Bou Gets X-Trial Started
A
new season of the Indoor
Trial World Championship
got underway at the Palau Sant
Jordi in Barcelona on February
3. It brought together many fans,
who witnessed an exciting first
round of X-Trial action of 2024.
Repsol Honda's Toni Bou added
the latest win to his record.
Bou began a new season in
the same position as he left off,
winning the first event of the
year. On his first lap, he made
just one mistake, while on the
second lap, the zones became
more difficult for everyone. Bou
was able to maintain the top
spot, with just a single error, and
qualified for the final.
In the decisive round, even
though the current World Cham
-
pion started with a fiasco and
handed first place to Jaime
Busto, he managed to claw his
way back and take victory.
"Without a doubt, starting the
season here is special because
it is our home race," Bou said. "I
don't know if it was the best edi
-
tion of the Barcelona round, but it
was very close. The level was ris-
ing as the laps progressed, but we
managed to handle it well, espe-
cially in the final. We are still living
a dream, so it's time to enjoy it."
Taking an early lead on the first
of six sections in the final, Busto,
on the factory-backed GasGas,
looked in great form. Unfortu
-
nately for him and his team, with
the difficulty increasing as the fi-
nal progressed, maximum marks
on sections two, three, and four
ultimately cost the 26-year-old
the chance of victory.
With the pressure building,
Jaime delivered a strong perfor
-
mance over the final set of obsta-
cles, losing only one mark. This
effort clinched his second-place
finish and marked a positive be-
ginning to his 2024 season.
"I'm really happy with how ev-
erything went today," Busto said.
"I missed out on the win, but I
came second, which is my best
result in Barcelona for the past
few years. The bike was work
-
ing well today, and I felt good
on most of the obstacles; it was
just those few mistakes in the
final that cost me."
Third on the night went to Bou's
teammate Gabriel Marcelli, who
was one point behind Busto.
CN
FINAL
1. Toni Bou (Mon)
2. Jaime Busto (GG)
3. Gabriel Marcelli (Mon)
4. Matteo Grattarola (Bet)
5. Adam Raga (She)
WIND
IN THE
P44
Toni Bou got his
2024 FIM X-Trial
season off to a
good start with the
victory in Spain.
