The
2022 Trial World Championship
continues its intense racing calendar. This past weekend the Andorra Grand Prix was held, an event of high physical demand for the riders and technical for the bikes, due to the altitude and conditions of the terrain. A talismanic fiefdom for Adam Raga, where he already achieved a victory in 2021, and also a special enclave for Toni Bou, as he has set up his residence and training centre there.
Until Andorra, the general classification showed a double tie between Toni Bou and Jaime Busto, who had shared the victories of the Spanish GP, while Raga had dropped with a fifth place on the first day in Tarragona.
The reading of the first GP was that we are facing a very open and even world championship, and without a doubt after what we experienced in Andorra, that feeling is confirmed. Toni Bou is the favourite, without a doubt, but the victory is open and whoever manages to be more consistent in this short championship of only nine scoring races will win.
Adam Raga achieved an important victory on Saturday that boosts his morale and compensates for the discreet start of the season in Tarragona for the general classification
ADAM RAGA'S VICTORY ON SATURDAY
Adam Raga knows that he has the Andorran GP very close at hand, as he has already shown by winning the second day of the 2021 edition and on other previous occasions. He started Saturday with great concentration and discipline, making a difference in the wet areas and leading the race solidly on both laps, achieving his well-deserved first victory of the year.
Toni Bou had a bad start to the race, something he could not make up for in the second pass through the sections, despite doing a good job in the first ten sections of the course. In the last two he knew that there was no margin to opt for victory, but he tried to take risks not to put his foot down, without success. According to Toni: “The race was lost on the first lap, we were looking more at the back than at the front because we had the rivals very close. I was trying to protect this championship. We have to be very consistent, try to be at the front, although it’s very difficult because all the rivals are very strong.”
The other big surprise of the day was finding Jeroni Fajardo on the podium. The Sherco rider, who had a very discreet season in 2021, was an unknown in this 2022 season, where there were no great references of where he could be at the level, since he does not usually compete with his most direct rivals, since he participates in the French national championship, not in the Spanish one.
Despite the fact that Jeroni was not in the records of the two leading riders, he overtook a successful Jorge Casales in a fight for the podium that was fought until the last section of the course.
Fifth place went to Gabriel Marcelli: “It’s not a bad result, but we wanted more: we were looking for the podium. Up until almost the middle of the second lap we were fighting for third position, but in the end the last sections crossed me, I made a few too many mistakes and we went from third to fifth.” From behind, in a handkerchief, Miquel Gelabert and Jaime Busto. Eighth was Matteo Grattarola, followed by Aniol Gelabert, Luca Petrella, Benoit Bincaz and Teo Colario.
TONI BOU TAKES HIS 200TH WIN
On Sunday, the second day of competition was held, with a route practically similar to that of the previous day, which explains why the vast majority of riders lowered their times to a large extent compared to Saturday’s race.
On the first lap, Toni Bou and Jaime Busto stood out, completing the twelve sections separated by just three points. Five behind was Adam Raga. Therefore, it seemed quite evident that this time the reigning World Champion had everything under control and depended on himself to maintain the level during the second lap.
Bou did not miss and scored a spectacular run of six points, followed in records by Raga and Fajardo, both with eight, who managed to surpass Busto, who penalized excessively and could only be fourth.
Therefore, Toni Bou achieved his 200th victory, accompanied on the podium by Raga and Fajardo. After Busto, Grattarola, Casales, Marcelli, Miquel Gelabert, Bincaz, Aniol Gelabert, Martyn, Petrella and Colario completed the classification.
200 wins for Toni Bou
Adjectives are exhausted to describe the sporting career of Toni Bou, the best trial rider in history and one of the most successful athletes of all time.
Its most prominent numbers are:
• 30-time World Champion: 15 X-Trial titles and 15 TrialGP titles
• 127 TrialGP victories
• 73 X-Trial wins
• World Cup debut: 2003
• First win: 2006
• First X-Trial World Championship title: 2007
• First TrialGP World Championship title: 2007
• Most wins: 2012 (18 wins from 20 rounds)
• X-Trial winning seasons: 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014, 2017, 2020, 2021
• Seasons with full TrialGP wins: 2019
ANDORRA TRIAL GP - SATURDAY - TRIALGP
- ADAM RAGA (TRRS)
- TONI BOU (MONTESA)
- JERONI FAJARDO (SHERCO)
- JORGE CASALES (SCORPA)
- GABRIEL MARCELLI (MONTESA)
- MIQUEL GELABERT (GASGAS)
- JAIME BUSTO (VERTIGO)
- MATTEO GRATTAROLA (BETA)
- ANIOL GELABERT (BETA)
- LUCA PETRELLA (GASGAS)
- TOBY MARTYN (TRRS)
- BENOIT BINCAZ (GASGAS)
- TEO COLARIO (BETA)
ANDORRA TRIAL GP - SUNDAY - TRIALGP
- TONI BOU (MONTESA)
- ADAM RAGA (TRRS)
- JERONI FAJARDO (SHERCO)
- JAIME BUSTO (VERTIGO)
- MATTEO GRATTAROLA (BETA)
- JORGE CASALES (SCORPA)
- GABRIEL MARCELLI (MONTESA)
- MIQUEL GELABERT (GASGAS)
- BENOIT BINCAZ (GASGAS)
- ANIOL GELABERT (BETA)
- TOBY MARTYN (TRRS)
- LUCA PETRELLA (GASGAS)
- TEO COLARIO (BETA)
