A heat-wave may well be sweeping the east coast of the United States but none are sizzling more than Pahiatua rider Paul Whibley.
The Yamaha ace, who has support from Sargent Yamaha in Wairarapa, has now opened up a small gap at the top of the rankings after he won the ninth round of 13 in the Grand National Cross Country Championships (GNCC) at Millfield, Ohio, at the weekend.
Runner-up was Whibley's arch rival, American Kailub Russell, but Kiwi riders again hogged the podium as fellow New Zealander Rory Mead finished the day third overall.
Whibley, riding a Yamaha YZ450F, had started the day just one point ahead of Russell, the two men hammering it out for the 2012 crown since the series kicked off in Florida in March. But the former Manawatu forestry worker - affectionately dubbed The Axeman by his motorcycling rivals - is now seven points in front.
Whibley is edging closer to reclaiming the GNCC crown he last held in 2009, although the series now takes a mid-season break, shutting down during the brutally hot mid-summer in the US, before resuming with round 10 at Unadilla, New York, on September 16.