Australia’s Josh Sheehan beat Taka Higashino of Japan in an action-packed Red Bull X-Fighters final in Munich, Germany, Saturday on a first-of-its-kind freestyle motocross track built on a lake next to Olympic Stadium.
Sheehan powered his way to his second career win and first victory since 2011 with three perfectly executed Double Backflips that had the big German crowd on its feet and begging for more of the mid-summer fairytale performance.
It was a bittersweet day for defending champion Thomas Pagès of France, who had moved into third place overall in the championship battle with his brilliant victory over Sheehan in the final in Madrid last month. But Pages, who won Friday’s Qualifying, saw his title hopes evaporate after he had to abandon his bike in mid-air while attempting the treacherous Bike Flip that he did for the first time in Madrid. The Frenchman crashed hard to the ground, suffering a shoulder injury, and was lucky that his 100-kg bike just missed landing on top of him.
