21/01/12 - Bou makes Geneva a one rider show
The home city of the FIM welcomed round two of the 2012 FIM X-Trial World Championship,
with Toni Bou - Repsol Montesa taking his second successive victory in Geneva, Switzerland.
Once again Bou was unstoppable and ran out an easy winner, as his rivals scrapped it out for
the remaining podium places.
Albert Cabestany - Sherco eventually took the runners-up spot
after defeating Takahisa Fujinami - Repsol Montesa in a last section showdown. Adam Raga -
Gas Gas was a disappointing fourth on this occasion after having headed Bou in qualification.
During the pre-event press conference Raga explained how important it was to put Bou under
pressure and that is exactly what the Gas Gas teamster did as he went clean during
qualification to beat the series leader by a single mark. Toni had looked in devastating form
once again until a rare mistake in the water and rock section spoilt his otherwise faultless
tour. Jeroni Fajardo - Beta was the next best on a total of five marks as he failed the slabs,
where only Raga, Bou and Fujinami went clean.
Cabestany beat his Japanese rival in the tie-break to qualify in fourth spot, as both of the
more experienced riders kept the younger Loris Gubian - Gas Gas at bay, with the French
protagonist finishing in sixth to claim the last place in the semi-final. Michael Brown - Gas Gas
made his evening slightly better as he defeated Jack Challoner - Beta in their tie break
decider to take the points for seventh place. Alfredo Gomez - Montesa and Benoit Dagnicourt -
Beta rounded out the qualifying results in ninth and tenth position respectively.
For the second week in a row French section maestro Bernard Estripeau was again responsible
for creating a course to test this elite gathering of Trial riders and that proved the case in the
very first hazard of the semi-final. Toni once again exercised his superiority as he passed
through the almost impossible concrete slabs for a dab, whilst the rest of the field were
stopped in their tracks. After a relatively easy passage through the log section, all the
protagonists then failed as they attempted the pallet steps in the reverse direction. Fajardo
and Gubian were cruelly eliminated at this point as only two marks separated all but Bou.
The Toni Bou show immediately resumed in the final, as he became the only rider to conquer
the man-made mountain and in doing so stretched his advantage by another five marks. His
winning margin was to grow to thirteen marks come the finish. Raga slipped off the Tag Heuer
section late on to rule himself out of a rostrum place and to drop to third in the general
standings. Cabestany and Fujinami, the two oldest riders on the tour, battled mark for mark
with the Spanish veteran eventually snatching second spot by virtue of his better qualification
placing. Cabestany now moves into second position in the series. Takahisa was still pleased to join his Repsol team-mate Bou on the podium after a long absence for the thirty-two-year-old.
The top three riders will have no time to really enjoy their champagne as the 2012 FIM X-Trial
World Championship moves swiftly on to Marseille, France for round three that will be held
over next Friday and Saturday.
news and photos by Jake Miller (FIM Press)
---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Bou fa spettacolo a Ginevra
Nel secondo appuntamento del mondiale X-Trial 2012 FIM X-Trial World Championship, disputato a Ginevra, Svizzera, sede della FIM,
Toni Bou - Repsol Montesa centra la seconda vittoria consecutiva.
Ancora una volta Bou e' stato inprendibile, lasciando ai suoi avversari solo spazio per le altre posizioni del podio.
Albert Cabestany - Sherco si e' guadagnato la piazza d'onore ai danni di
Takahisa Fujinami - Repsol Montesa all'ultima zona. Adam Raga -
Gas Gas, e' giunto solo quarto alla fine, dopo essere stao davanti a Bou nelle qualilicazioni.
Cabestany ora passa al secondo posto nella classifica di campionato. Per il trentaduenne Fuji la soddisfazione di tornare sul podio di un mondiale indoor, dopo una lunga astinemza.
Prossimo appuntamento venerdi' 27 e sabato 29 a Marsiglia.
