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IN THE WIND P34 Clout, Gibbs 1-2 At Australia National MX R ound seven of the Australian MX Nationals visited the Maitland MX circuit in Hunter Valley NSW, July 12-13, and it became an in- stant favorite for the CDR Yamaha Team. Two of its riders, Luke Clout and Kirk Gibbs, went 1-2 in the overall MX1 class. Heading into the round, Clout sat second in the MX1 standings, having previously held the points leader's red plate, but having grown up racing tracks around the Hunter Valley, Clout was confident he could perform well at Maitland and claw back valu- able points on the series leader, Hayden Mellross. Clout did more than that and, after winning the opening two motos in the sprint, back-to-back format, his day was off to the perfect start. A strong performance in the third and final race for the day would not only see Clout take the win at Mait- land, but also regain the championship lead. He started the final 30-minute moto just inside the top five at the end of lap one but over the next 16 laps edged his way forward to move into second place and that was enough to seal the deal for the round win with his 1-1-2 results. More importantly, he now leads the championship with a nine-point gap back to Mellross, third overall on the day, with three rounds remaining. "I didn't have the greatest day at the last round, so it was important that I bounced back strongly this weekend and got things back on track," Clout said. "I felt pretty good all day, but my starts in the back-to-back races really set up my day, as I was in a good position both times and able to capitalize on them to take the race wins. "The last moto start wasn't as good, but I was able to put my head down and make some passes and secured the overall win. It felt pretty good coming across the finish line and feeling like I had put in my best effort and was rewarded with the round win." Gibbs kept his good form going after a podium finish at round six, with a second place finish at round seven, highlighted by a final moto race win. Gibbs finished with 2-4 results in the back-to-back motos and then charged to the lead of the final moto and was never headed. His 2-4-1 results for the day saw him land in second place and, despite missing a round due to injury, he now sits in fourth place in the championship. Todd Waters finished out the day fourth over- all, while Brett Metcalfe rounded out the top five overall. In MX2, Penrite Pirelli CRF Honda Racing's Kyle Webster took the overall win (2-1). He closed to within 10 points of championship leader DPH Husqvarna's Wil- son Todd. Serco Yama- ha's Nathan Crawford, who won moto one, was second overall on the day. CN MX1 1. LUKE CLOUT (YAM) 1-1-2 2. KIRK GIBBS (YAM) 2-4-1 3. HAYDEN MELLROSS (KTM) 4-3-3 4. TODD WATERS (HUS) 6-6-4 5. BRETT METCALFE (HON) 3-2-11 Luke Clout took the overall win at round seven of the Australia MX Nationals at Maitland.