Report: British Trial GP
By John Dickinson on 25th Jun 15
TONI Bou extended his unbeaten winning run in the 2015 FIM Trial World Championship to eight, thanks to victory on both days of the Wulfsport Oset British Trial GP staged at Nord Vue, Penrith, Cumbria.
Toni overcame the expected attack from series challenger Adam Raga on Saturday, just doing enough to hold off his fellow Catalan.
But then the Repsol Montesa man simply ran away with the win on Sunday with a stunning ride that saw Raga 30 marks off the eight-time World Champ's pace.
Adam was himself a further 23 ahead of third-placed Jeroni Fajardo.
James Dabill was unable to better sixth and seventh places over the weekend on the Vertigo.
Dibs was competitive on the opening day and in the mix with the leaders but never really recovered from a nightmare start to Sunday when he fived the first four sections from which it was always going to be a long way back.
The exciting news for British fans this season has been the emergence of talent in the World Cup class where Iwan Roberts, Jack Price and Billy Bolt have all been on the podium.
Roberts shocked everyone with a first and second place in Sweden the previous weekend and then proved this was no flash in the pan by stepping up and taking a superb brace of wins at Nord Vue.
Billy nailed second on Sunday for a one-two while Jack's two fourth places kept him right in the Championship chase.
The old stone quarry course at Nord Vue had been given a makeover by section plotter Graham Jarvis (who took time off to finish joint winner at Erzberg the previous week).
There were a dozen inventive hazards, to be lapped three times, including two out on Blaze Fell, to add some interest to the lap, and a newly constructed waterfall section that proved to be the toughest of the trial.
Despite a weather forecast that initially promised heavy rain the day started out fine and the opening lap was completed in dry, dusty conditions that made the Spanish riders feel very much at home.
Bou's first lap cost him just five marks including a superb two on the third section, climbs and drops over large boulders on the quarry face, where Dabill was the only other rider to see the Ends cards with a three-mark effort. The waterfall comprised a man-made pond at the base of a steep climb which was topped-off by some large placed boulders that presented a vertical face.
Following a succession of fives on the climb tall Frenchman Alexandre Ferrer finally forced his Sherco over for a three while Dabill and Cabestany were best on the opening lap with two apiece.
Raga fived and Bou had to fight hard for three.
The final two sections were again steep climbs and drops, the latter with a spectacular exit, in the trees right in front of the start/ finish.
Adam Raga and new Repsol-Montesa teamster Jaime Busto were faultless on the final section with three cleans apiece. Bou spoilt his clean sheet with a shock five on his final lap.
But after that opening circuit it looked like it was all over bar the shouting with Bou having lost just five marks, a two on the third section and that two on the waterfall.
Raga was next on 16 with Cabes 19 and the rest struggling.
But then came a shower of light rain, just as the contenders were starting their second lap and it caused chaos as it made the rockery super slippery.
Dibsta pressed on, hoping he might get an advantage but it proved to be the wrong choice and he wisely dropped back again.
Even Bou struggled as he dropped 21 for the lap as Raga proved to have the technique and he gained three marks back on his arch rival with the best lap score of 18, as the remainder of the field lost even more ground in the testing conditions.
But the rain stopped towards the end of the lap and the warm conditions – plus some hard work by riders and minders rubbing dry sand onto the slippery rocks – helped bring scores down on the final circuit.
And despite that final-section five, Bou did just enough to bag the 20 Championship points, leaving Adam to ponder on what might have been, the Gas Gas pilot having had several interesting conversations with observers over what he saw as harsh decisions.
Cabestany filled the final spot on the podium, holding off a late charge from Jeroni Fajardo who had equalled Bou's final lap of just 15 marks.
Busto, Dabill and Takahisa Fujinami finished line astern, just two marks separating fifth from seventh place.
An early morning shower on Sunday left the sections very slippery again and four of the hazards had been modified slightly but Bou had the measure of the conditions by now.
His lap scores of 8-2-0, for a total of just 10 as the course dried out, was simply riding at a totally different level to his challengers.
Raga's laps of 24-10-6 more accurately reflected the level of difficulty and Adam in turn was a mighty 23 ahead of Fajardo, who made a late charge to steal the final podium slot from Cabestany.
Teenager Busto took fifth, looking more and more like the perfect replacement for Fujigas at Repsol Montesa when he eventually steps down, while Fuji just got the better of Dabill after both made terrible starts, Fuji dropping 47 to James's 50 on their opening lap.
Fuji's final circuit for just 12 marks proved to be the difference but the Japanese rider was left wondering why it took him all weekend to crack the Nord Vue code.
Jack Sheppard finished 12th and last but was struggling with a battered body following a mighty crash at the 10th section on the opening day that left the Jgas rider with bruised ribs and a very sore thigh that had lost most of its strength.
Jack battled on though and only just failed to pip Pol Tarres after a gutsy performance.
Bou now holds a commanding 34-point Championship lead over Raga, with the series not yet at its half-way point and a ninth straight title looks a certainty for the Barcelona boy.
WORLD TRIALS CHAMPIONSHIP
Rd 4 – Nord Vue, nr Penrith, BRITAIN
DAY ONE
1 Toni Bou (E - Montesa) 5 + 21 + 15 + - = 41
2 Adam Raga (E - Gas Gas) 16 + 18 + 16 + - = 50
3 Albert Cabestany (E - Sherco) 19 + 34 + 25 + - = 78
4 Jeroni Fajardo (E - Beta) 36 + 36 + 15 + 1 = 88
5 Jaime Busto (E - Montesa) 33 + 37 + 32 + - = 102
6 James DABILL (GB - Vertigo) 28 + 39 + 36 + - = 103
7 Takahisa Fujinami (J - Montesa) 39 + 30 + 35 + - = 104
8 Alexandre Ferrer (F - Sherco) 32 + 42 + 40 + 1 = 115
9 Eddie Karlsson (S - Montesa) 43 + 40 + 54 + - = 137
10 Franz Kadlec (D - Beta) 45 + 47 + 47 + 4 = 143
11 Pol Tarres (E - Sherco) 51 + 48 + 45 + - = 144
12 Jack SHEPPARD (GB - Jotagas) 54 + 44 + 49 + - = 147
DAY TWO
1 Toni Bou (E - Montesa) 8 + 2 + 0 = 10
2 Adam Raga (E - Gas Gas) 24 + 10 + 6 = 40
3 Jeroni Fajardo (E - Beta) 34 + 17 + 12 = 63
4 Albert Cabestany (E - Sherco) 32 + 23 + 16 = 71
5 Jaime Busto (E - Montesa) 44 + 24 + 13 = 81
6 Takahisa Fujinami (J - Montesa) 45 + 27 + 12 = 84
7 James DABILL (GB - Vertigo) 50 + 22 + 22 = 94
8 Alexandre Ferrer (F - Sherco) 42 + 27 + 46 = 115
9 Eddie Karlsson (S - Montesa) 53 + 48 + 35 = 136
10 Franz Kadlec (D - Beta) 54 + 46 + 40 = 140
11 Pol Tarres (E - Sherco) 53 + 49 + 44 = 146
12 Jack SHEPPARD (GB - Jotagas) 58 + 47 + 44 = 149
SERIES STANDINGS after 4 rounds: 1 Bou 160 points, 2 Raga 126, 3 Fajardo 114, 4 Cabestany 101, 5 Fujinami 98, 6 Busto 82, 7 DABILL 68, 8 Ferrer 56, 9 Kadlec 43, 10 Karlsson 40, 11 SHEPPARD 31, 12 Tarres 20, 13 Ogawa 16, 14 Kuroyama 14, 15 Pedersen 14, 16 Sorensen 13, 17 Casales 9, 18 Nozaki 8, 19 Ogawa 7, 20 BROWN 5,...
NEXT ROUND: June 27/28 – Andon, FRANCE.
FIM Trials World Cup
Rd 4 – Nord Vue, nr Penrith, BRITAIN
DAY ONE
1 Iwan ROBERTS (GB - Beta) (27x0) 15 + 9 + 2 = 26
2 Arnau Farre (E - Gas Gas) (24x0) 12 + 9 + 5 = 26
3 Carles De Caudemberg Quentin (F - Beta) 5 + 7 + 15 = 27
4 Jack PRICE (GB - Gas Gas) 4 + 8 + 16 = 28
5 Jack SPENCER (GB - Beta) 3 + 6 + 20 = 29
6 Billy BOLT (GB - Scorpa) 14 + 10 + 6 = 30
7 Oriol Noguera (E - Honda) (24x0) 8 + 13 + 12 = 33
8 Benoit Bincaz (F - Scorpa) (22x0) 9 + 12 + 12 = 33
9 Miquel Gelabert (E - Sherco) 9 + 11 + 16 = 36
10 Filippo Locca (I - Beta) 17 + 7 + 27 = 51
11 Dan PEACE (GB - Gas Gas) 15 + 23 + 17 = 55
12 Declan BULLOCK (GB - Beta) 26 + 13 + 24 = 63
13 Gael Chatagno (F - Sherco) (17x0) 13 + 24 + 27 = 64
14 Luke WALKER (GB - Sherco) (12x0) 20 + 14 + 30 = 64
15 Marc Riba (E - Beta) 22 + 25 + 31 = 78
DAY TWO
1 Iwan ROBERTS (GB - Beta) 5 + 3 + 7 = 15
2 Billy BOLT (GB - Scorpa) 11 + 4 + 5 = 20
3 Arnau Farre (E - Gas Gas) 6 + 12 + 6 = 24
4 Jack PRICE (GB - Gas Gas) 11 + 9 + 7 = 27
5 Miquel Gelabert (E - Sherco) 7 + 13 + 11 = 31
6 Carles De Caudemberg Quentin (F - Beta) 15 + 9 + 13 = 37
7 Benoit Bincaz (F - Scorpa) 14 + 13 + 11 = 38
8 Oriol Noguera (E - Honda) 18 + 23 + 16 = 57
9 Gael Chatagno (F - Sherco) (16x0) 24 + 16 + 21 = 61
10 Declan BULLOCK (GB - Beta) (13x0) 16 + 25 + 20 = 61
11 Jack SPENCER (GB - Beta) 19 + 26 + 21 = 66
12 Dan PEACE (GB - Gas Gas) 19 + 27 + 22 = 68
13 Teo Colairo (F - Scorpa) 31 + 22 + 16 = 69
14 Filippo Locca (I - Beta) 35 + 28 + 16 = 79
15 Marc Riba (E - Beta) 29 + 24 + 31 = 84
SERIES STANDINGS after 4 rounds: 1 De Caudemberg Quentin 106 points, 2 Gelabert 102, 3 PRICE 100, 4 ROBERTS 98, 5 Farre 97, 6 Bincaz 92, 7 Noguera 92, 8 BOLT 89, 9 PEACE 55, 10 Chatagno 35, 11 Locca 34, 12 Riba 27, 13 BULLOCK 22, 14 Petrella 17, 15 SPENCER 16, 16 Kroustek 15, 17 Andersen 11, 18 Colairo 10, 19 Norum 8, 20 Matejicek 6, 21 Myohanen 6, 22 Roper 5, 23 Okamura 3, 24 WALKER 2.
FIM 125cc TRIALS CUP
DAY ONE
1 Marco Fioletti (I - Beta) 13 + 11 + 7 = 31
2 Maxime Varin (F - Scorpa) 30 + 16 + 22 = 68
3 Sam JOHNSON (GB - Beta) 24 + 33 + 34 = 91
4 Stuart MACK (GB - Beta) 45 + 40 + 38 = 123
5 Harry SHERRIFFS (GB - Scorpa) 49 + 45 + 53 = 147
DAY TWO
1 Marco Fioletti (I - Beta) 11 + 17 + 10 = 38
2 Maxime Varin (F - Scorpa) 25 + 22 + 22 = 69
3 Sam JOHNSON (GB - Beta) 31 + 25 + 19 = 75
4 Stuart MACK (GB - Beta) 42 + 45 + 46 = 133
5 Harry SHERRIFFS (GB - Scorpa) 48 + 45 + 45 = 138
SERIES STANDINGS after 4 (of 9) rounds: 1 Fioletti 157 points, 2 Varin 124, 3 Robrahn 64, 4 Giro 39, 5 Haga 35, 6 JOHNSON 30, 7 Kuramochi 26, 8 MACK 26, 9 Onuma 25, 10 Oki 24, 11 Okamura 23, 12 De La Mata 22, 13 SHERRIFFS 22, 14 Lindqvist 19, 15 Vold Gunvaldsen 19, 16 Vierimaa 11, 17 Wengler 10.
NEXT ROUND: June 27/28 – Andon, FRANCE.
WORLD TRIALS CHAMPIONSHIP
Rd 4 – Nord Vue, nr Penrith, BRITAIN
DAY ONE
1 Toni Bou (E - Montesa) 5 + 21 + 15 + - = 41
2 Adam Raga (E - Gas Gas) 16 + 18 + 16 + - = 50
3 Albert Cabestany (E - Sherco) 19 + 34 + 25 + - = 78
4 Jeroni Fajardo (E - Beta) 36 + 36 + 15 + 1 = 88
5 Jaime Busto (E - Montesa) 33 + 37 + 32 + - = 102
6 James DABILL (GB - Vertigo) 28 + 39 + 36 + - = 103
7 Takahisa Fujinami (J - Montesa) 39 + 30 + 35 + - = 104
8 Alexandre Ferrer (F - Sherco) 32 + 42 + 40 + 1 = 115
9 Eddie Karlsson (S - Montesa) 43 + 40 + 54 + - = 137
10 Franz Kadlec (D - Beta) 45 + 47 + 47 + 4 = 143
11 Pol Tarres (E - Sherco) 51 + 48 + 45 + - = 144
12 Jack SHEPPARD (GB - Jotagas) 54 + 44 + 49 + - = 147
DAY TWO
1 Toni Bou (E - Montesa) 8 + 2 + 0 = 10
2 Adam Raga (E - Gas Gas) 24 + 10 + 6 = 40
3 Jeroni Fajardo (E - Beta) 34 + 17 + 12 = 63
4 Albert Cabestany (E - Sherco) 32 + 23 + 16 = 71
5 Jaime Busto (E - Montesa) 44 + 24 + 13 = 81
6 Takahisa Fujinami (J - Montesa) 45 + 27 + 12 = 84
7 James DABILL (GB - Vertigo) 50 + 22 + 22 = 94
8 Alexandre Ferrer (F - Sherco) 42 + 27 + 46 = 115
9 Eddie Karlsson (S - Montesa) 53 + 48 + 35 = 136
10 Franz Kadlec (D - Beta) 54 + 46 + 40 = 140
11 Pol Tarres (E - Sherco) 53 + 49 + 44 = 146
12 Jack SHEPPARD (GB - Jotagas) 58 + 47 + 44 = 149
SERIES STANDINGS after 4 rounds: 1 Bou 160 points, 2 Raga 126, 3 Fajardo 114, 4 Cabestany 101, 5 Fujinami 98, 6 Busto 82, 7 DABILL 68, 8 Ferrer 56, 9 Kadlec 43, 10 Karlsson 40, 11 SHEPPARD 31, 12 Tarres 20, 13 Ogawa 16, 14 Kuroyama 14, 15 Pedersen 14, 16 Sorensen 13, 17 Casales 9, 18 Nozaki 8, 19 Ogawa 7, 20 BROWN 5,...
NEXT ROUND: June 27/28 – Andon, FRANCE.
