Brits Junior 1-2-3
By TMX Archives on 18th Jul 07
ADAM Raga took a small chip out of Toni Bou's World Championship lead on Sunday by holding his nerve in a low-scoring event in the Czech Republic.
The venue is at a famous old International MX track at Kramolin and the wooded slopes contained three main groups of sections, most being variations on piles of rocks and boulders. There were some slopes and climbs but nothing close to those found in Poland the previous week.
Both Raga and Bou dropped a pair of single marks on their opening circuit of the 15 sections with both mastering the huge boulder of section six that took their rivals for plenty. Both then cleaned the opening six sections on the second lap, including the fierce boulder, before Bou got slightly off-line on the seventh and the rear-wheel snapped sideways into a maximum. It was all he dropped but it dropped the Repsol-Montesa mounted Championship leader to second as Gas Gas pilot Raga knocked-off an impressive clean lap.
Sherco's Albert Cabestany continued his resurgence and a second podium in two weeks sees Caba edge ahead of Dougie Lampkin for fourth in the series. Doug's seventh place was a huge disappointment and the seven times champ didn't really have an answer. Three second lap fives on the trot did most of the damage.
But while Dougie was suffering, Future Montesa's James Dabill nipped into sixth for the third time this season, although it was the first time he had beaten Dougie. A delighted James said, ''I am obviously pleased to beat Doug for the first time ever but I don't expect he feels the same.''
Unfortunately, Dibs' series rival Jeroni Fajardo finished fifth and edged a further point ahead in the Cham-
pionship chase. He now has a three-mark advantage over James - something the Brit will be looking to put right at Hawkstone!
In the Junior Cup, there was a historic British 1-2-3 with Alexz Wigg, Michael Brown and Sam Haslam.
In a low-scoring event with no killer-climbs, Wiggy was fantastic on the little 125 Gasser, losing just two marks each lap in single dabs. Runaway series leader Brown had just one penalty, a hotly disputed five, that proved to be crucial at the end. He allegedly touched a marker at the seventh section on his first lap and the observer was adamant it was a five. End of story.
For Haslam, the result was his best of the year and comes at exactly the right time with the British round at Hawkstone next on the list.
WORLD TRIALS CHAMPIONSHIP
Rd 7 - Kramolin, CZECH REPUBLIC
1 Adam Raga (E - Raga Gas Gas) 2 + 0 = 2
2 Toni Bou (E - Repsol Montesa HRC) 2 + 5 = 7
3 Albert Cabestany (E - Tarragona Sherco) 5 + 3 = 8
4 Takahisa Fujinami (J - Repsol Montesa HRC) 4 + 11 = 15
5 Jeroni Fajardo (E - Beta) 7 + 10 = 17
6 James DABILL (GB - Future Montesa 4RT) 15 + 10 = 25
SERIES STANDINGS: 1 Bou 174 points, 2 Raga 157, 3 Fujinami 129, 4 Cabestany 109, 5 LAMPKIN 108, 6 Fajardo 85, 7 DABILL 82.
WORLD JUNIOR TRIALS CHAMPIONSHIP
1 Alexz WIGG (GB - JST Gas Gas) 2 + 2 = 4
2 Michael BROWN (GB - TTT Beta) 5 + 0 = 5
3 Sam HASLAM (GB - Birkett Scorpa) 4 + 5 = 9
4 Andrea Vaccaretti (I - Future Montesa 4RT) 5 + 6 = 11
5 Matteo Grattarola (I - Sherco) 12 + 1 = 13
6 Guillaume Laniel (F - Camozzi Gas Gas) 11 + 6 = 17
SERIES STANDINGS: 1 BROWN 169 points, 2 WIGG 138, 3 Gontard 112, 4 Grattarola 105, 5 Gubian 94, 6 HASLAM 77, 7 SAMPSON 72.
FIM YOUTH TRIALS CHAMPS
1 Patrick Smage (US - Sherco) 0 + 0 = 0
2 Ross DANBY (GB - JST Gas Gas) 1 + 0 = 1
3 David Millan (E - Sherco) 1 + 1 = 2
4 Alfredo Gomez (E - Gas Gas) 0 + 2 = 2
5 Alexis Cervantes (F - Sherco France) 0 + 3 = 3
6 Laurent Morell (F - Beta France) 5 + 0 = 5
SERIES STANDINGS: 1 Gomez 170 points, 2 DANBY 141, 3 Cervantes 129, 4 Smage 80, 5 Millan 72, 6 Alfonso 63, 7 Morell 53
NEXT ROUND: July 29 - Hawkstone Park, GREAT BRITAIN.
For full report, results and pictures see T+MX NEWS, Friday, July 20, 2007