Despite winning the first race of the Spanish GP on Saturday, Toni Bou’s performance was a question mark due to an injury to his hamstring. Unknown perhaps for some, even in part for himself. All the others, those who know his mental and physical strength, those of us who have seen him recover and win after a serious accident -Indoor de Granada- or simply because of his the definition of values and virtues that are associated with an eleven-time World Champion, we knew that Bou would give his best on the second day as well.
The unknowns were completely cleared up after the first pass through the 15 zones signing a record of only 8 points, 6 less than his closest pursuer, Jeroni Fajardo; Raga accumulated two more than the latter in his first set, followed by Cabestany and an admirable Fujinami, conditioned by a finger injury sustained during the previous day, who also got into the fight for the podium.
Behind them, a second race group headed by James Dabill with 25 points, Jack Challoner, Dani Oliveras, Alexz Wigg and Pere Borrellas.
During the second lap, the harshness of the Trial was accentuated due to the intense heat, the dust of the areas and the compromised traction of the Cordovan terrain. Despite this, Bou went further and signed an impressive second half of the season with only two points. What would he have been capable of if he was physically at 100%?
For the reigning World Champion, the day was a great one, as his closest rival, Albert Cabestany, had one of the worst laps in memory due to problems in the gearbox of his Sherco. Cabestany worsened his first quarter by 34 points and scored ten fiascos in fifteen zones. As a result, Albert sank to seventh place; and it could have been worse, as Oliveras finished just three points behind him.
The one who did improve significantly in his first set was Raga. With only five points, Adam managed to close the gap with his true goal and reference on this second day of competition, Jeroni Fajardo, finishing in this order with only one point difference. Fourth, in no man’s land, completed a tough weekend for Takahisa Fujinami. Behind, Dabill, a sensational Challoner, the aforementioned Cabestany, Oliveras and Pere Borrellas.
In the provisional standings , Toni Bou remains the solid leader, who is already ahead of his closest pursuer, Jeroni Fajardo, by 41 points. Raga is third with two more than Fajardo and level on points with Cabestany, who was second yesterday. Maximum emotion, therefore, in the fight for the runner-up spot between these three great riders.
It should be noted that Adam Raga received a commemorative plaque in Cordoba for his 200th participation in a Trial GP. That 200th GP was in Australia; now Adam is on the 204th. Congratulations!
JUNIOR
Fantastic weekend for our riders also in the Junior category, with identical protagonists on both days. Alexandre Ferrer has obtained another victory and, like Bou, counts all his participations, except one, as victories. Saving the victor, if we had to talk about a prominent protagonist throughout this weekend, we would refer to Jorge Casales. The Galician rider, only 16 years old, in his third and fourth participation in the Junior World Championship, he has achieved the impressive feat of two podiums. The reading of these results, if we also take into account that Jorge was placed as the momentary leader of the race in zone three of the second lap. Given that Jorge has missed four GPs by not travelling to Japan or Australia due to a lack of budget, his mission in 2012 is to think about improving his records race by race.
The one who does think about the championship is Francesc Moret, whose consistency is allowing him to consolidate in second position and open a small lead of 9 points against his main rival, Pol Tarrés , who has not had a good weekend in Cordoba, signing two sixth positions.
YOUNG PEOPLE
In the youth category, Steven Coquelin won, followed by the Spanish rider Oriol Noguera, who after a brilliant performance was just two points away from victory. Rounding out the podium was Sverre Lundevold. Also noteworthy are the rest of the national riders, such as Nachette Fernández and Ignacio Martín.
Another relevant detail was the abandonment of Laia Sanz after a heavy fall on Saturday , also opting not to start on Sunday in anticipation of being 100% in Andorra next weekend, where the Women’s World Championship begins.
Text: Trialworld / Photos: FIM
Toni Bou: “It’s in these situations that team spirit is most appreciated. I am grateful for the support of all its members, from the first to the last. The pain has not prevented me from riding a motorcycle in this race, in which it was essential to work well on it and avoid mistakes, although I am sure that the muscle injury has been increasing and, against my will, I will have to rest for a few days. This win has been very important for the Championship. In this sense, the weekend has been perfect.”
Adam Raga: “I’m satisfied with how things went on the second day. Obviously I would have preferred to win, but we took a step forward and fought at a high level again. I’ll stick with our reaction in the second lap, where we scored only 5 points, while Bou had initially scored 7. Be that as it may, it was a great race and we have to be positive ahead of the Andorra event, where I want to fight again to win and I hope to do it again.”
Takahisa Fujinami: “I’ve had a tough day, because of the pain and the lack of touch. On the first lap I gave it my all, but then I was forced to moderate myself. In the conditions I’m in, finishing fourth was unthinkable and obviously I’m very satisfied with this result, which for me today has as much value as a victory.”
James Dabill: “I am very happy with the result this weekend, although it would have been nice to beat Fujinami. I am getting closer to him, and he is definitely the rider I am looking to get in front of; I think I was 4 marks off him on Saturday and six marks today, so I am definitely closing the gap””It was a challenging event this weekend, the heat was unusually high and very difficult both physically and mentally. That said, I rode well and the atmosphere in the Beta camp at the moment is brilliant. A massive congratulations to Jeroni who finished third today, a very good result!”
Jack Challoner: “This weekend has been tough and the high temperatures have been exhausting. We have had a good weekend though, Cabestany’s gearbox issue today definitely helped with the end position, but that’s all part of the competition””I have felt really good on the bike today, I have tried a slightly different set up which definitely works. I am happy with the position in the championship, but I really will be trying hard to get in front of Dabill in the next few rounds”
Jorge Casales: “Today was an even harder day than yesterday, both because of the heat and because the areas were more broken and, consequently, difficult. Ferrer, Moret and I started at the same time, so we knew the times we were running and the pressure was maximum from start to finish. I made a mistake in zone nine, shooting an arrow, which together with a subsequent mistake prevented me from being even higher. I want to thank again the support of all my sponsors: Ver Racing Italy, Arai Helments, Midland, Puntomotero and Arjones Motos.”
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