1994 Honda Magna 750 on 2040-motos

Moto blog

Day 1 Dakar 2014: Barreda Draws First Blood

Team HRC’s Joan Barreda on the Honda CRF450 Rally, got off to a storming start in day one of the 2014 Dakar rally, clocking up the fastest time of all the 175 riders at the first time-check. The former Husqvarna rider who moved to Honda in the middle of the season inaugurated his 2014 Dakar with an acrobatic performance. The motorcycle competition was expected to be wide open, and that is indeed what the classification shows after the opening stage. It was a very early start for the Rally Dakar. The pack of riders headed off at four in the morning on a long 251 miles that took them towards the vibrant city of Rosario for the start of the 112 mile special.

MotoGP to Hold Official Test in Argentina; South American Nation Returning to Calendar for 2014

Dorna Sports announced there will be a MotoGP test at Argentina’s Circuito Internacional Termas de Rio Hondo in July to allow teams to prepare for the track’s expected addition to the 2014 MotoGP calendar. Argentina was actually supposed to join the MotoGP tour this season, but the round was scrapped because of a dispute between the country and Spain after the Argentine government seized control of a Repsol subsidiary. Repsol is, of course, a prominent sponsor of several teams including Honda‘s factory team.

Hero Honda Rebranded as Hero MotoCorp

Honda’s former joint venture in India has officially rebranded itself as Hero MotoCorp, revealing the company’s new logo and signaling the beginning of a new era for India’s largest motorcycle manufacturer. Formerly known as Hero Honda, the joint venture claims a share of nearly half of India’s two-wheeled vehicle market. Honda decided in late 2010 to end its 27-year partnership with India’s Hero Motors, buying out its 26% share for $855 million, about half the market price at the time.