The Silken Gran Hotel Havana in Barcelona was once again the setting for the presentation of the 35th Indoor Trial and the 13th Indoor Enduro in Barcelona, a qualifying event for the FIM SuperEnduro World Championship. A unique event that, for the third consecutive year in this double format, will bring together the best off-road riders on the planet next Sunday, February 5 at the Palau Sant Jordi. A total of 37 world titles under one roof.
“In times of crisis, we call on intelligence,”
he said Jaime Alguersuari, president of RPM Racing and creator of the event; “We are repeating the formula that was so successful in the last two years, combining an Enduro and a Trial event in a single afternoon, with the best riders in each discipline”.
In the 35th edition of the historic Indoor Trial in Barcelona, the organisers have designed a competition format in which the spectacle will prevail.
“We will compete without the corset of the World Championship, we will be able to take more risks and put on more of a show,”
he said Toni Bou (Montesa), ten-time world champion and five-time winner at the Palau Sant Jordi; “Barcelona is the most exciting race, but also the most difficult in the world.”
The six riders who will compete next Sunday will have to negotiate the 11 sections of a track designed by Francesc Tarrés. “It will be very difficult,”
said Tarrés. “I don’t want to condition one or the other, someone will have to stay.”
“The area of the Silken Gran Hotel Havana will once again be one of the most difficult,”
he explained. Adam Raga (Gas Gas), who has also won five times in Barcelona, has valued the design of the track very positively:
“They will be very fun areas, especially the two stone areas and, especially, the one with logs”.
One of the great novelties of this year will be the recovery of the mythical area of natural logs in the middle of the stands.
“A great job,”
said Raga. Albert Cabestany (Sherco) arrives at the Palau Sant Jordi with the aim of getting his first win in Barcelona, after adding five second places, the last two in a row:
“It would be time for a victory!”
The 13th Barcelona Indoor Enduro will be the final and decisive round of the FIM SuperEnduro World Championship. 28 riders from nine different countries will compete next Sunday in the most demanding event on a track designed by Carlos Mas.
“The idea is to make the event more agile, but here we come to suffer,”
Mas explained. “The pool area, the stones and the small pyramid will make up a very hard 80 meters.” “The track is always very difficult and makes us suffer a bit,” said Iván Cervantes (Gas Gas), five-time enduro world champion and two-time winner at the Palau Sant Jordi. In any case, the rider from Cambrils is chasing his third win at the Palau Sant Jordi:
“I owe a debt to Barcelona”.
But Tadeusz Blazusiak (KTM), the current leader of the World Championship, will make the victory very expensive:
“Blazusiak is two steps ahead”.
Cristóbal Guerrero (KTM) and Xavi Galindo (Husaberg), among others, will also be looking for the podium in Barcelona.
“I’m looking forward to this race,”
said Galindo. In addition to the “Solo Moto Off Road Challenge”, in which the best amateur riders, previously classified, will compete on the demanding track of the Indoor Enduro, the requirement of having 10 riders who have been designated as priority stands out. This way the fans will be able to enjoy the best drivers.
The event was closed by the Manager of the Institut Barcelona Esports, Xavier Amador, who thanked RPM Racing and Jaime Alguersuari for their work and enthusiasm in organising this event: “It is an honour that this type of event is organised in Barcelona, and sometimes it is a regular occurrence, when it is not. We are very grateful. I think it’s only fair to pay a fitting tribute to the late Mika Ahola, a great enduro player. Sometimes in life you have to stop and reflect on how lucky we are.”
