Basquemotion is going all out for the Summer League. "We are particularly excited and our challenge is to fill the frontons," states Enaitz Olaeta, head of the new pala project. This competition promises a high-caliber summer league, which will host seven regular season matches between June and July. The semifinals and final are scheduled for September 7th and 14th, respectively, at a venue yet to be confirmed. The event kicks off on June 13th at the Gallarta fronton and will subsequently visit Lezama (June 20th), Sestao (June 29th), Iruñea (July 6th), Ispaster (July 11th), Plentzia (July 17th), and Azpeitia (July 25th).
In the first match, Pablo Fusto and Asier del Río defeated Esteban Gaubeka and Iker Gordon with scores of 15-12 and 15-7. In the second, Jagoba Madariaga and Ibai Pérez were crowned champions against Román Maldonado and Oier Alkorta by 15-14, 12-15, and 5-1. The event was accompanied by musical performances from Janus Lester, Doctor Deseo, and Sorotan Bele.
The new wooden bat brand aims to be a "benchmark" with a broad, experienced, and high-value roster of players. "The format will be similar to the festival we held at the Club Deportivo in Bilbao – on March 28th – where we combined music, a speaker, and the best pala," reflect the organizers, who express gratitude for the support from various federative entities to carry out a league that will serve as excellent preparation for the World Championship in Argentina in October.
The chosen pairings consist of renowned players, including former members of Innpala, with the exception of Iñaki Urrutia, who is sidelined with a shoulder injury. Players such as the Navarrese Iñigo Eslava, Gonzalo Pérez Galbete, Mikel Sanz, or Javier Insausti are joining the new Basquemotion circuit, while familiar faces from Biscay like Erik Zubiri or Imanol Ibáñez are also on board. Additionally, Emiliano Skufca, an Argentine residing in Barcelona, and Carlos Baeza from Segovia, who have always made a good impression in Euskadi, will participate.
Imanol, who tore his Achilles tendon in the Nations League final, acknowledges he is "improving" and hopes to be ready for the initial rounds, though he "doesn't want to risk it." In any case, Basquemotion has substitutes of the caliber of Ion Olazabal, Alejandro Murcia, or Berrogui. The player from Bilbao teams up with Baeza, a friend and teammate. "It's great to have new projects for pala. We are very excited," explains the player from Abusu. This pair shares a group with Eslava-Galbete, Madariaga-Insausti, and Fusto-Skufca. "I see a very balanced tournament," adds Ibáñez.
Group 2, meanwhile, is composed of Gaubeka-Del Río, Maldonado-Alkorta, Zubiri-Ibai Pérez, and Mikel Sanz-Gordon. "The level is spectacular. Most of the players have been world champions. If you analyze the pairs one by one, you conclude that it's very evenly matched," explains Román, who believes that "Insausti is a player who will surprise." "The best of the best will be here," he adds. Iker Gordon, for his part, admits that "the Summer League is a dream." "We have hope in this new project after everything that has happened," states the player from Sopelana.
Furthermore, Basquemotion assures that they plan to organize a ProAm championship once the World Championship in October concludes. January would be the turn for the Individual championship, and subsequently, they are considering offering a Pairs Championship. They are raising the stakes.
