Toni Bou and
Takahisa Fujinami, both riding their factory Cota 4RT machines, each
won a day of the Japanese Grand Prix. The event held at Honda’s Twin
Ring circuit, Motegi got the 2013 FIM Trial World Championship underway.
Bou won the opening day ahead of Adam Raga – Gas Gas and Albert
Cabestany – Sherco, whilst Fujinami placed fourth on Saturday. However
Fujinami was to make up for his slow start by snatching a last gasp
victory from Jeroni Fajardo – Beta just twenty-four hours later as Bou
had to fight his way back onto the podium on day two.
The 2013 GP marked the fourteenth consecutive year that
the Japanese Trial Grand Prix has been hosted at Honda’s famous Twin
Ring circuit at Motegi. The permanent motorsports facility once again
provided a testing array of hazards on the perimeter of the tarmac
track, with many of the sections consisting of carefully placed boulders
on the surrounding steep wooded hillsides. The re-introduction of the
no-stop rule where riders must now maintain forward motion added a new
dimension to competition, with the emphasis being on longer and wider
sections of a more flowing nature.
Rain late on Friday afternoon forced local organisers to
make changes to several of the hazards prior to Saturday’s competition
getting underway. The slippery conditions and new rules saw a nervous
start to the trial for many riders, however these factors only had a
limited effect on Bou. He immediately opened up a five mark lead over
Raga come the end of the first lap, as the old rivals locked into battle
once again and moved clear of the chasing pack. Only Cabestany was on
the same page after the initial lap.
Over the closing two laps of twelve sections and in drying
conditions due the sun overhead, Bou further stretched his advantage
both over Raga, and over the rest of the entry. Whilst on each of his
three laps he recorded one failure, Toni on board his recently upgraded
factory Cota 4RT, made few other errors despite the tricky going. Bou’s
winning margin of twenty marks clearly illustrated the scale of his
opening victory, and must have served as a worrying message to the other
main protagonists. Fujinami got his 2013 started with a solid fourth
place, and only six marks away from a podium finish.
Many expected Bou to make it two wins in a row when
Sunday’s event started under clear blue skies, but his faultless run was
to come to an unexpected halt when he stalled his bike in section
seven, which was later diagnosed as being due to a slight electronic
mapping error. This certainly broke Toni’s concentration and when his
hand slipped off the handlebar as he attacked the final part of the next
section, he knew he was now involved in a real battle as he ended the
first lap down in eighth place and well off the leading pace.
In contrast Fujinami was keeping the pressure on the early
leader Fajardo who was having the ride of his life to lose only four
marks over the first two laps. Bou was to surpass this achievement as he
fought his way back up the order, by dropping just two marks for his
closing two laps. Although this was not enough to secure victory, Toni
at least booked his place on the podium. Takahisa used the large and
noisy home crowd to his advantage and applied pressure to Fajardo at
exactly the right moment with a string of outstanding rides that
eventually saw the Spanish rider crack. Fujinami’s victory was well
deserved and was his first since 2010.
Bou and Fujinami hold first and second places in the
general standings respectively after the opening GP. The Repsol Montesa
HRC duo will take a short break before resuming battle in the USA next
month.
Toni Bou - Repsol Montesa: "Overall I can be satisfied with my results and to be
leading the championship, but today has not been perfect for me. The
small problem with the bike made me nervous especially with the new
no-stop rules, but after the initial disaster I made some incredible
riding on the final two laps to bring me back to the podium. In my
absence it is great that Fujinami won today, as we have shared the
victories at this important GP for Honda, and just after we have
received the new engine. So I want to thank and to congratulate the
whole team for this joint success. Now I am looking forward to the next
GP, but still I cannot say I am happy or confident about the new rules.”
Takahisa Fujinami - Repsol Montesa: "This is an incredibly important and special victory
for me. To win in front of my home fans is the best feeling you can
have. They have had to wait for this latest victory in Motegi for
sometime now and I could really feel their support today especially
towards the end of the trial. Jeroni made a really strong two opening
laps, but I managed to keep him within my reach. I was pushing hard on
the last lap, and then finally it came down to the last section to take
the win. I want to thank Honda so much for the new engine as it made the
difference today. I hope I can now continue this level when we go to
the USA.”
Event results - Round 1 - Race 1
1
|
Toni Bou
|
25
|
ESP
|
MONTESA HONDA
|
Montesa Honda
|
2
|
Adam Raga
|
45
|
SPA
|
GAS GAS
|
Gas Gas
|
3
|
Albert Cabestany
|
63
|
SPA
|
SHERCO
|
Sherco
|
4
|
Takahisa Fujinami
|
69
|
JPN
|
MONTESA HONDA
|
Montesa Honda
|
5
|
Jeroni Fajardo
|
74
|
SPA
|
BETA
|
Beta
|
6
|
James Dabill
|
77
|
GBR
|
BETA
|
Beta
|
7
|
Tomoyuki Ogawa
|
90
|
JPN
|
HONDA
|
Honda
|
8
|
Michael Brown
|
95
|
GBR
|
GAS GAS
|
Gas Gas
|
9
|
Kenichi Kuroyama
|
106
|
JPN
|
YAMAHA
|
Yamaha
|
10
|
Jack Challoner
|
115
|
GBR
|
BETA
|
Beta
|
11
|
Fumitaka Nozaki
|
131
|
JPN
|
YAMAHA
|
Yamaha
|
12
|
Alexandre Ferrer
|
137
|
FRA
|
SHERCO
|
Sherco
|
13
|
Matteo Grattarola
|
144
|
ITA
|
GAS GAS
|
Gas Gas
|
14
|
Yoshiaki Nomoto
|
152
|
JPN
|
BETA
|
Beta
|
15
|
Daniel Oliveras
|
154
|
SPA
|
OSSA
|
OSSA
|
Event results - Round 1 - Race 2
1
|
Takahisa Fujinami
|
16
|
JPN
|
MONTESA HONDA
|
Montesa Honda
|
2
|
Jeroni Fajardo
|
19
|
SPA
|
BETA
|
Beta
|
3
|
Toni Bou
|
20
|
ESP
|
MONTESA HONDA
|
Montesa Honda
|
4
|
Adam Raga
|
22
|
SPA
|
GAS GAS
|
Gas Gas
|
5
|
James Dabill
|
26
|
GBR
|
BETA
|
Beta
|
6
|
Albert Cabestany
|
39
|
SPA
|
SHERCO
|
Sherco
|
7
|
Michael Brown
|
40
|
GBR
|
GAS GAS
|
Gas Gas
|
8
|
Fumitaka Nozaki
|
55
|
JPN
|
YAMAHA
|
Yamaha
|
9
|
Kenichi Kuroyama
|
63
|
JPN
|
YAMAHA
|
Yamaha
|
10
|
Jack Challoner
|
70
|
GBR
|
BETA
|
Beta
|
11
|
Tomoyuki Ogawa
|
72
|
JPN
|
HONDA
|
Honda
|
12
|
Alexandre Ferrer
|
79
|
FRA
|
SHERCO
|
Sherco
|
13
|
Matteo Grattarola
|
85
|
ITA
|
GAS GAS
|
Gas Gas
|
14
|
Tsubasa Matsuura
|
94
|
JPN
|
HONDA
|
Honda
|
15
|
Daniel Oliveras
|
98
|
SPA
|
OSSA
|
OSSA
|