• Pro Moto Unlimited victory to CRF450X-mounted SLR Honda
• Red Bull Honda Talon Factory Racing wins Pro UTV NA with Talon 1000R

Honda-backed teams dominated the 57th edition of the Baja 500 over the weekend, with SLR Honda topping the Pro Moto Unlimited division and Red Bull Honda Talon Factory Racing winning the Pro UTV Normally Aspirated class.

Heavy rains hammered the Baja Peninsula leading up to the event, making for a challenging, 461.03-mile racecourse. The motorcycles began leaving the ceremonial Ensenada start line in full darkness Saturday at 3:30 a.m., with Tyler Lynn taking the SLR Honda CRF450X 209 miles southeast before handing off to teammate Carter Klein with a 10-minute lead on second place. Klein raced back north along the Pacific Coast to mile 380 before Lynn took over to the finish, reaching the checkered flag back in Ensenada with a winning time of nine hours, 18 minutes, 23 seconds, for a margin of just over 10 minutes on the runner-up Hero Racing Honda CRF450X fielded by Arturo Salas, Shane Logan and Ciaran Naran. It was Honda’s 24th two-wheel overall win in the Baja 500.

“We had a great Baja 500,” said SLR owner Mark Samuels. “The conditions were really harsh, with heavy fog and rain, but everyone performed great. I’m very proud of how the team and riders managed this win.”

It was daylight by the time the four-wheel vehicles began leaving the ceremonial start at 9:15 a.m., with Corbin Leaverton piloting the Red Bull Honda Talon Factory Racing Talon 1000R. With the assistance of codrivers Cavan Freeman and Isaac Torres, Leaverton handled the challenging conditions impressively. At the finish, the squad posted a time of 12 hours, six minutes, 41 seconds, with the Raceco-backed Team Pedder Racing Talon 1000R of Ricky Torres earning second place, six minutes and 24 seconds back.

“Corbin is an accomplished side-by-side racer, with experience stateside and in the Dakar, but he had never raced in Baja before,” said Red Bull Honda Talon Factory Racing owner Jeff Proctor. “For that reason, I don’t think he was on a lot of people’s radars, but we were confident he would do well, especially after he pre-ran all week in a stock Talon. With the weather, the course was extremely muddy, and there was very limited visibility. He ended up having to battle a couple of teams throughout the entire race, and his race craft really shined through. It was really, really challenging, and it’s so rewarding to bring home another ‘W’ for Honda.”

As usual in Baja, Red Riders performed well in other classes as well, with Honda riders taking provisional wins in Pro Moto 30, Pro Moto 40, Pro Moto Limited, Pro Moto Ironman, Sportsman Moto, Pro Quad and Sportsman Quad. Also of note was Proctor’s Passport team finishing second in the 2WD Trophy Truck class, with driver Ethan Ebert at the wheel.

Many of these same teams will be back south of the border again in November, to tackle the legendary Baja 1000.