#Honda

Generally speaking, finding bikes to pair up for comparison is a bit more direct; throwing the R6 against the CBR600, or building out our adventure bike shootout is mostly a no-brainer, but sometimes bikes that roll through for testing end up revealing unexpectedly similar personalities. Late this past year, I faced exactly that. Both the Honda CB650R and Husqvarna Svartpilen 701 found their way into my driveway from their respective manufacturers at the same time (due to poor scheduling and limited availability of the Svart, more than anything), and I instantly found myself playing a game of spot the similarities.

How it happened I know not, but in the excitement of new Indians, Svartpilens, and whatever else I rode this past year, the freshly upgraded 2019 Honda PCX150 escaped my attention. When my mistake hove into view, I immediately alerted the Honda authorities and borrowed one up.

16-year old Sergio Garcia won his first Grand Prix race in Moto3, becoming the 12th rider in 19 rounds to stand on the top step. Brad Binder won again in Moto2, showing the world he’s ready for MotoGP. And Marc Marquez won yet again, clinching the triple crown – rider, team and manufacturer championships – for his brothers on the Repsol Honda team. Now, it’s 2020. If you believe what you hear, the team may feature an additional brother starting this week.

This article originally appeared on Late-Braking MotoGP.

Honda unveiled its major EICMA models, led by the new CBR1000RR-R, a day before the show, but it did have something new to show visitors at the Milano Rho Fiera. In what’s now an annual tradition, Honda presented a concept bike produced by its Rome R&D Centre called the CB4X.

Honda‘s entry-level Rebel cruisers are getting updates for 2020, including a new assist-and-slipper clutch, updated suspension and LED lighting. Both 500 and 300 versions of the Rebel are getting the same updates, while Honda is also introducing an S version of the Rebel 500 for Europe which comes standard with several factory-fitted accessories.

It’s official now: Honda’s evolutionary but not quite revolutionary new CBR1000RR-R Fireblade SP “will carry Honda’s sport motorcycle lineup into the future while also bolstering its racing efforts in series including the FIM Superbike World Championship.” Now adorned with the Fireblade monicker it’s always carried in other markets, as well as four capital “R”s, the bike is said to be packed with all manner of Honda Racing Corporation MotoGP trickle-down trickery, and is “focused on outright track performance.” Packing a more compact yet more powerful engine into an all-new frame, the new bike also gets the latest in aerodynamic and electronic aids – and looks pretty swell in its HRC Tricolor paint scheme as well. Price TBD. Our very own Troy Siahaan was at the U.S. unveiling of the new CBR1000RR-R, where he came back with a few notes:

Our deepest condolences to the family and friends of Afridza Munandar, who died following a crash on the opening lap of the Idemitsu Asia Talent Cup race held Saturday after MotoGP qualifying. The 20-year-old Munandar was an up-and-coming rider, fighting for the series championship entering the Sepang round.

Recently, Alpinestars threw open the doors at Willow Springs Raceway for a day of motorcycle-focused fun. With the famed Big Track open to all comers – many who were experiencing a closed course environment for the first time – it was hard for the attendees not to have a good time. All of this, however, begs the question: What’s in it for Alpinestars? Yes, we were all wearing gear made by the apparel company (and if we didn’t have any, it was loaned to us), but this wasn’t an introduction where we were to experience a new piece of protective riding gear. The point was, it seems, to simply have fun riding motorcycles with friends. Oh, and hopefully create some new fans of track riding. You see, some of the first time track riders were name-brand Alpinestars-sponsored athletes in other disciplines. You know, influencers who have the means to preach the racetrack riding gospel and hopefully get more people interested in riding motorcycles. 

How do you make a sportbike go faster? Just add another R to it’s name.

I don’t even know whose idea it was to put an Akrapovič pipe on a perfectly good Honda Monkey, but it fell to yours truly to do the deed. And in fact I was happy to do it – to get out of the office for a day and hang with our good friend Chris at MotoGP Werks in beautiful Anaheim, California. It all takes me back to the day when new exhausts were the first thing we did to unleash the anger in our neighbors, followed by weeks of tinkering with jet kits and dousing ourselves in gasoline to try to get the bike to run as good as it used to. I kid, those things really did used to make big performance differences – but it seldom seemed as easy as the directions made it out to be.

It is now clear that Honda’s 2019 MotoGP champion Marc Marquez has his sights set on the single season points record of 383 set by The Rider Formerly Known as Jorge Lorenzo with Yamaha in 2010. Why else bother winning the Motul Grand Prix of Japan when a win would mean so much more to any number of other riders? Winning motorcycle races is in #93’s DNA, much they way it was with Nicky Hayden. He just can’t help himself.

This article originally appeared on Late-Braking MotoGP.

It’s interesting to me that a Japanese brand like Honda can feel, at times, just as American as apple pie and baseball. The brand has played an integral role in not only motorcycling, but industry in general in America since the `60s. In fact, this year Honda celebrates 60 years since a small storefront in Los Angeles opened its doors in 1959 as the company’s sole U.S. business operation.

This article originally appeared on Late-Braking MotoGP.