The Sankt Jakobshalle in Basel played host to the world’s top FMX riders for the eighth time on Friday night, the Swiss rounds of the FIM Freestyle MX World Championship having been contested here since 2005. Making a special guest appearance was Switzerland’s homegrown superstar, Mat Rebeaud, who was aiming to revive the form that secured him the first ever world championship title in the 2006 season. But this time, he was up against the current crop of the world elite.
The German contingent made things easy for the local veteran, as first Lukas Weis crashed spectacularly on his last jump but thankfully emerged uninjured, and then Hannes Ackermann botched his Cliffhanger Flip by hanging on tight to the handlebar. This left the duo floundering in eleventh and twelfth positions.
Massimo Bianconcini, Jose Miralles and Brice Izzo were also below par on their runs and failed to make it through to the final. Nonetheless, the line-up for Friday’s NIGHT of the JUMPs in Basel was probably the strongest ever seen in the World Championship, as Petr Pilat discovered to his cost: despite laying on his toughest backflips and a host of variations, he had to settle for seventh place.
The preliminary heat was won by Spain’s Dany Torres with his new Doublegrab Indy Flip. Joining him for the final in provisional second place was his training partner, Maikel Melero. The judges rewarded Rob Adelberg with a place in the last six for being the only contestant to perform two flips over the 26-metre gap. Rebeaud also made it through by virtue of a 540 Flair over the Quarterpipe – a NIGHT of the JUMPs trick premiere. The remaining places went to two other former world champions – Libor Podmol and Remi Bizouard.
Dany Torres carried the momentum from his qualifying run through to the Rockwell Best Whip contest, winning ahead of Red Bull team-mate Mat Rebeaud. The Swiss rider fared no better in the Maxxis Highest Air in which Jose Miralles cleared the bar at 9.20 metres to beat world record holder Massimo Bianconcini (8.90 metres) for the second time this season.
Rebeaud had set his heart on pleasing the home crowd in the final: his 540 Flair trick was once again performed to perfection, but his run contained a Flip Deadsailor which relegated him to sixth. Current championship leader Maikel Melero was also penalised in the final for a planned Double Seatgrab Backflip in the double-up which fizzled out into a ‘mere’ Seatgrab Flip, leaving him back in fifth place. Rob Adelberg executed two Seatgrab tricks, saving a Cliffhanger Flip for the end of his run. But that wasn’t even good enough for a podium. Taking the third spot was Remi Bizouard thanks to a Rulerflip.
Dany Torres showcased his new Double Seatgrab Indy Flip, but the judges rated Libor Podmol’s Surfer Tsunami Flip over the Kicker Ramp even higher. So after taking the NIGHT of the JUMPs winner’s trophy in Gdansk, the Czech rider repeated the feat in Basel.
Despite his fifth place finish, Maikel Melero still leads the overall standings in the FMX World Championship on 58 points ahead of Remi Bizouard on 52. Tying for third place are Libor Podmol and Dany Torres, both on 50 points.
Melero could lose his lead as early as Saturday night (29th March 2014) when the fifth round of the FIM Freestyle MX World Championship is contested during the second half of a NIGHT of the JUMPs double bill in Basel.
Final
1. Libor Podmol CZE ACCR Yamaha 393 Points
2. Dany Torres ESP RFME KTM 389 Points
3. Remi Bizouard FRA FFM Kawasaki 373 Points
4. Rob Adelberg AUS MA Yamaha 370 Points
5. Maikel Melero ESP RFME Yamaha 359 Points
6. Mat Rebeaud SUI FMS KTM 349 Points
Qualification
1. Dany Torres ESP RFME KTM 350 Points
2. Maikel Melero ESP RFME Yamaha 344 Points
3. Rob Adelberg AUS MA Yamaha 338 Points
4. Mat Rebeaud SUI FMS KTM 334 Points
5. Libor Podmol CZE ACCR Yamaha 333 Points
6. Remi Bizouard FRA FFM Kawasaki 331 Points
7. Petr Pilat CZE ACCR KTM 327 Points
8. Brice Izzo FRA FFM Yamaha 323 Points
9. Jose Miralles ESP RFME KTM 259 Points
10. Massimo Bianconcini ITA PZM KTM 277 Points
11. Hannes Ackermann GER DMSB KTM 276 Points
12. Lukas Weis GER DMSB Suzuki 189 Points
Whip Contest
1. Dany Torres ESP RFME KTM
2. Mat Rebeaud SUI FMS KTM
Maxxis Highest-Air
1. Jose Miralles ESP RFME KTM 9,20 Meter
2. Massimo Bianconcini ITA PZM KTM 8,90 Meter
FIM Freestyle MX World Championships
1. Maikel Melero ESP RFME Yamaha 58 Points
2. Remi Bizouard FRA FFM Kawasaki 52 Points
3. Libor Podmol CZE ACCR Yamaha 50 Points
4. Dany Torres ESP RFME KTM 50 Points
5. Rob Adelberg AUS MA Yamaha 39 Points
6. Brice Izzo FRA FFM Yamaha 38 Points
7. Jose Miralles ESP RFME KTM 31 Points
8. Hannes Ackermann GER DMSB KTM 24 Points
9. Petr Pilat CZE ACCR KTM 22 Points
10. Massimo Bianconcini ITA PZM KTM 20 Points
11. Luc Ackermann GER DMSB KTM 15 Points
12. Aleksey Koleshnikov RUS MFR Yamaha 13 Points
13. Mat Rebeaud SUI FMS KTM 10 Points
14. Marcin Luksczcyk POL PZM Yamaha 5 Points
15. Lukas Weis GER DMSB Suzuki 4 Points
16. Artur Puzio POL PZM Kawasaki 4 Points