#Honda

The Monster Energy Grand Prix České republiky was the kind of procession that gives MotoGP a bad name. Marc Marquez led wire-to-wire without breaking a sweat for his 50th premier class win and a 63-point lead heading to Austria. A bit of a scramble behind him left Ducati pilots Andrea Dovizioso and Jack Miller on the side steps of the podium. Golden Boy Fabio Quartararo finished in P7, finally showing some respect for his elders. The season grinds on.

This article originally appeared on Late-Braking MotoGP.

Honda is teasing a new “True Adventure” model for 2020 which is expected to be a large Africa Twin displacing around 1100cc. Honda Motorcycles Europe has released a video to hype the new model (you’ll have to take Honda’s word for it, as no bike actually appears in the teaser) while Honda UK has opened a mailing list for people to receive updates on the new adventure bike and other 2020 models.

Trips like this always sound like such a great idea… You have somewhere you need to be in a certain time frame, and the weather looks clear. There are important personal matters requiring resolution on a Monday morning, and with my initial plan to fly now gone askew, I was staring into the driveway at the Africa Twin and pondering. How hard could it be, right?

Honda has released a new, smaller version of its X-ADV scooter for the Indonesian market. The new 2020 Honda ADV 150 is styled after the 745cc X-ADV, and while it may not be as capable off-road as its larger sibling, Honda says it’s very able to the diverse terrain and road conditions of Indonesia.

Everyone reading this had one particular motorbike they drooled over as a child.

For the tenth year in a row, The Sachsenring lay down and gave it away to Marc Marquez, who didn’t even have to buy a wrist corsage. Starting, as usual, from pole, Marquez seized the lead on the back side of the first turn, entered the express lane, and never broke a sweat on his way to the win and a ghastly, dispiriting 58-point lead as the series heads for summer vacation.

This article originally appeared on Late-Braking MotoGP.

After a two-year drought, Yamaha finally won a grand prix today, with Maverick Viñales finishing first, rookie Fabio Quartararo third, and his teammate Franco Morbidelli fifth. Marc Marquez extended his championship lead, but Valentino Rossi was a non-factor in perfect conditions at a track he loves. The Doctor needs a doctor.

This article originally appeared on Late-Braking MotoGP.

God bless the Brits. I mean, leave it to them – and by “them” I mean Honda UK and its British Touring Car Championship partner, Team Dynamics – to make the most of their bad weather and go after a Guinness world record. In this case, stuffing a CBR1000RR engine inside a riding lawnmower. All in search of going after the title of World’s Fastest Lawnmower. If ever there was such a thing as an answer to a question nobody asked, this is it. Usually, though, those answers are stupid. The Mean Mower v2 is the rare exception. Yeah, it’s absolutely pointless – but it’s also absolutely brilliant. And less than a dozen people on the entire planet have had the pleasure of piloting it. I’m lucky enough to be one of them.

Marc Marquez was probably going to win the Catalan GP anyway. But once Repsol Honda teammate Jorge “El Gato” Lorenzo skittled Ducati‘s Andrea Dovizioso and both factory Yamaha riders out of the proceedings on Lap 2, it was done and dusted in Barcelona. The Catalan’s lead in the world championship ballooned from 12 to 37 points. Valencia is groaning, joined by most of the rest of the motorcycle racing world. Here we go again.

This article originally appeared on Late-Braking MotoGP.

If you’re into motorcycle racing – and why else would you be here reading this drivel? – today’s Italian Grand Prix was a work of art. 28-year old Danilo Petrucci, who six years ago was flogging something called an Ioda, fought off Honda wonderkid Marc Marquez and factory Ducati teammate Andrea Dovizioso for his maiden MotoGP win. The 83,000 frenzied fans saw 23 laps of knife fighting at close quarters in what must be the feel good moment of the 2019 MotoGP season.

During our time in and around Palm Springs, CA, we had the chance to test not only the CBR650R, but also Honda’s new naked, the CB650R. The naked 650R shares many of the same functional components from the fully faired 650, but along with its aluminum handlebar, it has attitude and handling all its own.