2005 Indoor World Trial Championship Round 12

The season of perseverance is over for the Montesa riders

The final round of IWTC took place at Ibiza, the island off the coast of Barcelona. It was the third time that the Indoor event being held in the Spanish land this year.

It was up to the riders at Montesa team to choose the bike for the final round: 'works' bike- Fujinami calls it as his 'proper' bike, and the standard-based bike. Fuji chose the standard-based bike as he did for the previous round. He didn't want to slow down the bike development for the Outdoor by shipping his 'proper' bike to Ibiza, because it would take about a week shipping the bike to and from the island. Lampkin on the other hand chose the 'works' bike, for he was in a serious battle for 3rd in the championship against Fajardo by sharing the championship points with 55. He rode the 'works' bike in UK a week ago, and he wanted to stick with the bike that he had some fresh experiences.

Fuji rode the standard-based bike in UK a week ago, but because of intensive test sessions with the 'proper' bike he had between rounds, Fuji needed to adjust himself again for the standard-based bike for the competition at Ibiza; such adjustment confused the Montesa riders throughout the Indoor season. Although Fuji's main focus has already shifted to the Outdoor season, it was clear that he would try his best to finish on the podium when he competing. Knowing Lampkin on the superior equipment, beating his teammate on the standard-bike was another goal for him at the round too.

Tadeusz Blazusiak started first for the qualification lap, and he completed seven observed sections with 32 penalty points. Freixa followed with 23, then Cabestany with 16, and Raga with 10. Lampkin was next but he struggled and made a lot of mistakes. It was also unfortunate for Lampkin because he needed to finish better than Fajardo, but starting before the rival, he had to show all his cards and tricks to him. Lampkin seemed to be a little bit anxious for the championship battle, and he completed seven sections with 23 points.

Watching the rivals' performances, Fuji calculated that he needed to keep the penalty point around high 10s in order to proceed to the final lap. When inspecting the sections earlier, there were two sections appeared to be too tough for him to avoid taking fives. It was then up to Fuji if he could keep it together for the rest of the lap to minimize his penalty points. Fuji started the lap by clearing the first section as everybody else. He went on to the section 2; where Lampkin fived, and he had a single dab there. But from section 3 to 5, Fuji marked three consecutive fives, and he completed seven sections with 19 points. Fuji knew that his chance for the final became smaller.

Fajardo followed as the final rider in the qualification lap, and he completed the sections with 17 points. It was then became the battle between Fajardo and Fuji for the final spot for the final. Meanwhile, Fajardo came to Ibiza with 4 points advantage over Fuji for 3rd in the championship. If Fajardo would finish at or better than 4th, Fuji needed to win the event to take the 3rd in the championship.

At the high jump, Lampkin made an error, and his chance for 3rd in the championship was gone. Fajardo safely cleared the high jump, and then he went on to the double-lane against Fuji. The only chance Fuji had for the final was winning the double-lane and hope that Fajardo would take another penalty point. However Fajardo was very careful and he took his time at DL. He gave away the victory to Fuji, but making no further mistake to finish the lap with 18 points- one point better than Fuji, to take the spot for the final lap.

When the qualification was over, the Indoor championship rankings were all fixed. Young Fajardo captured the 3rd place in his first IWTC season. The former Indoor world champion Lampkin followed at 4th, and Fuji settled at the 5th place.

It was a very busy Indoor season for Montesa team and its riders, for they put the maximum effort to develop the bike for the Outdoor season while competing the series. It was the season of perseverance, and hard for the riders to maintain their motivation toward the competition too. Prior to the season, Montesa team considered to skip the Indoor season to concentrate on new bike development. However, having two world champions in the team, they knew it would be a huge disappointment for the fans and the sponsors by not attending the series. The team decided to enter the series, but all the results show how difficult the season was for their riders. The team appreciates the effort being put by the riders, and they are satisfied with the results considering the situation. Yet it was very hard and frustrating for Fuji and the rest of team riders to celebrate the rival standing on top of the podium.

Still the team collected some valuable data by competing this year's Indoor series, which the data they wouldn't achieve by testing and practicing alone. The Montesa team will be participating the Spanish championship next, in which their 'works' bike making its debut at the Outdoor competition. Let's hope that all the Montesa riders will bounce back for their revenge in the coming Outdoor seasons.

Quote from Fujigas:

I set my goal to finish better than Lampkin on the 'works' bike, and I could try my best today. I had some bad luck and I received a lot of fives. It was a frustrating season for me that I could not show any impressive performance. It was a tough season with bike development and everything, but being a competitor results are everything. We are going to compete Outdoor in Spanish championship next. I know a lot of people have doubt in Montesa team and myself by watching this Indoor season. At this moment, I have no concrete idea what is going to be either, but I know we did everything we needed for developing the bike. I am looking forward to Outdoor competition, which I have been waiting for a long time.

Pix: < http://www.worldtrials.info/>

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