X-Trial de France preview in Bordeaux

The FIM X-Trial World Championship will debut a new location for the second time this season. The previous time, it was the X-Trial in Pamplona, with victory for Toni Bou.

7 APRIL IN BORDEAUX

The Arkéa Arena in the French town of Bordeaux will be the scene of the fourth round of the season on April 7, which also marks the end of the first half of the Championship that will not resume until October 7 in Andorra la Vella.

This fourth round of the season is reached with Spanish prominence in terms of the Championship standings and with good feelings generated by the younger riders. Of the 9 podium places up for grabs so far, Toni Bou (Repsol Honda Trial Team) has added 3 (1st, 2nd and 1st), Jaime Busto (GasGas) another 3 (3rd, 1st and 3rd), Gabriel Marcelli (Repsol Honda Trial Team) has been on the podium twice and in second place and Adam Raga (TRRS) accumulates the third position of Wiener Neustadt.

TONI BOU, THE LEADER AT THE HALFWAY POINT OF THE WORLD CUP

Bou seems to be starting to distance himself from his rivals and will want to add a new city to his extraordinary trophy cabinet and more points to the 12 that separate him from Busto and the 18 he has with respect to Marcelli. Both riders know that continuity on the podium is crucial to try and put pressure on the 16-time World Champion and, at the same time, consolidate second place. Marcelli is chasing his first win in the X-Trial World Championship and Busto is chasing his second win of the season.

For his part, Raga aims to return to the podium and try to cut a part of the 10 points that separate him from Marcelli. After him, the youngsters Toby Martyn (Montesa) and Aniol Gelabert (Beta) aspire to continue improving and showing that they are already consolidated in the world elite after having starred in good performances so far this season. Something similar happens with Sondre Haga (GasGas) which has not managed to shine as brightly as its predecessors.

BINCAZ, IN FRONT OF HIS AUDIENCE

Benoit Bincaz (Sherco) arrives at this event especially motivated, as he will be the local hero in front of the French fans next Friday. The Frenchman is looking for the Top5 to forget the small incidents that have not allowed him to shine as much as he expected in the first 3 races of the season, accumulating two sixth positions as his best results. Finally, Matteo Grattarola (Vertigo) is looking to take a step forward in a first half of the Championship in which an injury and the adaptation to his new bike have taken an unexpected toll on him.

Formerly known as the Bordeaux Métropole Arena, the Arkea Arena is located in Floirac on the outskirts of Bordeaux and was opened in 2018. A Depeche Mode concert attended by 11,000 spectators was the first event hosted by this modern and multifunctional facility.