On The Pegs April 2018 - Volume 3 - Issue 4 | Page 41

On The Pegs Vol. 2 Issue 4 - April 2018 TONI BOU P 41 Not only was the Paris round of the 2018 X- Trial World Championship series where Toni Bou clinched his 12th indoor world title, but it was also where Gas Gas factory rider Jaime Busto claimed his first-ever X-Trial victory and Gas Gas’ first X-Trial victory since it was bought by Torrot. Bou wrapped up the 2018 title early despite suffering a back injury just a few weeks before the event. The Repsol Honda rider finished fifth in Paris, which was just enough for him to sow up the title early due to cancelation of one of the rounds. Bou settled for the fifth after completing two laps of the six-section course, which was held in the AccorHotels Arena in Paris. In the first quali- fying phase of his 81st indoor trial, the Montesa Cota 4RT rider performed a near perfect lap, picking up a mere three penalty points. In the semi-final phase, in which the best from each group of three makes the cut, Bou had difficulty getting going and was clearly being hampered by the injury, being unable to perform as he had done in the first phase. With a final tally of 16 penalty points, Bou finished in a notable fifth position in the final standings, after 27 days out of action due to the injured vertebrae. As a result of the cancellation of what would have been the sixth round of the championship in Seville, which the FIM (International Motorcy- cling Federation) finally didn’t substitute, Bou se- cured the overall world title. Bou’s title tally now stands at an impressive 23 total titles, including 12 indoor and 11 outdoor. “I’m very happy today because this last month has been very complicated for us,” said Bou. “We didn’t know how the calendar would be and un- til the last moment we didn’t know if we could win the championship before competing here in Paris. In the first round I was able to ride quite well and make the best performance. The break between the first and second round I wanted to control the pain but when I started to ride I saw that it was not possible to be competitive and