The name Honda is synonymous with winning. Not just winning but dominating. The names of Honda champions reads like a who’s who of the top riders across all disciplines of motorcycle racing: MotoGP: Hailwood, Spencer, Doohan, Rossi. World Superbike: Merkel, Edwards. AMA Superbike/Supersport: Merkel, Rainey, Duhamel, Hayden. Supercross/Motocross: Johnson, Stanton, McGrath, Carmichael. Honda’s might has even been felt in World Endurance (Polen), World Motocross (Everts) and World Trials (Lampkin).

So what went wrong in 2004? After years of dominating, 2004 was almost a complete wash for Honda. Even their star riders left for other factories with Rossi going to Yamaha and Carmichael going to Suzuki. Perhaps the most prestigious title for 2004 was their World Supersport championship with Karl Muggeridge. Certainly short of their previous MotoGP, World Superbike, AMA Supercross/Motocross titles.

Ultimately, I think the problem goes back nearly two decades and is fundamentally rooted in Honda corporate culture. They are a company that thrive on technical challenges and excel in their R&D. Honda’s innovation includes their multi-cylinder GP bikes of the ’60s, their CR series of off-road bikes, the oval piston road racers and it continues right up to their aluminum framed motocross bikes and their V-5 GP bikes. The success that Honda has found with their technology has lead to a justifiable corporate pride. The entire company puts forth the effort and the entire company shares in the spoils of victory.

The problem is that motorcycle racing is ultimately an individual sport. It is the talent, the determination and the bravery of one person that makes or breaks a motorcycle race. If the company puts forth the image that it’s equipment, rather than it’s rider, is the champion then the rider will ultimately look elsewhere. Additionally, when the equipment really is superior, a great rider will have to win on something else to prove that it takes more than yanking the throttle of a awesome bike to earn a championship.

Honda builds championship level riders, thanks to them having a championship budget. Smaller teams like Kawasaki (whose R&D budget is probably half what Honda’s Marketing budget is for a their cruiser line…) and Suzuki venture out and look for fresh talent. Once they are proven winners, Honda can sweep in with a big fat check and sign these diamonds in the rough. That same budget allows for intense R&D to build a bike that fits the rider. That same budget allows constant testing, allowing the rider to learn the bike and give more feedback to the R&D side. That same budget hires top wrenches. All that money buys a championship and builds a world class rider. Honda are truely the king builders of motorcycle racing.

But that same power, that same seemingly endless pool of money and that same history of dominance is ultimately their Achilles heel. As Honda pounds their chest and exclaims their superiority, their riders are secretly talking with Yamaha or Suzuki or Kawasaki or Ducati or someone else to see if they can return to underdog status. If they can then beat Honda, they’ll go down forever as a great.

What can Honda do? Well, giving their riders more credit would certainly help but I think they will always be a victim of their own success. As such, they just have to keep a steady stream of new talent coming up through the ranks so they have someone to step up each time a top level rider leaves. When Doohan left, they had Rossi waiting in the wings. When Jeremy McGrath left, they started building up Ricky Carmichael. It isn’t yet clear who Honda hopes will be their next champion but in MotoGP its a good bet that Nicky Hayden is on that short list. Whoever it is, you can be sure it won’t be long before Honda is on top again.

[image from Racer X Illustrated web site]