Toni Bou opens the season with a win and a podium. Gabriel Marcelli also places on the rostrum on Saturday
The TrialGP season got underway in Arteixo, Spain with Repsol Honda Team riders enjoying podium success. Toni Bou earned second place and a victory over the two days, whilst Gabriel Marcelli was third and fourth, respectively.
Reigning World Outdoor Trial World Champion, Toni Bou, began his title defense with second place on Saturday, despite being the rider to make the fewest mistakes on the second lap. On Sunday he set the pace from start to finish on both laps, and claimed his first TrialGP win of the season.
Gabriel Marcelli made his debut in the opening race on Saturday with third place, having gone third on the opening lap and fourth on the second. On Sunday, Marcelli was once again a frontrunner, until penalty points on the second lap relegated him to fourth, just two points away from another podium.
Bou tops the standings with 37 points, level with the rider in second. Gabriel Marcelli is fourth with 28 points, level with the rider in third. The next Trial GP event will be held next weekend in Gouveia, Portugal.
Toni Bou – 1st
“I’m very happy with the weekend and with the victory. In today’s race I found felt better. I still have some discomfort in my arm, but we were able to fight at an impressive level. It is a victory that is very valuable, because our rivals didn’t make it easy at all. Now it’s time to recover well after the weekend. We are tied on points with Jaime overall and we have seen that he is at a very high level, and both races have been very close. We will have to be strong in Portugal, but the first thing now is to recover and get back to 100% fitness.”
Gabriel Marcelli – 4th
“Today didn’t go as well as yesterday. I think I was feeling pretty good with the bike, but there were a couple of zones that affected the final result of the race a lot. In any case, we have fourth place, points for the championship and a good feeling throughout the weekend. We face the next race with great enthusiasm. In Portugal we have two new opportunities to get back onto the podium and fight for a victory.”
