Australia’s Hayden Mellross continued to climb the leader-board over the weekend scoring a seventh-place West Coast 250SX main event finish at the 14th round of the 2017 Monster Energy AMA Supercross Championship in Seattle.

Qualifying through to the main event via a fifth-place heat race finish, the 51FIFTY Energy Drink Yamaha rider was forced to carve through the field in some of the most challenging conditions the series has seen this year.

“Unfortunately I got off to a bad start in the main event and found myself back in 14th position after the first few corners,” Mellross told MotoOnline.com.au. “I was taking every different line possible and trying to find was to move to the front of the field as fast as possible.

“By lap five I found myself sitting up in seventh position, but the track was so rough and rutty and at about the half-way point I tightened up and didn’t ride like myself.”

Although proud of his career-best achievement, the rider out of Young in New South Wales believes he has more to give and will now focus on entering the upcoming Salt Lake City round with added momentum and form.

“I’m extremely happy to come away with my career-best seventh position, but at the same time I know I still didn’t ride like myself the whole race,” he explained. “It’s all part of learning but I’m hoping over the next two weeks I can work a little more on my speed and carry this momentum into Salt Lake City.”

Mellross currently sits 14th overall in the West Coast 250SX standings after mechanical issues and missing multiple rounds due to injury saw him slip down the rankings.