World Outdoor Trials Championship
By G2F on 25th Jun 06
Round 5 Day 1 Sunday (1 day event)Dougie Lampkin made his dream of an eighth outdoor World title become more like reality when he won the French Grand Prix held at La Chatre earlier today.
This was Lampkin's first victory of the season and took him seven points closer to Raga in the title race, as the current championship leader slumped to fourth place today.
In typical Lampkin style, Dougie absorbed the immense pressure of knowing that he had to clean the final section of the trial to take the win from his team mate Fujinami on a most cleans tie break, with the pair having tied on fifty two marks apiece.
It was certainly a trial of two very different halves for Dougie as he languished down in sixth place at the mid point, after having notched up seven maximums on his first lap, four of these being in the initial four sections.
Torrential over night rain had killed the extreme temperatures of Saturday afternoon, but this heavy down pour had also nearly killed the trial, with the wet adding severity to a course that was already seen by many of the top riders as being far too difficult even when dry.
Lampkin's loss of just seven marks up to section eleven on his second visit was one of the rides of the season and saw him hoist himself up the leader board like a script from Hollywood. Four slack marks in the sections twelve and thirteen created a dramatic climax, one where Dougie would eventually take a well deserved victory.
"It was very important for me to win this weekend if I am to have a chance of taking the title. Raga came here with a good advantage in the championship, so with him having not made the podium today, it has really helped me to start to close the gap on him.”
"It was a difficult first lap, but I felt I was riding well so I used the second lap like I was starting a new trial. I am really happy with how I rode on the second lap, it shows just how strong we can be and is a big credit to the team for all the hard work they continue to do.”
"The good news is that despite two not so good rides I have still managed to pull off a couple of reasonable results. And with two different winners and a mixture of other results for other riders I am still very much in the hunt for the championship.”
Temperature: 23 c Weather: Overcast
Results:
Rider Nat Machine Total=L1+L2+Time L1 L2 Time
1: Dougie Lampkin GB Montesa 52 41 11 0
2: Takahisa Fujinami JPN Montesa 52 38 14 0
3: Antonio Bou E Beta 54 37 17 0
4: Adam Raga E Gas Gas 57 32 25 0
5: Albert Cabestany E Sherco 62 39 23 0
6: Jeroni Fajardo E Gas Gas 66 40 26 0
7: Marc Freixa E Beta 84 49 35 0
8: James Dabill GB Beta 96 54 42 0
9: Tadeusz Blazusiak POL Scorpa 105 60 45 0
10: Shaun Morris GB Gas Gas 111 60 51 0
Championship current standings :
1: Raga 121, 2: Lampkin 110, 3: Bou 102, 4: Fujinami 94, 5: Cabestany 93
Dougie Lampkin's next event: 02/07/06 Sunday – Darfo Boario Terme -Rnd 6 World Outdoor Chp
Issued by: G2F T: + 44 (0) 161 763 6660 F: + 44 (0) 161 763 6663 E: worldpress@g2f.co.uk