The instability of the weather played a decisive role in the development of the opening race
of the 2017 Trial World Championship
. Although on Saturday the rain appeared once the qualifying practice was over, on Sunday, race day, storms and hail greatly complicated the second pass through already demanding areas.
Sportingly,
Toni Bou
took the victory in TrialGP, followed by
Adam Raga
and
Albert Cabestany
. In Trial2 the victory went to Gabriel Marcelli and in Trial 125 to Lorenzo Gandola.
NEW DEVELOPER: SPORT 7
The new era, with Sport 7 at the head of the championship, started with the qualifying zone, which would determine the starting order of the race. The score is calculated not only based on the number of feet, but mainly by the time invested in touring the area. Obviously, the feet are a penalty, but in the case of the Spanish GP, with a simple level, qualifying became more of an extreme enduro race than a trial race.
The winner was Jaime Busto, followed by Bou and Raga. These would be the last to start the race. On the other side of the coin, Cabestany, who was penalized and was forced to start with the leading group.
TONI BOU DOMINATES A GREAT SECOND HALF OF THE SEASON
The race didn’t seem easy at all. Water areas, lots of mud and loose stone. A priori, high scores were expected, which on the one hand benefits the most front-runners, who have more margin to recover, but on the other hand leaves the race in a real lottery. Bou was at his best from the first zone, but it would not be easy to take the victory.
The first half of the tour was more affordable. It didn’t admit of failures. The second part, much tougher and more selective, made a difference when a rider managed to scratch some “several”. In fact, at the end of the first lap there was a group of more outstanding riders, led by Cabestany, with Bou just one point behind and Raga two behind. The podium seemed obvious if we think that the difference with respect to the next classified was 13 points. But anything could happen in the top 3.
On the second lap there was heavy rain, accentuated in the form of hail, which made it more complicated if you know the sections and fattened the scores of all the riders, except for Bou, who together with Dabill and Price were the only ones able to lower their times from the previous lap. Bou’s extraordinary second lap win earned him his first victory of the year, with 12 points over his main rival, Adam Raga, who managed to overtake a Cabestany who went from strength to strength in the race.
Behind the places of honour were Fajardo, Fujinami, Casales, Busto, Dabill, Gelabert and Grattarlalla.
GABRIEL MARCELLI’S VICTORY IN TRIAL2
Trial2 was also conditioned by the weather lottery. It wasn’t easy to stay focused in the face of so many changing factors in the area, but the level shown by the riders was very high. The victory went to the Galician Gabriel Marcelli, within the RFME structure and one of those chosen by Honda for the points of the constructors’ championship.
Second place for the Beta rider Iwan Roberts, followed by the young Italian Luca Petrella and Francesc Moret. According to Petrella: “I’m very happy to be on the podium since the first race. Obviously the goal is always victory, although this time we made more mistakes than usual during the second pass through the zones and the third position is positive. I want to thank all my sponsors and the TRS Motorcycles team for their great professionalism.”
In Trial125 the victory went to the Italian Lorenzo Gandola, followed by Billy Green and Hugo Dufrese.
SPANISH GP TRIAL CLASSIFICATION – CAMPRODON
> TrialGP GP Spain Results
> Trial2 GP Spain Results
> Trial125 GP Spain Results
PILOT STATEMENTS
Toni Bou (1st)
The first race of the year is always tricky: a lot of nerves, a lot of pressure… This place is a paradise for trials, but it’s not the type of race that suits me best, since the mud is always quite difficult for me, although I think I’ve managed it quite well. It was a tough race, the rain I think hurt us a bit, but I’m very happy with this victory because it was a good way to start. Adam is pushing as always, he’s a very tough opponent and I imagine it’s going to be a difficult season for everyone.
Adam Raga (2nd)
It’s been a good start to the season for us. I felt comfortable riding throughout the race and until the rain came we were very close to first place. A series of small mistakes prevented us from being higher up, but second place is very positive for the championship and shows the great form of both the bike and the team.
Takahisa Fujinami (5th)
It was a very difficult trial. It was tough from the start because I started from the front because of yesterday’s qualifying. On the first lap I was eighth, fighting for points, but at the beginning of the second lap it started to rain hard and it complicated a lot, with little time to complete the race. Anyway, I’m happy to finish ahead, one point off fourth. It’s a good way to motivate yourself for the next GP, in Japan, at home.
Jaime Busto (7th)
After yesterday’s good day, today in theory had to go better, but after the riders passed, the stones slipped a lot. It started to rain and it rained several times, and although in the first lap I don’t think it did badly, in the second lap I accumulated several fiascos in a row. I hope it will be better in Japan.
Miquel Gelabert (9th)
Ninth position is not where we expected to be in this race. Although we have made progress in many aspects compared to the previous season, this result serves as a warning to us not to be complacent for the next races. Although it is true that in this Grand Prix the circumstances have been difficult due to the weather, although this was for all the riders equally. It was also a bit difficult for me to get into the rhythm of the race, I started with some nerves, but improving as the race progressed. In Japan we hope to be higher up and keep working hard.
Miquel Cirera (Team Manager Montesa)
We couldn’t have started the World Championship better this year. A championship with many surprises due to the new regulations, but as always Toni has brought out the best in himself and has had a great race. Fujinami did what he could to get out front; He didn’t have an easy trial. Jaime made several mistakes on the second lap that led him to finish seventh. We’re going to keep working to improve those results that haven’t quite come out. A few days later we left for Japan.
On the other hand, we are very satisfied with the results in TR2, in its debut as a World Championship. Gabriel Marcelli, a rider on whom the team has bet on him, and despite his youth, has been able to show his potential by winning here. His great result helps us a lot in the manufacturers’ championship.
Jordi Tarrés (TRS Team Manager)
We are very happy with the result, not only because of Raga, who has been at an incredible level and the weather has been a great conditioning factor, especially depending on the starting position. Fantastic work in Trial2, where we had four riders and we started with a great podium from Petrella, as well as a brilliant seventh place from Marc Riba. Good also for Eric Miquel, who despite a heavy crash recovered and took the TRS 125 to sixth position
