IN
THE
WIND
P54
2019 TrialGP Championship Kicks Off In Italy
T
oni Bou (Repsol Honda)
kicked off the defense of his
TrialGP title by demolishing the
opposition at round one of the
FIM Trial World Championship at
TrialGP Italy in the foothills of the
Alps at Arco di Trento's Metzler
Offroad Park, May 26.
Starting fifth following the
previous night's super-tough
qualification session, the sublime
Spaniard, who's aiming for his
13th consecutive title this season,
led from the front and underlined
his status as the greatest rider in
the history of the sport with his
final total of 33 marks lost almost
half that of second-placed Jeroni
Fajardo (Gas Gas).
The rain that had made Sat-
urday's Qualification session so
tough kept falling into the morn-
ing and, although the sections
eventually began to dry out, grip
was hard to find on the steep and
imposing rock-strewn banks, as
the mud was dragged onto the
hazards.
Leading at the halfway stage
on a score of 25 compared to
second-placed Jaime Busto
(Vertigo), who had picked up 40
penalty points, Bou then moved
up a gear on lap two to part with
just a further four marks to claim
a devastating victory despite four
time penalties—inevitable given
the conditions—increasing his
total to 33.
"Today is a nice start to the
season, and I'm very happy
because it's very difficult after 12
years to stay on top," says Toni.
"My second lap was fantastic to
only drop four points, so I'm very
happy. I enjoyed myself today,
and it's a perfect start to the
season."
A clear second after the open-
ing lap, Busto couldn't maintain
his form and dropped back to
fifth as Fajardo and Adam Raga
(TRRS) showed their undoubted
class to recover for second and
third. Fajardo's final score of 61
included five time penalties, and
Raga's total of 66 had two extra
marks due to delays.
France's Benoit Bincaz (Beta)
was rewarded with a career-best
fourth overall. Japanese fan
favorite Takahisa Fujinami (Repsol
Honda) ended the day in sixth
ahead of Miquel Gelabert (Sher-
co), Franz Kadlec (TRRS), James
Dabill (Beta) and Oriol Noguera
(Jotagas). CN
TRIALGP
1. Toni Bou (Hon)
2. Jeroni Fajardo (GG)
3. Adam Raga (TRRS)
4. Benoit Bincaz (Bet)
5. Jaime Busto (Ver)
6. Takahisa Fujinami (Hon)
7. Miquel Gelabert (She)
8. Franz Kadlec (TRRS)
9. James Dabill (Bet)
10. Oriol Noguera (Jot)
Toni Bou won the opening round
of the 2019 FIM Trial World
Championship with a win at the
TrialGP Italy. PHOTO: HONDA HRC
