2014 Honda CRF450 Rally
Ahead of the 2014 Dakar Rally, which will occur in Argentina, Bolivia and Chile in January 2014, Honda has unveiled the bike Team HRC will compete on – the CRF450 Rally.
For the first time in 24 years, Team HRC returned to the Dakar Rally in 2013, contesting a prototype of the CRF450 Rally that was based on Honda’s CRF450X Enduro motorcycle. Helder Rodrigues was the top Honda finisher, the Portugal native finishing seventh overall.
The 2013 Dakar Rally generated valuable data in key areas such as engine output, aerodynamic performance, durability and maintenance requirements, which were used as the basis for further design modifications and enhancements.
The resulting all-new CRF450 RALLY model retains the Programmed Fuel Injection (PGM-FI) electronic fuel injection system that has shown proven performance in the severe and highly variable environmental conditions of the Dakar Rally.
The new CRF450 RALLY will be used by TEAM HRC and will be released to other rally teams as a production rally bike during 2014.
The five riders that will compete on the Team HRC CRF450 Rally in 2014 Dakar will be Helder Rodrigues (Portugal, 34), Sam Sunderland (United Kingdom, 24), Javier Pizzolito (Argentina, 33), Joan Barreda (Spain, 29), and Paulo Goncalves (Portugal, 34).
