Just five weeks ago, former GP rider Dean Ferris was poised to take a clean sweep at Wanneroo and cement his spot on top of the MX1 class at the Australian Motocross Championships.

However, a crash in the final moto before the mid-season break, marked an early end to round five for the talented rider and put the remainder of his 2016 MX Nationals campaign in jeopardy.

Despite the crash at Wanneroo, the northern New South Welshman has surprisingly bounced back and he will line up once again this weekend aboard his CDR Yamaha machine at round six at Nowra.

Ferris, who now sits in third position in the Thor MX1 Championship standings only 27 points shy of the lead, spoke about the crash in WA, his fight to get ready for round six, and whether or not he thinks he can still take the 2016 Thor MX1 title.

Firstly, tell us what happened at Wanneroo?

“Really it was one of those things that myself and Kirk (Gibbs) got cross lined and it wasn’t anyone’s fault, it was just a racing incident. I was conscious the whole time but I did hit the ground pretty hard. I knew I was ok, but I also knew I couldn’t get up and race so I let Racesafe do their thing, and actually I walked out of hospital that night so I was definitely ok. It wasn’t as serious as everyone initially thought. I saw all of the other riders at a Press Day the following week, and everyone realised I was fine. I’m happy, everyone is happy so we’re good to go this weekend.”

Was there ever a point where you thought that you wouldn’t be able to line up at Nowra?

“Nope not at all. I knew I would be fine.”

How hard have you worked to get ready for this weekend?

“After the crash at Wanneroo, I’ll be honest I was pretty battered and sore – I’d intended to do Manjimup but I opted out of doing that race and took the week off and just went sight seeing actually. Since then though I’ve been back at it, so it’s actually been a solid break for me, and I’ve had a lot of time on the bike.”

Is this year what you expected racing in Australia again would be like?

“Yeah I expected it to be like this. One guy who has definitely surprised me is Gibbsy (Kirk), but other than him, the speed of the guys in our class is what I expected it was going to be.”

Do you believe you can still win the 2016 championship?

“Of course.”

Who’s your biggest threat to winning the championship at this stage?

“Oh it’s pretty clear it’s myself. I’m the biggest threat I think. Todd (Waters) and Kirk are also right there, but I believe it’s me that’s the biggest threat at this stage.”

Finally, how are you feeling ahead of this weekend?

“I feel good, I’m looking forward to getting back in to it and seeing what I can do – I’m feeling good physically and after this mid-season break I’m ready to go racing again. I’m not far off the lead, so I’ll be looking to close that gap.”

Ferris, along with the rest of the Thor MX1 class, will now head to Nowra in New South Wales for round six of the 2016 Motul MX Nationals this weekend.

Two Kiwis will be in action this weekend too, Michael Menchi and Hamish Harwood.

Menchi is 10th in the MX1 series standings, while Harwood remains solid in 10th overall in his MX2 class.

THOR MX1 Championship Standings After Round 5

1. Kirk Gibbs 351 Pts
2. Todd Waters 334 Pts
3. Dean Ferris 324 Pts
4. Matt Moss 314 Pts
5. Kade Mosig 267 Pts
6. Dylan Long 258 Pts
7. Brett Metcalfe 225 Pts
8. Jay Wilson 221 Pts
9. Jacob Wright 193 Pts
10. Michael Menchi (NZ) 188 Pts
11. Daniel Banks 178 Pts
12. Michael Mahon 171 Pts
13. Daniel Reardon 171 Pts
14. Jesse Dobson 158 Pts
15. Izak Maule 144 Pts
16. Jamie Law 110 Pts
17. Luke Wilson 109 Pts
18. Matthew Toth 108 Pts
19. Kurt Wightman 98 Pts
20. Lawson Bopping 85 Pts

MOTUL MX2 Championship Standings After Round 5

1. Nathan Crawford 326 Pts
2. Jed Beaton 313 Pts
3. Caleb Ward 305 Pts
4. Jayden Rykers 280 Pts
5. Wilson Todd 270 Pts
6. Kyle Webster 261 Pts
7. Jake Moss 255 Pts
8. Dylan Wills 239 Pts
9. Dean Porter 228 Pts
10. Hamish Harwood (NZ) 226 Pts
11. Joel Wightman 210 Pts
12. Wade Hunter 209 Pts
13. Richie Evans 162 Pts
14. Ricky Latimer 161 Pts
15. Luke Arbon 161 Pts
16. Kale Makeham 134 Pts
17. Nick Sutherland 120 Pts
18. Kurt Gow 106 Pts
19. Aaron Tanti 84 Pts
20. Josh Adams 80 Pts

© Photo by Andy McGechan, www.BikesportNZ.com

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