Championship leader Toni Bou returns from his back injury to take part in the X-Trial in Paris. The Repsol Honda Team rider suffered a significant back injury after a serious crash at an event at Le Mans, France, on February 17.
Today, Thursday, Toni Bou has returned to suit up with the racing team and get back on his Montesa Cota 4RT after almost a month after his accident at Le Mans. The sensations he had on the bike were positive and he decided to be at the AccorHotels Arena in the French capital this coming Saturday at 8:00 p.m. The final podium is expected to be held at 11:00 p.m.
After the cancellation of the Seville race, the Paris X-Trial is the sixth race of the championship. Bou has won the previous five events and has a 31-point lead over the runner-up in the provisional standings. Toni has raced only once in Paris, it was in 2012 and where he took the victory.
In addition to Toni Bou, Repsol Honda Team’s Japanese rider Takahisa Fujinami will also take part. It will be his fourth event of the X-Trial World Championship and his goal is to qualify for the semi-finals with a good ride.
Toni Bou:
After going through a very hard month, since I crashed, the goal was to recover to be back in the race in Paris. Everything was unknown, because we wouldn’t know if it could come. Today I tested the bike and I had a much better feeling than I expected. I’ve felt more confident and, obviously, I’m not 100%, but I’m excited and I’m really looking forward to coming back. It will be a “whim” that I will allow myself, because I like to race in Paris: it’s a special race. The feeling on the bike wasn’t incredible, but it was much better than I expected.
In the race we are going to take more precautions, because physically I have not done anything during this last month, but the desire and passion to run makes me decide to run this race.
The first two weeks were very hard and so was the third, but the last week I felt much better and I was able to lead a more normal life. And I’ve already seen that what was going through my head when I was on the stretcher in the hospital at Le Mans would be possible. I couldn’t stop thinking about it until I got on the bike today.
In Paris I can win the title, yes, and I prefer to do it competing. I don’t think I can win the race, because I’m not 100%, but I can ride a bike and being able to win the title on the bike will be the best.
TONI BOU ACCIDENT VIDEO
