Preview: World X Trial - Sheffield
By John Dickinson on 16th Dec 15
THE 2016 FIM World Indoor X-Trial Championship kicks-off on Saturday, January 9, with the legendary Sheffield Indoor and amazingly this will be the 21st consecutive year that this must-see event has been promoted.
Come on what could be better, as the Christmas holiday season comes to a close, than to enjoy a world-class motorcycle competition while sitting in a comfy seat in a warm arena, with all its facilities, while the weather does whatever it likes outside!
And if you haven't experienced the Sheffield X-Trial then it is high time that you did. It's all well and good watching these events on television but like all live action there's nothing that compares to actually being there.
Year after year the event throws up surprises as the evening builds to the finale with all the atmosphere and tension before the victor is crowned. Of course the star of the show in recent years has been the phenomenal Toni Bou who in 2016 is looking to nail an amazing tenth consecutive World X-Trial title.
Repsol Montesa's 18-times World Champion (9 indoor – 9 outdoor) will take on seven contenders including Britain's Vertigo factory star James Dabill, who this year has been awarded the sole wild card ride allowed under the rules and this could well be James' only appearance in the 2016 Championship. Bou is of course contracted for the series as are Adam Raga, Albert Cabestany, Jeroni Fajardo, Takahisa Fujinami, Alexandre Ferrer and Eddie Karlsson. Raga was by far Bou's closest challenger throughout 2015 and the former indoor and outdoor world champ will be giving the all-new TRS machine – the latest project of the legendary Jordi Tarres – its British debut. Raga spent most of 2015 on privately entered Gas Gas machines but now has a long-term TRS contract and will be more determined than ever to take the fight to Toni.
Meanwhile, new Vertigo signing Jeroni Fajardo will be making his debut on board the Combat machine at Sheffield alongside team-mate James Dabill. The pair were previously together at Beta so there is no animosity between them and the pair will hopefully urge one another to a higher level.
The 2016 series sees the return of the ever-popular Barcelona-based Japanese star Takahisa Fujinami. The Repsol Montesa ace opted out of the 2015 series as he recovered from injury and the veteran rider has been a real crowd pleaser throughout his long and distinguished trials career.
Fujigas is assured of a rapturous welcome to Sheffield.
Another vet, Albert Cabestany is a long-time Sherco factory rider and will be campaigning the all-new 2016 model and Cabes is always so consistent it will be a surprise if he doesn't make the final. Also Sherco-mounted will be French representative Alexandre Ferrer, while young Swedish challenger Eddie Karlsson will be looking to capitalise on his 2015 debut year with some good X-Trial results in 2016.
Martin Lampkin has been devising and overseeing the construction of the sections at Sheffield since the very first event and his courses have been universally popular with fans and riders alike.
The riders love the sheer variety and change each year compared to the Spanish hazards which tend to be exactly the same. We will just have to see what Martin and his experienced build team, led by son Harry, conjure up for the evening's competition. Whatever they are, they will test the World's best riders to the limit.
There's something pretty special for the half-time entertainment at Sheffield for 2016 as Scottish cycle stunt ace Danny MacAskill is previewing his ‘Drop & Roll' World Tour at the arena.
It is pretty certain that every one of you has watched those amazing Youtube videos where Danny performs his spectacular feats in amazing locations and the number of hits for each is numbered in the tens of millions. Danny and his pals are the World's No.1 cycle stunt team, they perform all around the world and this is a rare opportunity to see this inventive star in live arena action!
There's still chance to grab yourself tickets – which have been held at last year's prices – for the longest running show at Sheffield Arena.
Just contact the box office on 0114-256-56-56 or log on to www.sheffieldarena.co.uk
A fabulous evening's sport and entertainment is guaranteed – somake sure you don't miss out!
