News 16 Apr 2010

FMX: Bilko, Sincs and Maddo ready for X-Fighters opener

Australians Blake Williams, Cam Sinclair and Robbie Maddison set for Red Bull X-Fighters competition this weekend in Mexico City.

Bilko will make his X Fighters debut in Mexico this weekend.

Bilko will make his X Fighters debut in Mexico this weekend.

Australian Freestyle Motocross (FMX) star Blake ‘Bilko’ Williams will showcase his freakish ability in a new arena this weekend, lining up to compete at his first Red Bull X-Fighters event in Mexico City alongside countryman Cam Sinclair.

Williams, 25, from Baxter in Victoria, has enjoyed success on almost every stage, with his most recent achievements, gold and silver at X Games 15 in 2009, placing him at the sport’s pinnacle.

The X-Fighters World Tour opener has presented itself as a challenge, with the 5500ft elevation of the region and resulting thin air threatening to play havoc.

Bilko’s opening practice session was cut short when a routine 360-degree trick went awry upon landing. He landed hard on the downramp after being thrown highside from his bike, bruising himself and battering his bike.

It took two hours to repair his ride and the jetting gremlins still remain as he heads into the second day of competition.

“I took a pretty big hit after highsiding off the bike and landing on the downramp,” said Williams. “I took off a bit of skin and there’ll be a fair few bruises but I’ll be fine for tomorrow.

“I’m more concerned about getting the bike to do what it needs to do. I’m confident with my tricks but its just not getting the power it needs – it cut out a few times on the up-ramp in practice which isn’t good. I’m really excited about being here and part of the tour, so hopefully I have a better day tomorrow and get to put on a show for the fans. They can fit around 40,000 into this stadium which is huge!”

Fellow Aussie Sinclair will make his long awaited and much anticipated return to competitive FMX at the X-Fighters opener.

The last time Sinclair performed at the Red Bull X-Fighters, he was critically injured whilst attempting a record 27th double backflip in Madrid, Spain, last July. A crash Sinclair maintains he has no memory off and will not affect his performance in Mexico City.

“I have watched the crash in Madrid many times but still have no memory of what happened, so it doesn’t scare me,” the Victorian said. “I’m just so excited to be competing in Mexico City. The X-Fighters attracts all the very best riders in the world of FMX. For me to be back out there riding my bike and doing what I love is fantastic!”

Sinclair’s recovery from serious internal and brain injuries has been nothing short of remarkable, however Sinclair is still very conservative with respect to his expectations for this weekend.

“For this first event I don’t really have too many expectations,” he continued. “With everything that has happened in the past year, I just feel so privileged to be able to compete at all. I’ve been working really hard and will give it everything I’ve got and just see what happens.”

The legendary Robbie Maddison will enter the series as a favourite for victory, looking to finally secure victory in the overall standings after placing third and second respectively in 2008 and 2009.

“I’m stoked to be heading into another season of Red Bull X-Fighters and hoping to go one better this year,” explained the New South Welshman. “In particular I can’t wait to check out the new tour stops in Giza and Moscow, should be awesome!”

Maddison finished second in the series last season behind American Nate Adams.

The competition format will see riders practice and qualifying on day one before competition on day two. Riders outside the top six ranking will battle it out for four of six placings. A head-to-head battle (eight riders) will follow before the semi-final (four riders) is run, deciding the two remaining riders to fight it out for the event win.

The top six riders from each event will pre-qualify for the following event. The 2010 calendar consists of a six-stop calendar: Mexico City, Giza, Moscow, Madrid, London and Rome.

To watch the live webcast of the Red Bull X Fighters from Mexico City, go to www.redbullxfighters.com at 12:30pm AEST.

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