Honda hasn’t made a mark in WSBK for some time and 2019 represents a change of direction for them as they’ve parted company with
Ten Kate who was running the team previously.
For the new season, the team has reverted to being factory-run, this time under the Moriwaki Althea Honda Team banner. Leon Camier
stays as the lead rider and Ryuichi Kiyonari returns to WSBK after an absence of nine years. And from a photographer’s perspective,
it’s a real shame that Red Bull has ended their sponsorship as the Red Bull bikes were spectacular to shoot.
The race results for the team at Phillip Island weren’t particularly encouraging with the best finish being a 10th place for Camier in
Race 2. Disappointingly, they came away from the weekend with Camier in 16th spot and Kiyo in 17th spot on a ladder that has only
19 regular entrants. Hopefully the team will be able to improve on this as the season progresses. Camier puts in a lot of effort and it
would be great to see that rewarded with some better results.
When Sykes and Kawasaki parted ways at the end of 2018, there was much speculation as to who would be the lucky rider to score the
coveted #2 seat with the Green Team.
Leon Haslam wasn’t the most obvious choice and his Race 1 crash whilst under pressure from Rea wasn’t the start he would have
wanted. Solid finishes in the Superpole sprint race and the full length Race 2 were a lot more encouraging and good enough for him to
come away from the weekend in 6th spot on the ladder.
He’s clearly got the form to be a front runner as the season progresses. Leon’s old man Ron, a force to be reckoned with on the track
in the 80s, was on hand to see his boy race and he looked pretty happy with how the weekend played out.