Jaime Busto wins X-Trial season opener
By Team TMX on 2nd Jan 25
As most of the world put its feet up for Christmas, the trials elite were also trying to keep their soles aloft as they battled it out in the first round of the 2025 X-Trial World Championship at Madrid’s Palacio de Vistalegre. A new event format along with some devilishly difficult obstacles tested the riders to the max with GASGAS Factory Racing’s Jaime Busto coping best to take an early lead in the series standings.
Defending champion Toni Bou topped the opening round of qualifying by being the only rider to stay within the six-minute time allowance to complete the six sections. Bou dropped a dab in four sections to keep himself moving along although the best performance came from Busto who needed a single prod to get through Section Three but otherwise kept his feet on the pegs before losing five additional marks after running out of time in the sixth hazard. Sherco’s Adam Raga placed third in Q1 and booked his place in the Final along with the top two finishers.
The second qualifying lap now serves as an LCQ with the remaining five riders battling for a place in the final. Sherco’s Benoit Bincaz topped Q2 to move to the four-man final, knocking out Gabriel Marcelli, Sondre Haga, Jack Peace and Miquel Gelabert.
Super Pole now sets the running order for the Final with three sections ridden against the clock with 10-second time penalties added for each dab – kinda like Kickstart but without the catchy theme tune. Bincaz dropped two twos and a single to add 50 seconds to his time while Raga needed just one dab in the first section which meant an extra 10 for him. Both Busto and Bou stayed clean with the Repsol Honda rider going 20 seconds quicker to take victory and carry the advantage of riding last in the Final.
The opening hazard saw fives from the first three riders while Bou made it to the End Cards with his feet up. However, a misinterpretation of how the section should be ridden meant that Bou was also given maximum marks which seemed to put the 36-time world champion off his game for the remainder of the evening.
Busto moved clear of the pack in Section Two – a clean there giving the GASGAS rider a healthy advantage. All four fived Section Three while Bou was the only rider to drop a dab in Section Four which meant he slipped to fourth place with one section remaining while Busto was assured of the win.
A herculean effort through the final section saw Bou escape the End Cards for a three which moved him back ahead of Raga and Bincaz - who fived the section along with Busto – in the final rankings.
But it was Busto who was the winner on the night. “I'm super happy to start the season with a win,” enthused Jaime. “It was a bit of a strange final, but oh well. I was the only rider to get through one of the sections with no mistakes, which gave me a lot of confidence, so I'm really happy and looking forward to round two in France!”
Bou, meanwhile, found it difficult to hide his disappointment. “It was a strange day,” he said. “I won the first lap and Super Pole, as well as getting a zero in the first section of the final, but they ended up giving me a five. They had told us that we could skip the final part, but it seems that there was a misunderstanding and that was not the case. It's a shame because if we had gotten a zero there, we would have had a much greater chance of winning, but the reality is that after that first section I lost my nerve a bit and things didn't go well."
