Torres wins first round

Bernard Perera in Dubai

Spain's Danny Torres outrode the two time champion Nate Adams of USA in a tough commpetion to win the first round of the Red Bull X-Fighters Series 2011 at the Jumeira Beach Residence in front of a huge crowd on Saturday night. It was a day to remember for the Middle East racing fans as this was the first ever event of this calibre and also the first Asian event of the X-Fighters conducted on the newly constructed track with hugh amount of dollars spent for same. The event was witnessed by Crown Prince of Dubai and Chairman of Dubai Sports Council HH Sheikh Hamdan Bin Mohammed Bin Rashid Al Maktoum, who was also the chief guest for the event.

The crowd was spellbound with the twelve riders making every effort to outdo each other in a bid to take a firm grip of the championship which was expected to give a morale boost in their first attempt. The two time champion Nate Williams could not pose a big threat to the other though he was on a high powered machine a 450cc.It was the biiggest machine seen on this track for the championship.

Torres on his way to victory collected the maximum 100 points while his closest rival Andre Villa of Norway could muster only 85 points during the final run. Nate Adams who was eyeing his third consective title with his new machine could not match the skills and tricks of the other riders as the heavy machine which came on the track for the first time did not give him the much awaited result for him.

Torres on the other side could not come up with his best during the preliminary rounds but scraped through to the quarters when he was placed seventh but made amends in the next rounds and reached semi finals. The reigning champ Nate Adams did not have tough opposition during the preliminary rounds as the other riders push hard but were only trying to qualify themselves to make it to the following rounds.

However the quarter finals were evenly contested and this saw the top ranked riders champion Nate Adams and the second ranked Robbie Maddison in the semi final which made it very difficult for both riders as it was almost looked like the final for them. This battle saw the second ranked Maddison go out of the semi final when he was outridden by the champ Adams.

Andre Villa of Norway got rid of seventeen year old New Zealander in the second semi final Levi Sherwood who was also a top contender to win the first stage here in Dubai. The younger rider admitted that he made few mistakes while trying to do new tricks which caused his exit.

The final was really an interesting one as both riders were seen trying to show their latest tricks within their stipulated time of two minutes. It was Torres who made the maximum of the prevailing conditions to show his skills which kept the spectators spellbound. Villa too came up with many top class tricks but that was not sufficient to out do the Spaniard during the final two minutes of show. Villa could muster a total of 85 points against Torres' 100.

Torres speaking after his victory said that it was a proud moment for him to win the first event of the season and also the first in the city of Dubai. This has really helped me to go for the next round with lot of confidence. But I am sure that the next round too will be a tough one for me as the other riders will come for the next round after learning from their mistakes. The advantage I have during the next round is that it will be on my home soil and the home ground advantage is with me but I have to be well prepared, said the champion rider on this day. The former champion said that it was the first time I rode a heavier nmachine on for an event. It was a powerful one but I made many mistakes with my tricks. Though I had few new tricks I could not perform. The next round in Spain will see I correct all my wrong doings and come well prepared to start a new chapter to go for the championship 2011, said Nate Adams.