Honda Montesa conclude debut in TrialGP World Championship premier class with positive feeling
MotegiMiquel Gelabert finishes the second day of competition in Japan in fifth position.
Honda Montesa enjoyed a very positive weekend in Motegi, Japan, on their debut in the premier class of the TrialGP World Championship. Miquel Gelabert approached the first round of the 2026 season with the goal of continuing to gain experience and adapt to the demanding level of competition.
After achieving sixth place in the combined standings on Saturday, Gelabert ready to continue progressing. From the start of Race 1, the Honda Montesa rider felt more comfortable, with extra confidence that was evident throughout the course. Accruing 13 penalty points, he finished this first race in fifth position, earning important points for the World Championship standings.
The RTL Electric rider was the first to tackle the sections in the 'Final' and made a flawless start, clearing Zone 1 without a single mistake. The next two sections were more challenging, and he incurred 10 penalty points. The Spaniard recovered well and was one of the few to successfully complete Zone 4. He eventually finished in fifth place, tied on points with Matteo Grattarola, thus securing a direct spot in the 'Super Final'. In that decisive round, Gelabert gave it his all during the five sections and finished fifth.
In the combined standings for the day, Gelabert ended up in fifth place. In the overall standings, he occupies sixth place with 43 points. The next round of the TrialGP World Championship will take place from June 12th-14th in Sant Julià de Lòria, Andorra.
"That's the first weekend of the season done. Yesterday I made a few more mistakes than usual due to nerves, but today we started with confidence and relaxed. We had a very good race. We made a few mistakes, but we were very competitive in both 'Race 1' and the 'Final'. We know that we have to keep improving little by little, race after race, so I'm happy. I'm very grateful to the team for all the hard work and in Andorra we will look to maqke a step forward."
"That's the first weekend of the season done. Yesterday I made a few more mistakes than usual due to nerves, but today we started with confidence and relaxed. We had a very good race. We made a few mistakes, but we were very competitive in both 'Race 1' and the 'Final'. We know that we have to keep improving little by little, race after race, so I'm happy. I'm very grateful to the team for all the hard work and in Andorra we will look to maqke a step forward."
"Today everything was drier than yesterday, and we had our experience from yesterday to go on, so that made everything much closer. Miquel had a really good first lap and was strong in the 'Final,' even though he started first and opened up the sections. In the 'Super Final', the level of the sections was more demanding, and we struggled a bit more, but we've identified areas for improvement and will try to fight harder at the next race. I want to thank both the team and Honda for their support to make this project possible."
"Today everything was drier than yesterday, and we had our experience from yesterday to go on, so that made everything much closer. Miquel had a really good first lap and was strong in the 'Final,' even though he started first and opened up the sections. In the 'Super Final', the level of the sections was more demanding, and we struggled a bit more, but we've identified areas for improvement and will try to fight harder at the next race. I want to thank both the team and Honda for their support to make this project possible."
