Image: Supplied.

An overall victory at Rotorua’s second round of the 2020 New Zealand Motocross Championship has uplifted Kirk Gibbs’ spirits, the former champion edging closer to points leader Cody Cooper (Honda Racing).

The Altherm JCR Yamaha rider recorded a 2-1-1 scorecard, with a heroic performance in race two seeing him bounce back from 17th to secure a pivotal race win.

“I was frustrated with myself and just wanted to be in the fight, so I pushed really hard and caught all the way back up to Hamish [Harwood] and Coops [Cody Cooper] and was able to pass both of them and get the win, so I was really happy with that one,” Gibbs explained.

“I’m really happy with the Altherm JCR Yamaha team and my team at home [in the Sunshine Coast], who are working hard in between rounds. I’m stoked with how today ended up.”

It was Cooper and Hamish Harwood (CML Motorex KTM) who locked out the podium, while the MX2 category was topped by Josiah Natzke (Kawasaki) ahead of Maximus Purvis (Altherm JCR Yamaha) and James Scott (KTM).