Rubén Xaus
| Rubén Xaus | |
|---|---|
Rubén Xaus
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| Nationality | Spanish |
| Born |
February 18, 1978 Sant Cugat del Vallès, Catalunya (Spain) |
| Website | rubenxaus.net |
Rubén Xaus (born 18 February 1978 in Barcelona, Catalonia, Spain) is a retired motorcycle road racer. During his career he competed in both the Superbike World Championship and the MotoGP. He is nicknamed 'Spider-Man', as his lanky frame leads him to hang over the bike in an unusual way.
His father, who competed in amateur mountain bicycle races, gave Xaus his first motorcycle at the age of five, a Montesa 25cc. Aged 14 he was racing dirt-bikes, but his father convinced him to turn his attentions towards road racing. Xaus took part in the 125cc Catalan Championship, the 125cc Solo Moto Criterium, and that same year he took victory in the 80cc Catalonia Supermoto Championship.
In 1994 he competed in the Open Ducados Supersport series in Spain – finishing 17th place, improving to third the following year. In 1995 he entered the FIM Thunderbike trophy and contested four 250cc Grand Prix. Xaus finished sixth in Thunderbike in 1996, moving to World Supersport in 1997 taking 17th overall.
In 1998 he rode in the German Pro-Superbike series, taking sixth place overall. In 1999 he finished fifth in the Supersport World Championship, taking his first ever victory at Misano. In 2000 he rode one of the official Ducati factory team Supersport bikes, finishing seventh and taking one victory.
For 2001 he moved to the factory Ducati Superbike team in partnership with then-champion Troy Bayliss. He struggled early in the season, with a best result of 5th from the first 8 meetings. However, in race 2 at Oschersleben he became the first Spaniard ever to take victory in the Superbike World Championship. A pair of 2nds at Assen (helping Bayliss to clinch the title) and a second win at Imola gave him sixth in the championship. Sixth place in 2002 was followed by fifteen podiums and seven victories in 2003, finishing runner up to team mate Neil Hodgson
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