Toni Bou: “Rivals like Raga make you improve and give the best of yourself”

Toni Bou was proclaimed 11-time X-Trial World Champion last Friday by qualifying for the final round of the GP in Nice (France) and scoring the necessary points to mathematically reach the title. In the end, he would also win the race after beating a very strong Adam Raga.
In this interview, conducted by the Repsol Honda Team, Toni looks back at the most important moments of the season and his next challenges.
What has gone through your mind when you win this new title?
I’m very happy, because it was a title with a lot of pressure. Even having won the first three races, I was obliged to go through to the final and make no mistakes, because qualifying was very easy and any mistake would have cost a lot to recover. We were nervous, but we managed to do it again, so I want to thank the team for the great job they have done, which has been fantastic.
Looking at the final result, with four victories in four races, it would seem that it was easy…
Yes, from the outside it is what it may seem, but being only four races, we arrived at the last one forced to go to the final. Already in Marseille we got a very close victory, only by one point, and if Adam [Raga]had won, here we would have been forced to play for the title in the last race, which we already knew was going to be easy. Every championship has its own things and I’m very happy to have won again in all the races, after two years in which it was not possible.

Did you think you could win races?
We knew it was difficult, but I try to go race by race. It was very important for me to get the win in Barcelona. I went a bit more relaxed to Vienna, because I knew it was a complicated race, which I like, and where we got the win. Where the nerves really started was in Marseille, because it’s hard to know that you’re obliged to win if you don’t want to have to play for the last one. I think I was able to handle it well and I had a good race. In Nice we also had to suffer a bit, but we also did very well.
Has your riding style changed?
We’ve gotten better at little things. In indoor trial we have always had a very high level, making very few mistakes. We’ve had incredible seasons and it’s always very difficult to improve, but that’s what we always try. Races like Nice, in which we went through a lot of nerves, we try to come with the bike at the highest level, make as few mistakes as possible in qualifying; It has made us mature and improve.

Being such a short World Championship, with 4 races, do you perceive more tension or pressure in each event on the calendar?
Evidently. I’m sure all drivers would prefer a championship with ten rounds, or a minimum of six or seven. With four races to go, if I hadn’t won in Marseille, which I played at the last moment, the winner of the last round would have taken the title and the pressure would have been maximum. There are a lot of nerves, as happened last year, when I lost the first race. It pushes you to the limit, but it also makes you better.
What was the most technical or difficult race of the championship?
Without a doubt, the most difficult race was in Vienna. It was also the one where I felt most comfortable and where I won with the most points margin. I was able to make mistakes and it wasn’t my best race in terms of riding, but it was where I rode more calmly. I think more races like that are missing, because it’s a great show where people have fun.

What’s the key to maintaining such a high standard for so long?
The key is very hard to say, and if I knew it I wouldn’t say it either. I think I enjoy what I do every day, I love to improve and I’m very demanding with the bike and as an athlete. This has allowed me to reach 30 years in a great moment and I can still keep improving.
Do your rivals keep your level growing?
Yes, because Adam had a great final in Nice and forced me to do a race without a single mistake in order to get the win. He made a mistake in the last area, but I was opening up and I didn’t know what would happen. Rivals like him make you better and force you to get the best out of yourself.
Does indoor trial have to evolve to catch up with you?
There are news for next year and we will see how everything evolves, because there is a promoter who wants to change the system a lot. I think there is a positive side and a dangerous side, because I think a change is needed, but what we have to look for is for it to be a great show and for the audience to have fun.

After the shoulder injury in 2016, what level are you at?
The level is the same. It’s true that I lost a bit of mobility, but on the bike I can ride at 100 percent. When I jump or on a descent, I have small discomforts, or even practicing a sport such as tennis. But I’ve been very lucky that to practice my sport, I can defend myself very well and I’m one hundred percent, which is very positive, because that almost certainly means that I won’t have to go under the knife for this injury.
How have you seen your teammates, Fujinami and Busto?
I’ve seen Busto improve by leaps and bounds. He has had few opportunities to do indoors, but he has gone to a final and in another event he almost succeeded. As for Fujinami, we all know that he is an outdoor rider, who last year took third place surprising everyone. I don’t think he’s done badly in the X-Trial World Championship. He has defended himself and that means that he will be strong outdoors for sure.

Are we in front of the best Toni Bou?
I don’t know, it’s hard to say. We’ve had some very good years, although it’s true that this year we’ve done a lot of races and we’ve won all of them. I’m very happy and I feel very good. The work we’re doing is very good, but we’ve done some very good years before, so it’s very difficult to say something like that.
How are you approaching the World Cup outdoors?
I’ll start thinking about it from today, because so far we’ve trained a lot for indoors. For me the X-Trial World Championship is very important, psychologically it is important to have the confidence to reach the races at the highest level, and I have only trained for it. Right now I’m a bit green outdoor, but let’s start training. This year, with the new promoter, luckily the World Cup starts a little later and we will have time to train.

We saw you on your social networks watching the MotoGP race, how do you see the World Championship?
I think it’s very exciting. Now there are races that I think are good for the Honda, especially Austin, where Marc [Márquez] is always very fast. Viñales and Rossi were seen to be doing very well, Dovizioso can also be at the top. There were even surprises, such as Aleix Espargaro, or my friend Rins, who did better than expected in his first race. I think it will be a very tight World Championship, although Marc always does the rest and everyone will have to push hard.