Toni Bou takes gold at the X-Trial of Andorra

With the title already bagged prior to today’s event, Toni Bou finished runner-up in the season’s final trial held on home soil. Marcelli finished fifth.

The Repsol Honda Trial Team rider proved unable to top off the season with another win in the X-Trial of Andorra, as the curtain comes down on a year in which Bou had secured the title on 1 September, having won each of the four trials held earlier this season. Despite the fact that Toni Bou had dominated the first two rounds and remained on zero, the Catalan rider had to settle for runner-up spot, losing out to Jaime Busto in the final.

Meanwhile, Repsol Honda Trial Team partner, Galician rider Gabriel Marcelli, took fifth place in the end-of-season championship rankings after finishing fifth on the final X-Trial day.

The next competition to feature the presence of the Repsol Honda Trial Team will be the Spanish Championship, whose sixth round will be held on October 23 in the Madrid town of Valdemanco. Only Gabriel Marcelli, currently holding third place in the table, will take part.

Toni Bou  ¹

RACE: 2ND  STANDINGS: CHAMPION

I’m pleased with the way the evening went. We put on a great show, we enjoyed ourselves and I rode very well. It was an easy trial and we knew we couldn’t make any mistakes. I cleaned the first two rounds but, in the final, I made a mistake in section two that was very difficult to make up. In section four, Jaime made a mistake and it seemed that I had a chance to close the gap and fight for the victory, but in the end it slipped away. I battled hard right up to the end, which is our DNA. I’m happy for the show we put on and for having been able to celebrate the title in Andorra. It has been a very good season: four firsts and a second, which is great.

Gabriel Marcelli  ³⁸

TRIAL: 5TH  STANDINGS: 5TH

I’m satisfied with the way the season went, especially knowing that I was unable to take part in the opening round of the X-Trial World Championship. That hurt us a lot in terms of the overall championship. I wanted to finish the season with a podium, as I was very close to it, but that’s trial for you. I made a serious mistake in section four, but overall the balance of the season is positive. I finished fifth overall and I’m happy.

Takahisa Fujinami

Team Manager

First of all, I want to congratulate Toni Bou on his 16th indoor title. It was a pity to finish runner-up today, but it is more important to have won the title. Toni’s first two rounds were perfect, zero marks, and he only made one serious mistake in the final. The final was very tight and, in the end, it was won by Jaime Busto, who rode very well. It is true that Toni is not so happy, because he had wanted to win everything, but he takes one more championship for the record.

As for Gabriel Marcelli, he rode very well today and we hoped to make it onto the podium. It’s a pity, but from now on we will have to work very hard on those details. I also want to congratulate Gabri for having achieved the fifth position, both in the indoor and outdoor championship. We know he has potential and, although we expected a bit more, we will work hard for next year.