There will be no rest for Team HRC this summer. The rally team will be in action from Friday at the renowned Baja Aragon, a legendary event in the off road motorcycle discipline, in Spain. This event is the second round in which points count towards the FIM Bajas World Cup.

The 33rd edition of the Baja Aragon can expect the presence of Team HRC which will feature Joan Barreda aboard the Honda CRF450 R Enduro and Michael Metge astride the CRF450 Rally. Both riders, who took part in the team’s triumphant Desafio Ruta 40, have chosen to line up for various reasons. The location is in the proximity of the new team headquarters and is close to the rider’s residences. At play is the prestigious Baja Aragón title, but the race has also been selected for the high speeds and scorching temperatures that will have to be endured in the Teruel province.

Joan Barreda has won the Baja Aragon on two previous occasions, first in 2012 and then in 2013 with Honda. The rally will be staged over three days. The event kicks off Friday 22nd after the technical and administrative tests, with a 9-kilometre prologue in the vicinity of Teruel. The first full stage will be held on Saturday with two timed-sections; Sunday will boast just a single special stage. By race-end, the riders will have run some 600 kilometres against the clock.

Team HRC, as it has done in other rallies, will support the rider Oriol Mena from the Honda Motor Europe España team who makes a debut in an event of these characteristics.

Private: Martino Bianchi

Monster Energy Honda General Manager

Team HRC, after a month’s rest following the successes of the Ruta 40 in Argentina, now return to take part in the Baja Aragon. The race is historically significant among classic off road competitions, especially in Spain where it is held in very high esteem as an international gathering. Joan Barreda will be participating with a CRF 450 R Enduro with enlarged petrol tanks, while Michael Metge makes his maiden Baja rally with the CRF 450 Rally. It should be an interesting final test in the heat of the Spanish desert before the summer break, after which we will be back to dispute some of the international rallies before the Dakar 2017. At the Baja, Team HRC shall be monitoring also Oriol Mena, who will be making his debut in a competition like the Baja Aragon.

Location Information

The mystery of Dakar desert and Baja California left their mark within the sports men and adventurers who were willing to fulfil their spare time with challenging experiences. At the beginning of the eighties, when the mythic Paris-Dakar was already consolidated as one of the most important raids events, a… read more.

Palacio De Exposiciones Y Congresos De Teruel, Caudé, España - View in Google Maps

Records

Winner 2017 Joan Barreda
Winner 2016 Joan Barreda
Winner 2015 Gerard Farrés
Winner 2014 Gerard Farrés
Winner 2013 Joan Barreda
Winner 2012 Joan Barreda