Toni Bou, head and shoulders above the rest in the Belgian GP

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Toni Bou looks poised to make off with the world outdoor trial championship for the tenth time after another notable performance. The Repsol Honda Team rider went from zero to hero in the Belgium Grand Prix, displaying all the hallmarks of a champion. Teammates Takahisa Fujinami and Jaime Busto’s performances were the inverse of Bou’s; both missing out on the podium.

It was the tiny population of Belgium’s Comblain-au-Pont who hosted the sixth Grand Prix of the trial calendar – the eleventh of a total of fifteen trials given that the Belgium event featured only a single date. Toni Bou scooped his eight win of the season in a trial a world away from the rain-soaked one disputed here two years ago. The lengthy course did, however, feature some very technical sections which forced some riders to make mistakes.

Toni Bou picked things up after a poor start. A fall on the first lap and a sudden, sharp movement caused problems for the rider who is still carrying a shoulder injury. Battling against the pain, the Spaniard was holding fourth spot overall by the end of the first lap. On subsequent laps Bou scored better than rivals, going on to take victory with ten points over runner up Adam Raga. The result bolsters Bou’s command of the general standings with his advantage over nearest second-place adversary Adam Raga increasing to twenty-three points.

Takahisa Fujinami, arrived at the Comblain-au-Pont event fired up after his win in the previous round in Lourdes (France). The Japanese Repsol Honda Team rider has had his eye on the overall third position. ‘Fujigas’ got off to good start, looking set for a podium finish, until a spectacular fall on the third lap forced the ex-champ to ride out the rest of the trial in defensive mode. After clocking up further marks, Fuji had to settle for a final fifth place but is still third in the overall ranking.

Repsol Honda Team’s third rider Jaime Busto continued to battle to get into the podium zone. However, after completing the first two laps with an identical scorecard, the young Basque hopeful made several mistakes to wipe out any chances of a first podium.

The FIM Trial World Championship continues next weekend with the Great British Grand Prix to be held in Tong.

Toni Bou

TRIAL: 1st CHAMPIONSHIP: 1st

I was able to settle the race in my favour at the end of the second lap, but the riding wasn’t up to much as I wasn’t feeling too good on the first lap. I had injured my shoulder during training and in spite of not feeling right I was able to make it through. I’m very pleased with the result but I will have to work hard to get the shoulder in shape for the trial in England next week.

Takahisa Fujinami

TRIAL: 5th CHAMPIONSHIP: 3rd

I’m not pleased with the fifth place. I was among the top positions on the first part of the race. There was a misunderstanding with the time that I was given and I missed out on the podium by very little. I was feeling good on the bike and things were going well, but I’m not pleased with the way it all worked out. I continue to hold on to third place in the overall standings and with four trials still to go, I think I’m doing well and am on the right path.

Jaime Busto

TRIAL: 6th CHAMPIONSHIP: 4th

In the sections with the mud that had formed, I wasn’t feeling very comfortable. Those are not my favourite type of sections, that’s for sure. I was riding a bit clumsily at the beginning and only picked up one zero on the first lap in the final section. On the second lap I felt better on the bike but it wasn’t enough. As the trial went on the sections didn’t get any better.

Private: Miquel Cirera

Team Manager

Another trial and another victory for Toni and for the team. It wasn’t easy for Toni today; he wasn’t having the best day. He hurt himself in one of the sections and had a difficult day as a consequence, but he was able to seal the win all the same. For the championship it is important. Fujinami’s result could have been better, but with today’s trial and the rivals, it has been a hard one for everybody. It was to be expected that it would be tough. Jaime won’t be happy – he didn’t make it onto the podium and that is his intention. He will have to keep working. Let’s hope things work out well in England for everyone and hopefully we will get better results. Thanks to the whole team for the great effort today at a very tough trial.

Trial 2016 Sunday, July 10th 2016

Trial Round T6 , Trial 1 GP Trial Belgium Comblain-au-Pont

Results Trial GP Belgium 2016

Pos.	Rider	Num	Nation	L1	L2	L3	T3	Champ	Team	Constructor	Points
1	Bou Toni	1	SPA	18	13	14		20	Repsol Honda Team	Montesa	45
2	Raga Adam	2	SPA	19	15	19	2	17	TRRS Factory Team	TRRS	55
3	Cabestany Albert	4	SPA	14	25	16		15	Sherco Factory Team	Sherco	55
4	Fajardo Jeroni	3	SPA	15	21	24		13	Vertigo Factory Team	Vertigo	60
5	Fujinami Takahisa	5	JPN	16	22	21	2	11	Repsol Honda Team	Montesa	61
6	Busto Jaime	6	SPA	21	21	26		10	Repsol Honda Team	Montesa	68
7	Dabill James	8	GBR	23	25	29		9	Vertigo Factory Team	Vertigo	77
8	Karlsson Eddie	10	SWE	31	32	26		8	Montesa Team Karlsson	Montesa	89
9	Ferrer Alexandre	7	FRA	32	36	29	1	7	Sherco Factory Team	Sherco	98
10	Gelabert Miquel	20	SPA	37	32	35		6	RFME Spea	Sherco	104
11	Grattarola Matteo	18	ITA	32	46	26		5	Gas Gas FG Italia	Gas Gas	104
12	Casales Jorge	9	SPA	28	40	37	1	4	Beta Factory Racing	Beta	106
13	Noguera Oriol	24	SPA	37	37	36	1	3	MRW Limit Motos Montesa	Montesa	111
14	Gubian Loris	21	FRA	31	48	32		2	Beta Factory Racing	Beta	111
15	Kadlec Franz	11	GER	42	39	32		1	Gas Gas	Gas Gas	113
16	Pedersen Hakon	15	NOR	45	52	43		0	Gas Gas	Gas Gas	140
17	Sorensen Ole Kristian	16	NOR	52	50	45	4	0	Sherco Sorensen	Sherco	151