Pages Aces Best Run ever to Win World Tour Title

Tom Pages of France won the 2013 Red Bull X-Fighters World Tour on Friday in front of a frenzied Madrid crowd of 23,000 with what was probably the most electrifying run ever in the season finale. Japan’s Taka Hagashino finished second on a thrilling night of FMX in Madrid’s famous Las Ventas bullring with Javier Villegas of Chile taking third place. Pages took the World Tour championship with 360 points with the 2011 champion, Dany Torres of Spain, in second with 260 points.

 

Due to situations beyond the control of the Red Bull X-Fighters organising team, the stop in Pretoria, South Africa, scheduled for September, was cancelled because the execution of a world-class sportive competition could not be guaranteed. That meant Madrid was turned into the season finale.

 

Red Bull X-Fighters Sports Director, Tes Sewell, said: "Everyone on the Red Bull X-Fighters team is obviously massively disappointed that the event in Pretoria has been cancelled. South Africa has a lively FMX community and I know that those fans will be devastated to miss a great event. Let's hope we make Red Bull X-Fighters South Africa a reality in 2014."

 

Pages took FMX to new heights in front of the big Madrid crowd, the most enthusiastic on the calendar each year. He dug deep into his big bag of tricks on the jumps that saw him flying up to 15 meters high and 30 meters in distance. Reflecting how close the world’s FMX elite has become, the Frenchman became the fourth different World Tour champion in the last four years. Pages epitomized consistency all season, getting on the podium in all five events.

 

On Friday he gave what was probably his most brilliant performance ever in the final against Higashino, nailing his scintillating Flair (a 540-degree turn off a quarter-pipe), his Special Flip (a mid-air back-flip above his seat) and the Volt (a mid-air 360-degree spin off his bike) and then sending the crowd into ecstasy with his new trick, a Flair Tsunami - with his
legs flying high into the moonlit night sky.

 

“This is more than a dream, it’s just amazing", Pages said, clearly delighted to get his first victory world tour victory in Madrid. The 2012 champion, Levi Sherwood of New Zealand, was a disappointing fifth overall.

 

People who have already purchased tickets for Red Bull X-Fighters Pretoria are requested to contact Computicket for a full refund.