TrialGP Netherlands 2026 Day 2: Toni Bou Wins 40th World Title

Toni Bou Makes History Again in the Netherlands

Toni Bou has done it again. The Repsol Honda HRC rider has secured his 40th FIM Trial World Championship title, putting another remarkable milestone on an already unprecedented career.

Bou came into the final day in the Netherlands with the championship firmly in his hands, but the target was still the same as always: finish the job. His final-day performance was not his cleanest of the season, with 11 marks across the opening TrialGP lap and five more in the second lap, but the points collected were enough to deliver the championship.

Bou finished the TrialGP day with 20 championship points from the second classification and 17 from the first, while Jaime Busto took the overall day victory on the second classification after producing a much stronger performance than his opening lap.

The numbers only tell part of the story. Winning 40 world titles in any form of motorsport would be extraordinary. Doing it in a discipline as technically demanding as trial, where a single mistake can change an entire classification, makes Bou's achievement even harder to comprehend.

Busto Wins the Day, but Bou Wins the Championship

Jaime Busto produced the strongest TrialGP performance of the day, and his result was an important reminder that Bou's dominance does not mean his rivals have stopped pushing.

Busto recorded just 3 marks on the second lap and took 20 championship points from that classification. He had a much more difficult first lap, scoring 11, but recovered strongly when it mattered.

Gabriel Marcelli finished third on the day after recording 21 marks on the first lap and 16 on the second. Matteo Grattarola was fourth, while Miquel Gelabert completed the top five.

Harry Hemingway and Jack Peace again found the Dutch sections extremely demanding. Hemingway recorded 42 marks on the first lap and 26 on the second, while Peace went from 40 to 41.

That is one of the most interesting aspects of the Netherlands results. The leading riders were not simply separated by a handful of small mistakes. Some of the sections produced significant scores, meaning consistency and the ability to recover from a difficult zone were just as important as outright technical speed.

TrialGP Netherlands Day 2 Results

My Take: Bou's 40th Title Is About More Than the Number

The obvious headline is that Toni Bou has won his 40th world title. But for me, the more impressive part is what that number represents.

Bou has remained at the front of a sport that continually evolves. Bikes change, sections change and the younger generation continues to arrive with different riding styles and enormous technical ability. Yet the result so often remains the same.

There is also an important difference between simply dominating a championship and maintaining that level of performance over an enormous period of time. Bou has had to repeatedly adapt to new rivals and new challenges, and the Netherlands weekend shows that even when the individual day does not go perfectly, he is capable of managing the championship situation.

That is the real mark of a champion. Bou did not need to produce a perfect scorecard to win the title. He needed to get the job done, and that is exactly what he did.

Harrison Skelton Becomes Trial3 World Champion

The Netherlands was also a huge day for British trial rider Harrison Skelton, who secured the Trial3 World Championship.

Skelton finished second in the day's Trial3 classification behind Marco Laure. Skelton scored 8 marks on the first lap and 6 on the second, giving him a total of 14 for the day.

Marco Laure was almost faultless by comparison, taking the Trial3 victory with just 6 marks on the first lap and a single mark on the second. Fabio Mazzola finished third after scoring 10 and 14 respectively.

But the championship is decided over the season rather than one individual day, and Skelton had done enough before arriving at the final round to secure the crown.

This is a particularly significant result for British trial. Skelton has been one of the riders to watch throughout the season, and winning a FIM Trial World Championship provides another major step in his development.

Trial3 Netherlands Day 2 Results

Trial2 Championship Still Goes Down to the Final Round

While Bou and Skelton were celebrating their championships, the Trial2 title remains completely open heading into the final round.

George Hemingway had a particularly impressive day in the Netherlands, winning the Trial2 classification after producing a remarkable second lap with zero marks.

Hemingway scored 7 marks on the first lap before completing the second lap without dropping a single mark. That gave him 20 championship points and a major boost heading into the final round.

Francesco Titli finished second, also scoring 7 marks on the first lap, while Arnau Farré completed the podium after improving dramatically from 12 marks to just 3.

Alex Canales Martos was fourth, with Benoit Bincaz fifth and Harry Turner sixth. With the championship still undecided, every point earned in this final weekend could prove critical.

The most interesting performance for me was Farré's second lap. Going from 12 marks to just 3 demonstrates exactly why Trial2 remains so difficult to predict. A rider can lose significant ground early in the day and then completely change the picture with one outstanding lap.

Trial2 Netherlands Day 2 Top Results

What the Netherlands Results Mean for the Final Round

The Netherlands has delivered two very different championship stories.

In TrialGP, the pressure is now gone for Bou. He has secured another world title, meaning the final round becomes an opportunity for the rest of the field to fight for the remaining positions and potentially finish the season on a high.

Busto's day victory is particularly important in that context. He has shown that when the sections come together, he has the pace to beat Bou on an individual day. The challenge now is turning those performances into sustained championship pressure.

Marcelli, Grattarola, Gelabert, Hemingway and Peace will all have their own reasons to attack the final round. With the title settled, the fight for the positions behind Bou becomes one of the main stories to watch.

Trial2 is different. There is still everything to play for, and the final round could produce the most dramatic championship battle of the weekend.

One Final Word on Toni Bou's 40th World Championship

There are certain achievements in motorsport that are difficult to put into perspective while they are happening. Toni Bou's 40th world title is one of them.

Whatever happens in the final round of the 2026 TrialGP season, Bou has once again achieved something that looked almost impossible when his career began.

The younger riders will continue to arrive. The sections will continue to evolve. The bikes will continue to improve. And the championship will eventually move into a new era.

But for now, the number that matters is 40.

Toni Bou is a 40-time FIM Trial World Champion.