Mount Maunganui's Rhys Carter's consistent start to second half of Australian Motocross Nationals campaign in Queensland

Mount Maunganui's Rhys Carter made a consistent start to the second half of his Australian Motocross Nationals campaign in Queensland on Sunday.

After a five-week break the Australian series resumed at the Conondale track on the Sunshine Coast. Carter qualified ninth fastest in the MX1 class on his Kawasaki KX 450F and rode to sixth place in the opening moto.

He followed up with seventh in the second moto and remains seventh in the championship standings but has closed to only one point behind Kirk Gibbs in sixth place.

Series leader Dean Ferris (Yamaha) continued to dominate the championship, winning both races on Sunday and extending his tally to 11 wins from 12 starts, building a 95-point lead over Mitch Evans (KTM) in the process.

The next round of the Australian nationals is a double-header, with round seven and eight at the Raymond Terrace track near Newcastle, NSW, over the July 14-15 weekend.

Meanwhile, Mount Maunganui's Cody Cooper had a tough sixth round of the Lucas Oil AMA Pro Motocross Championship in the US on Saturday.

Racing at Southwick, Massachusetts, Cooper (Honda) qualified 12th in the MX1 class but retired halfway through the opening moto — his first non-finish of the series.

Cooper had a bad start in the second moto but improved from 31st at the first corner to gain 16th place and he remains ninth overall in the championship standings heading to the seventh round at Buchanan, Michigan, this weekend.