FMX News
Australian freestyle motocross star Robbie Maddison took to the skies on Tuesday for a final training session ahead of the second stop of the Red Bull X-Fighters World Tour in Cairo (EGY) this Friday.
The hot and dry desert wind posed a major challenge for both man and machine in the desert just outside Africa’s most populous city.
Friday will see the best 12 FMX riders on the planet battle it out head-to-head directly in front of the 73.5-metre-long and 20-metre-high Great Sphinx of Giza constructed between 2700 and 2600 BC.
Maddison, who jumped over London’s (UK) iconic Tower Bridge in 2009 before sailing over the Corinth Canal in Greece in March 2010, is one of the favorites for the overall win on the Red Bull X-Fighters World Tour 2010 featuring stops in Mexico City (MEX), Cairo (EGY), Moscow (RUS), Madrid (ESP), London (UK) and Rome (ITA).
After third place in 2008 and second place in 2009, Robbie "Maddo" Maddison will settle for nothing other than victory in this year’s Red Bull X-Fighters World Tour.
The Australian FMX legend looks forward to second tour stop in Egypt and explains why this year it really is all about victory in the Red Bull X-Fighters.
Q&A with Robbie Maddison
So Robbie, how is your preparation for this year’s Red Bull X-Fighters World Tour stop in Egypt going?
Robbie Maddison says: "I feel this year is going to be a good year. I learnt so much last year, so I just can’t wait to put it all into place and use up the energy I have now riding my bike. I rode pretty well at the opening event of the season in Mexico City, but with the event being cancelled due to the weather it is hard to know where I am compared with the other guys. The third place in Mexico means I already have some points on the board, and I am looking forward to really going for it in Egypt."
What did you learn last year?
Robbie Maddison says: "I leant that I can’t do everything! I gave a lot of attention to the long-distance jumps and building jumps. The way I am going to ride better is by having a balance, deciding which jumps are the right ones to do and which aren’t. I need to free up my schedule because I spent too much time last year trying to fit in all these jumps, and that cost me a lot of time and concentrating just thinking about doing all these extra things."
The Red Bull X-Fighters rumour mill is churning away with whispers of you having developed some new tricks. What’s the deal?
Robbie Maddison says: "It’s true. I worked a lot before the start of the season and have also been working hard since Mexico City. Eigo Sato showcased a new trick in Latin America, where rider and bike combine to form an airplane. I have been working on that and now have the trick pretty much dialled – I call it "Maddison Airlines". I will also be showing a new Whip Flip and a special something I have developed for the Backflip."
You completed your final training session in front of the Great Sphinx in the desert just outside Cairo. Was the hot, dry desert wind and the sand a problem?
Robbie Maddison says: "The bike worked really well. If course, it is a little different using natural sand dunes rather than kickers to take off and landing on moving sand rather than dirt, but the training was great fun and I had the chance to see one of the most amazing sunsets on the planet. It is an incredible combination: on one side you have the most populace city in Africa, on the other the seemingly endless desert."