Toby Martyn

We take a look at Toby Martyn’s 2018 Trial2 season in his own words.

ROUND 1: CAMPRODON, SPAIN

QUALIFYING 1: 3RD, QUALIFYING 2: 3RD, RESULT: 4TH My first lap was steady, it took me a bit of time to get into it and get a few sections out the way but we put in some good rides. Then the second lap started with a bit of a disaster as the rain came and changed the sections for the worse; as I was at the back of the pack it really affected the first few hazards, which cost me a couple of fives. This in turn cost me getting on the podium, which was not the result we wanted! RESULTS: 1: Grattarola 13; 2: J Peace 27; 3: Gubian 31; 4: MARTYN 35; 5: Gelabert 36. CHAMPIONSHIP: 1: Grattarola 20; 2: J Peace 17; 3: Gubian 15; 4: MARTYN 13; 5: Gelabert 11.

ROUND 2: TWO DAY COMPETITION MOTEGI, JAPAN

DAY ONE: QUALIFYING 1: 4TH, QUALIFYING 2: 5TH, RESULT: 1ST Motegi Japan is, in my mind, one of the top venues to have in the calendar because it’s so different to every other venue. The trial on Saturday was set to be a scorcher; I went clean on the first six sections and after a dab in section seven I went on to clean the next four sections. I started the second lap very strong and was riding confidently, which meant we could put lap one behind us and start new. On reaching the end with a steady score, in my mind I was feeling like I could have saved a lot more marks. Getting to that scoreboard at the finish and seeing my name placed on top was a feeling I could never explain. Definitely a result to remember being it was my 18th birthday as well! RESULTS: 1: MARTYN 11; 2: Grattarola 12; 3: D Peace 12; 4: Marcelli 20; 5: J Peace 21. CHAMPIONSHIP: 1: Grattarola 37; 2: MARTYN 33; 3: J Peace 28; 4: D Peace 23; 5: Marcelli 22. DAY TWO: RESULT: 3RD Trying to sleep the night after winning was hard, I was still full of excitement but we knew we had a championship to fight for. They made a few small changes to the sections making them harder after day one, but I still felt confident. The opening lap went well but I still had a few too many small mistakes, but we still placed in the top three. Then the second lap started good and we kept it consistent and the fives to a minimum, which meant we could finish on the last step of the podium but unfortunately we dropped to third in the championship.

RESULTS: 1: Grattarola 5; 2: Marcelli 11; 3: MARTYN 13; 4: D Peace 16; 5: Riba 16. CHAMPIONSHIP: 1: Grattarola 57; 2: Marcelli 49; 3: MARTYN 48; D Peace 36; 5: Moret 31.

ROUND 3: SANT JULIA, ANDORRA

QUALIFYING 1: 24TH, QUALIFYING 2: 6TH, RESULT: 5TH Andorra this year was a round to forget for me. The trial was one of those days where your head had to be in the right place, I had a strong first lap putting me around the podium. I then went into the second lap feeling good, I started strong with a couple of small mistakes but had a slack five in one of the penultimate sections. To finish my day off I went and slipped off a log and fived the last section of the day finishing in 5th, but I moved into second in the championship. RESULTS: 1: Grattarola 2; 2: Marcelli 7; 3: J Peace 13; 5: Moret 15; 5: MARTYN 19. CHAMPIONSHIP: 1: Grattarola 77; 2: MARTYN 59; 3: Marcelli 56; 4: J Peace 44; 5: Moret 44.

ROUND 4: GOUVEIA, PORTUGAL

QUALIFYING 1: 5TH, QUALIFYING 2: 2ND, RESULT: 4TH Set to be the hottest GP it certainly didn’t disappoint, being around 30 degrees-plus all weekend. The first lap on the Sunday started well with one silly five, but I put that to one side and made sure my other mistakes were not as drastic. On the second lap I kept away from the silly fives but too many slack dabs kept me off the podium; it was damage limitation in terms of the result but it meant we were still in a really good position in the championship.

RESULTS: 1: Dan Peace 13; 2: Gelabert 16; 3: Marcelli 17; 4: MARTYN 19; 5: Gandola 21.

CHAMPIONSHIP: 1: Grattarola 83; 2: MARTYN 72; 3: Marcelli 71; 4: D Peace 60; 5: Moret 54.

ROUND 5: AURON, FRANCE

QUALIFYING 1: 1ST, QUALIFYING 2: 2ND, RESULT: 1ST Another high-altitude event on the calendar but it was set to be an awesome weekend. An easy trial meant I had to keep my concentration all day; I cleaned the first seven sections then had a few low-risk dabs in the next couple of sections but it kept me in the running, ending in joint second. The second lap started the same but I then went on to clean the first eight sections and this put me in with a chance of clinching the win, then a few safe marks in the middle of the lap and a strong finish meant we could take a very important win in Auron. RESULTS: 1: MARTYN 6; 2: Marcelli 8; 3: J Peace 8; 4: D Peace 9; 5: Gelabert 11.

CHAMPIONSHIP: 1: Grattarola 93; 2: MARTYN 92; 3: Marcelli 88; 4: D Peace 73; 5: J Peace 67.

ROUND 6: COMBLAIN AU PONT, BELGIUM

QUALIFYING 1: 4TH, QUALIFYING 2: 1ST, RESULT: 1ST This was an interesting event and one to remember, having dislocated my shoulder on the Thursday. The trial was interesting to say the least, but having strapped my shoulder up I felt I was going to be all right. My first lap was steady, having one silly five in the middle which kept me further off the lead. We went into the second lap just aiming to stay away from fives and keep it safe, and that’s what I did. To win this event really was one to remember and one that started to make the championship more interesting.

RESULTS: 1: MARTYN 18; 2: Grattarola 19; 3: Moret 20; 4: Petrella 22; 5: Marcelli 29. CHAMPIONSHIP: 1: MARTYN 112; 2: Grattarola 110; 3: Marcelli 99; 4: D Peace 82; 5: J Peace 77.

ROUND 7: SILSDEN, GREAT BRITAIN

QUALIFYING 1: 5TH, QUALIFYING 2: 2ND, RESULT: 4TH I arrived here to win and with the support from the home crowd that’s what I did, a huge thanks to you all. With the summer break in the championship leaving me feeling fresh I blitzed qualifying and carried that confidence into the trial. In a very close finish my minder Sam kept me focused and the result was exactly what we wanted and I opened up a small point’s gap for the last round in Italy. RESULTS: 1: MARTYN 20; 2: Grattarola 20; 3: Marcelli 22; 4: J Peace 29; 5: Gandola 33. CHAMPIONSHIP: 1: MARTYN 132; 2: Grattarola 127; 3: Marcelli 114; 4: D Peace 92; 5: J Peace 90.

ROUND 8: PIETRAMURATA DI DRO, ITALY

QUALIFYING 1: 2ND, QUALIFYING 2: 1ST, RESULT: 3RD I felt very good in qualifying, which was reflected in the result. I was not at my best in the trial but I fought all the way until the end. To lose on what was an observer’s change of mind was very disappointing, but I accept the final championship results and look forward to 2019 – I will be back! RESULTS: 1: Grattarola 2; 2: Marcelli 18; 3: MARTYN 22; 4: Petrella 23; 5: Moret 31. CHAMPIONSHIP: 1: Grattarola 147; 2: MARTYN 147; 3: Marcelli 131; 4: D Peace 102; 5: J Peace 99.