Toni Bou ‰ÛÒ Repsol Montesa HRC took no mercy on his nearest championship rivals, with a crushing performance at the opening Spanish Grand Prix.
Whilst some predicted that Bou on his factory Cota 4RT might be hampered by the new starting order, where the best riders are now forced to ride ahead of their challengers, Toni typically turned this theory upside down as he raced to an early and dominant lead.
The reigning champion led his team mate Takahisa Fujinami ‰ÛÒ Repsol Montesa HRC by fifteen marks at the halfway point, as the Japanese rider slotted into second spot at this stage before falling to fourth come the finish. Adam Raga ‰ÛÒ Gas Gas and Jeroni Fajardo ‰ÛÒ Beta eventually completed the podium respectively after an ultra tough start to the 2010 SPEA FIM Trial World Championship.
Tucked away in the North West corner of Spain, the small seaside resort of Baiona had the honour of opening the 2010 series, which not only saw the introduction of the new starting system, but also saw the time allowed in each section reduced from ninety seconds down to just a minute. All fifteen sections were located around a small rocky peninsula close to the town itself. Heavy rain in the days just prior to the trial meant conditions on the boulders, rock faces and muddy climbs were slippery from the start and gradually got worse as the damp soil was dragged onto the harder surfaces.
Four stroke mounted Bou made the most of his early starting position with cleans in the first two sections, before losing his first mark, a single dab in the tricky third hazard. Even at this initial stage Toni was beginning to move clear of the field, with every other rider with
the exception of Fujinami and Fajardo having all
collected at least one maximum five mark loss
over the same run of sections. Toni‰Ûªs first
failure did not come until the tenth section and
this came in a hazard where all his main rivals
reached the ends card, Albert Cabestany ‰ÛÒ Sherco
being the best here with a one mark ride. Another
quick five in section eleven, which was not
completed by any rider on both laps, saw Bou‰Ûªs
score rise to fourteen marks, which became
fifteen as he played it safe in the final section of the lap.
Only an absolute disaster on the second lap was
going to prevent Bou from taking his first win of
the 2010 outdoor campaign, and whilst Toni
struggled to repeat the same form on his second
visit to the rocky zones the victory was never in
doubt. Raga actually recorded the best closing
lap score, just one mark better than Bou to
snatch second spot from Fajardo, as Fujinami and
Cabestany endured equally uninspiring afternoon
sessions to finish fourth and fifth respectively,
with only the top five riders keeping their overall tallies in double figures.
‰ÛÏI‰Ûªm really happy with the victory
as it was the goal for today‰Ûªs trial,"Bou said.
"The season
has started really good in the Indoor World
Championship and today in the Outdoor, but it
looks really complicated, because the rules have
changed and it‰Ûªs very difficult to start at the
front.
"The organisation has been really good
because they have let us modify a little bit the
sections, otherwise they would have been
impossible to ride. The location has been
excellent, I think that the organisers should try
to find places like this one, where the public
has easy access and they can follow all the
sections.
"I hope organizers work on that for
having more events like this one. I‰Ûªm really
happy with the bike, as always, it works really
well. The team is working really good as well,
and I‰Ûªm very grateful with them because without
them I could not achieve this important victory," Bou concluded.
Next event: Round 2 at Pacos De Ferreira (Portugal) on 24-25 April
RESULTS:
Sunday
1. Toni Bou (SPA-Montesa), 48
2. Adam Raga (SPA-Gas Gas), 71
3. Jeroni Fajardo (SPA-Beta), 74
4. Takahisa Fujinami (JPN-Montesa), 76
5. Albert Cabestany (SPA-Sherco), 89
6. James Dabill (GBR-Gas Gas), 112
7. Dougie Lampkin (GBR-Beta), 116
8. Daniel Oliveras (SPA-Sherco), 129
9. Loris Gubian (FRA-Gas Gas), 136
10. Matteo Grattarola (ITA-Sherco), 142
11. Daniele Maurino (ITA-Gas Gas), 146 (0x0, 0x1, 0x2, 2x3, 28x5 - Fastest time)
12. Alexz Wigg (GBR-Beta), 146 (0x0, 0x1, 0x2, 2x3, 28x5)
13. Michael Brown (GBR-Sherco), 150
World Championship positions after 1 round;
1. Bou, 20
2. Raga, 17
3. Fajardo, 15
4. Fujinami, 13
5. Cabestany, 11
6. Dabill, 10
7. Lampkin, 9
8. Oliveras, 8
9. Gubian, 7
10. Grattarola, 6
11. Maurino, 5
12. Wigg, 4
13. Brown, 3
