Team Honda HRC’s Trey Canard took a break from his off-season to make a cameo appearance at this weekend’s final round of the All Japan MX National Championship.
Competing at Sportsland Sugo in Sendai, Japan, the Oklahoman secured the overall victory in the IA1 class.
In Moto 1, Canard fought hard against fellow American Cooper Webb before ultimately settling for second.
When the gate dropped for Moto 2, Canard took the early lead aboard his factory CRF450R. For the remainder of the race, he held off repeated challenges from newly crowned MX1 World Champion Romain Febvre – often with less than a second separating the two – to earn the moto and overall wins.
It was a busy week for Canard and his Team Honda HRC crew, as they made stops at a number of Honda facilities before traveling by bullet train from Tochigi to Sendai for the race.
They started their trip with a visit to the Honda Proving Center and then stopped by the Twin Ring Motegi to see the Honda Collection Hall, a transport museum that houses a collection of famous Honda race bikes.
Following the race, Team Honda HRC concluded their Japanese trek with a celebratory dinner with Honda Racing Corporation Vice President Shuhei Nakamoto.
“This trip to Japan has been a great experience, and I’m really happy with how the race went,” said Canard. “Taking home the win is huge not only for myself, but for the entire HRC crew who put in a tremendous amount of work to make this happen.
“My bike was working great and I felt like I was riding well. Holding off Romain Febvre in the second moto was a challenge, but it was a fight to the end and I won. I’ve been a Honda rider for a long time, so it was also great to be able to visit different Honda facilities, see so much history, and meet the people that make my dream possible.”
Team Manager, Dan Betley said: “I’m really pleased with how this trip went and couldn’t be happier for our team.
“Trey was riding fast throughout the whole event, finishing second in qualifying and the first moto, and then battling out front during the entire second moto before taking the win. I really like what I see in terms of the progression and want to keep this momentum going through the off-season and into Anaheim 1.”
Results: All Japan MX National Championship – Sportsland Sugo
Moto 1
1. Cooper Webb
2. Trey Canard (Team Honda HRC)
3. Romain Febvre
4. Akira Narita
5. Ogata Makoto
6. Kojima Yohei
7. Atsuta Yoshitaka
8. Fukaya Koichi
9. Hiroaki Arai
10. Yosuhara Zhi
Moto 2
1. Trey Canard (Team Honda HRC)
2. Romain Febvre
3. Cooper Webb
4. Akira Narita
5. Ogata Makoto
6. Atsuta Yoshitaka
7. Hiroaki Arai
8. Fukaya Koichi
9. Mihara Takuya
10. Yasuhara Zhi
Overall Results
1. Trey Canard (2-1)
2. Cooper Webb (1-3)
3. Romain Febvre (3-2)
4. Ryo Narita (4-4)
5. Ogata Makoto (5-5)
