Repsol Honda Team rider Toni Bou rode to victory in the third round of the FIM X-Trial World Championship held in Bilbao.
The second win of the season sees the champion bounce back to the head of the overall standings.
As Bilbao debuted as a host in the FIM X-Trial World Championship, spectators at the Bizkaia Arena-BEC were able to witness a somewhat hesitant start from Toni Bou who nevertheless made the cut for the second phase.
The second round saw the Repsol Honda Team rider finish on equal points with Adam Raga whom he went on to beat in a thrilling final. The final proved to be a hotly disputed one with Bou emerging victorious for the second time this season.
The win means that Toni Bou, once again, retakes the top spot in the overall rankings with a five-point advantage over Adam Raga.
“I am very happy to win here in Bilbao after the second position in Barcelona and to regain the lead,” said Bou. “We knew that this year would be very complicated as it is very easy to not get through to the next round with this system and the high level of the riders. We know that we could miss out on any event, so to get a win is very satisfying. This championship is very short and we know that we are not at 100% physically. I lack continuity but luckily I have the aggressiveness, so we will work hard to get to Granada in the best possible conditions.”
The fourth trial of the X-Trial World Championship is scheduled for this coming Saturday, February 23rd at the Palacio Municipal de Deportes in Granada, Spain.