Spanish superstar Toni Bou – Repsol Honda cemented his legacy as the undisputed King of Sheffield with a sensational victory in the third and final DL12 Indoor Trial in the city’s Utilita Arena on Saturday night in front of a sell-out crowd of passionate fans who were kept on the edge of their seats for the full duration of the event.
On a nerve-shredding night of non-stop action, for the final edition of one of the world’s premier Indoor Trial never has the expression ‘saving the best until last’ been more appropriate. There were starring performances throughout the eight-rider field, notably from home hero Jack Peace – Sherco who fought his way to the Final, but it all boiled down to a battle for supremacy between Bou and Adam Raga – Sherco who went toe-to-toe in the closing stages.
Ultimately, it was the thirty-six-time FIM Trial World Champion who emerged from Steel City on top – his fifteenth victory in seventeen appearances – after a performance that must rank alongside the most dramatic ever witnessed in the spiritual home of UK Indoor Trial.
“It is always very special for me to ride here and tonight has been amazing,” said Bou. “I won my first world championship round here so I am super-happy after twenty years to still be winning in Sheffield. The sections were very slippery, and I made some mistakes at the start of the final, but I rode my best in the second part and I am very happy to win.”
The action got under way with a series of races across the imposing Michelin tyres that saw Gabriel Marcelli – Repsol Honda defeat Peace, Jaime Busto – GASGAS beat Raga and Bou overcome the challenge of eighteen-year-old Harry Hemingway – Beta before another slice of Sheffield history was carved out by Sondre Haga – GASGAS and Gaël Chatagno – EM who gave electric motorcycles a super-charged debut in the Utilita Arena. Setting the dramatic tone for the event, the pair raced to a dead heat first time around before Haga won the rerun when Chatagno went over the bars.
With six incredibly technical sections facing the field, Haga was first onto the arena floor, but the Norwegian took two fives in the opening two sections – the huge S3 concrete pipes and giant Hope cranks and hubs – before another pair of maximums in the final two sections put him out of contention.
France’s Chatagno also struggled and was forced to use his spare bike after blowing a rear shock landing from the towering wooden crates of the TRU7 third section, eventually finishing on thirty-two.
Hemingway, born and bred forty miles away in Leeds, had the fans on their feet with his clean in section one, but despite a faultless ride on the angular Red Bull metal cages of section five a total of four maximums meant a place in the final was unlikely.
Peace then rode out of his skin with a five on section two his only penalty in an otherwise perfect lap and after Raga had posted a score of five, when Busto incurred two maximums the British rider – last year’s FIM Trial2 World Champion – found himself in contention.
Marcelli and Bou both recorded stunning clean laps before the heat stage concluded with races over the Rock Oil barrels that took riders up to concourse level with Hemingway beating Chatagno and Busto defeating Haga. Knowing that a clean would put him through to the final, Peace concentrated on staying feet-up and let Raga win before Marcelli crashed trying to stay with Bou.
Following an emotional presentation of Legend Awards to Raga and ten-time FIM Women’s Trial World Champion Emma Bristow who have both now retired from top-flight competition, the scores were reset, and the final began with races across the Michelin tyres that were won by Marcelli and Bou before Peace was the first to tackle section one in the reverse direction.
Soaking up the intense pressure, Peace cleaned the S3 pipes to deafening cheers before Marcelli took five and first Raga and then Bou added a dab apiece. These scores – once added to the penalty points incurred by Peace and Raga in the Final’s opening race – meant Peace and Bou were tied for the lead, one clear of Raga and four ahead of Marcelli.
Raga was the only rider to make it through section two in reverse with his loss of two plus an additional time penalty giving him a one-mark lead from Peace and Bou with Marcelli trailing on ten.
Next up were the massive TRU7 crates that ridden backwards proved to be the one impossible hazard of the night with Bou crashing hard when he tried to jump backwards from the top of the second step after failing at his first attempt.
Peace and Raga then added an additional mark to their scores after losing to Marcelli and Bou in the Rock Oil barrel races before riders tackled the Inch Perfect logs and slabs of section four. A ninety-degree turn from a boulder up onto a log provided the major test and following Indoor rules Peace picked up a five for exceeding three dabs before Marcelli added three with two on observation and one on time and Raga and Bou – who at this point were tied at the top – also incurred an additional two penalties.
The pivotal moment came on section five. Peace’s podium hopes ended with a maximum on the second triangular step that Marcelli needed two goes to master and three times Raga threw himself at the same obstacle, bouncing backwards at each attempt before conceding defeat.
Knowing anything less than a five would hand him the lead with just the four geometric metal blocks of Honda Hill that climbed up through the stands left to tackle, Bou produced an absolutely stunning clean ride and when everyone signed off with cleans on section six his victory was assured.
Certain to be forever remembered as one of the greatest nights in UK Indoor Trial history, it was an entirely fitting finish to a sensational Sheffield swansong and co-promoter Dougie Lampkin was clearly satisfied.
“It’s been really, really good,” he said. “It was maybe a little bit easy in places in the heat, but I think they rode very well and for the final I’m happy that we got it just about right. If I was being fussy I’d say it’s a shame we didn’t get anyone through the TRU7 section in the reverse direction, but I’m really pleased. We’ve done a great event and gone out on a high.”