X-Trial Granada preview
By John Dickinson on 20th Feb 19
The six-round 2019 FIM World X-Trial series races into the second half of the season this weekend when the Spanish city of Granada hosts Round 4 this Saturday, February 23. And so far it has been a fascinating battle for the Championship as Toni Bou (Repsol Honda) and Adam Raga (TRS) have gone head to head in all three finals to date.
Bou is seeking an unbelievable 13th successive Indoor crown while two-time World Champ Raga is convinced he can nail his first X-Trial Championship since 2006! The duo have been head and shoulders above their rivals to date but X-Trial is a knife-edge sport and any one of the five contracted riders could pull off a stunning ride
Gas Gas prospect Jaime Busto is favourite to upset the applecart but is currently 25 points behind Bou in the Championship chase. Bustos experienced team-mate Jeroni Fajardo gets an invited ride in Granada and is well capable of a podium. French challenger Benoit Bincaz, riding Beta this year, hit form in Bilbao last weekend and is looking to build on this breakthrough.
The invited riders to join the contracted stars are three Spaniards plus Norwegian Sondre Haga who gets a second bite at the big-time following his X-Trial debut last week in Bilbao.The experienced Jeroni Fajardo will be joined by youngster Gabriel Marcelli who, like Haga, also gets the chance to capitalise on his introduction last week.
The final invited rider sets up a unique family double in X-Trial as it is Aniol Gelabert, younger brother of Sherco star Miquel so while Aniol will have the experience of Miquel to draw on they will still be rivals in the arena.
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Report: Bilbao X-Trial World Championship 2019
Toni Bou (Repsol Honda) broke the 2019 X-Trial Championship deadlock between himself and arch rival Adam Raga (TRS) last Saturday evening and restored his series lead in Bilbao after a fine victory in another close-fought Final between the Catalan duo.
Bilbao ready to roll for third round of X-trial World Championship
The third round of the 2019 FIM X-Trial World Championship takes place in Bilbao this Saturday, February 16. And while Toni Bou (Repsol Montesa) and Adam Raga (TRS) will join in battle to break the deadlock at the top of the table, sadly there won’t be a Brit in the line-up.