Repsol Honda Trial Team open TrialGP season with one-two in Japan
Motegi
Toni Bou takes victory in the outdoor series and Gabriel Marcelli places second
Toni Bou takes victory in the outdoor series and Gabriel Marcelli places second.
Saturday saw a great start to TrialGP World Championship season for the Repsol Honda Team in Motegi, Japan. Reigning World Champion Toni Bou once again demonstrated his great talent by taking the first victory of the year in the outdoor series, whilst Gabriel Marcelli took second at the home of Honda.
From the first lap, Bou was the frontrunner, making few mistakes and picking up just 13 penalty points on the 12 zones. On the second lap, the Repsol Honda rider showed his dominance by incurring just a single penalty point, earning him the first victory of the 2024 season. In his career, Bou has 20 wins at Motegi.
It was also a good day for Marcelli. The young Montesa Cota 4RT rider, who has been on the podium at every round of the X-Trial and Spanish Championship series this year, was fighting for the leading positions from the first lap, placing second with 22 points. On Lap 2 he improved in all areas, which helped him maintain second place until the end.
Bou is the leader of the overall standings with 20 points, followed by Marcelli with 17. The second race in Motegi will be held on Sunday from 09:00 local time.