ruts and technical layout that we get down there.”
Brett Metcalfe – KRT – 2nd overall
“I think it’s something huge that we can really build on and gain momentum, that’s something I’ve been missing for pretty much the whole season. Literally, today is the fifth day on the bike, so to learn the bike as quick as possible, change a few things and come to the track and be competitive was really the goal for today. I kind of exceeded my expectations with the speed I was able to ride at and I’m happy. To ride away with 2-2 [finishes] and Nato also having a good finish – two in the top five for the MEGA Bulk Fuels Monster Energy Kawasaki – I think it’s awesome and a step in the right direction. For myself personally, I’m happy with my riding and the result. Obviously winning is the goal from here out, I’m just trying to find consistency now to bridge the gap and win.”
Nathan Crawford – KRT – 5th overall
“It wasn’t too bad, fifth overall for the day and I can’t really complain, I was a little disappointed about the second moto, but then I remember that throughout the six-week break – I didn’t race Murray Bridge – the only thing I was doing was in the gym and was not able to ride for much of it. For me to come here and almost back on form for myself and lead some laps, get a holeshot and come out inside the top five, I’m really happy. Hopefully I can take this momentum into the back half of the series and into round seven. I’m a rookie, so I’m just going to keep learning and bettering myself every weekend and work together as a team to better our results.”
Kade Mosig – DPH Motorsport – 6th overall
“I walk away from Nowra pretty happy. The work I’ve put in and with the help of Craig Anderson, I really feel like I’m riding better than the first half of the season already. Getting caught up in the first corner pile up and then having another crash through the race really put me down the pack in race 1, but we bounced back and finished the day with a strong ride that helps solidify my 3rd place in the championship.”
Thor MX1 Round 6 Results
- Dean Ferris – 70 points – Yamaha
- Brett Metcalfe – 64 points – Kawasaki
- Kirk Gibbs – 58 points – KTM
- Luke Clout – 54 points – Honda
- Nathan Crawford – 51 points – Kawasaki
- Kade Mosig – 50 points – Yamaha
- Luke Styke – 48 points – KTM
- Kyle Peters – 46 points – Suzuki
- Keiron Hall – 43 points – Husqvarna
- Brodie Sims – 42 points – Yamaha
Thor MX1 Championship Standings
- Dean Ferris – 427 points – Yamaha
- Kirk Gibbs – 366 points – KTM
- Kade Mosig – 329 points – Yamaha
- Luke Styke – 310 points – KTM
- Todd Waters – 304 points – Honda
- Luke Clout – 277 points – Honda
- Kyle Peters – 276 points – Suzuki
- Brett Metcalfe – 239 points – Kawasaki
- Aleksandr Tonkov – 218 points – Kawasaki
- Keiron Hall – 216 points – Husqvarna
