Team Honda HRC had a night of highs and lows at the Detroit Supercross. Cole Seely turned in another solid performance, scoring his third heat-race win of the season before riding to an impressive third-place finish in the main, while GEICO Honda rider Eli Tomac took the win. Meanwhile, Seely's teammate Trey Canard was involved in an incident with another rider in his semi-race, leaving him with a fractured arm and ending his participation in the 2015 AMA Supercross series.

NOTES

• On the eve of the race, the Honda Red Riders ventured to Kimball, Missouri, about an hour north of Detroit, to sign autographs and hang out with fans at Grace Performance. Team Honda HRC riders Trey Canard and Cole Seely joined GEICO Honda's Eli Tomac, RJ Hampshire and Jordan Smith. The lineup of popular riders drew a large number of fans, making for a packed house.
• For round 12, Team Honda HRC was pleased to host Honda Racing Corporation Vice President Shuhei Nakamoto and Representative Director Keisuke Inomoto. It was Mr. Nakamoto's second time attending a Supercross race, the first having been the San Diego round earlier this year. It's a busy period for HRC, with Repsol Honda set to begin its MotoGP title defense next week in Qatar.
• For the second consecutive week, Tomac led the way during daytime qualifying practice, topping the charts with an impressive time of 52.552 seconds. Canard landed in fourth with 52.793, while Seely was sixth at 53.183.
• The Detroit track showcased a one-off element that allowed riders a unique opportunity to race up into the stands, paying homage to the trademark of many races held at the now-unused Pontiac Silverdome, which hosted the series from 1976 to 2005. "I never raced at the Silverdome, so the only other time I've seen or raced on a track that goes into the stands is the Monster Energy Cup," Seely said. "I think it was pretty cool. It just added an extra element to the race."
• Honda has a successful history in the Motor City market. Marty Smith topped the first premier-class race held in Pontiac (a half-hour north of Detroit), and since then, Honda has collected 19 additional premier-class wins in Michigan, the most of any manufacturer. Prior to Tomac's Saturday victory, the last Honda to top the podium was Davi Millsaps, in 2008.
• Tomac and Seely kept the Red Riders' long podium streak going. In the 12 main events run so far this year, the factory CRF450R has collected 16 rostrum finishes (including at least one at every round), and a total of four victories.
• GEICO Honda enjoyed a particularly successful event in Detroit. Not only did Tomac top the 450SX main, teammate and defending 250SX East Champion Justin Bogle was also victorious in his final. Tomac's lead over second place was 11.89 seconds at the finish, the largest winning margin of the season so far.
• Canard's injury was incurred in a crash in the first semi. Jake Weimer came up short in a rhythm section, and Canard landed on top of him, falling and fracturing his left arm. Following the diagnosis, the Oklahoman's plan was to follow up with his personal physician early in the week, at which point a treatment plan will be determined and an expected recovery time set. Additional details will be released when they become available. Prior to the Detroit Supercross, Canard had carded two victories and five additional podium appearances. He is still second in the points standings, though that will of course change.
• On March 28, Team Honda HRC will campaign round 13 of the AMA Supercross series, in St. Louis, Missouri. The evening before the race, riders will make an appearance at Big St. Charles Motorsports.

THE FOCUS: The Return of JMB

In addition to hosting HRC's Mr. Nakamoto and Mr. Inomoto in Detroit, Team Honda HRC was also joined by Jean-Michel Bayle, Sporting Manager for Team HRC in the MXGP series. Bayle has a long and successful racing history, having worked with Honda for his entire professional MX career. After winning the 1988 125 and '89 250 World Championships, the Frenchman came to race in the U.S, where he had an amazing 1991 season, collecting the AMA Supercross crown, as well as the 250 and 500 Motocross titles. Bayle went on to campaign the road race Grand Prix series before retiring at the end of 2002.

"It's a great memory and relationship because all my championships that I won throughout my career were on a Honda," Bayle said. "It's close to my heart, and it's also quite funny now because many of the people that I work with now at HRC and Honda are the same people I worked with when I was racing. It's great to be back."

Throughout the day, Bayle assisted the team and gave his guidance to Canard and Seely following each practice. "I follow Supercross and motocross regularly to see how Honda is doing, but it's nice to come occasionally and actually see one," he said. "It's a special feeling to come back to a race because I know the feeling of being down on the line; I appreciate it a lot. It's also nice to be able to give back to young riders and share my knowledge. I feel very good about it."

Bayle even had the chance to see his old teammate, Jeff Stanton, for whom Detroit is a home race.

QUOTES

Cole Seely "The weekend was really good. Unfortunately, my teammate Trey got hurt tonight, which sucks, but this is the third weekend in a row that I've just been feeling really good. We're fine-tuning the machine and everyone on the team is doing everything they can to get me an awesome setup. I'm really starting to feel like I'm a threat in this class, which is great for my rookie season. I just want to keep the momentum going and hopefully get a win by the end of Supercross."

Trey Canard "It's really a bummer to have my series end this way, especially because I'd been having my best season yet until this point. It was a bad crash, but it could've been worse, and I hope [Jake] Weimer is okay. I'm disappointed for the team because they've been working so hard for me all year; even though the championship was probably out of reach, we got a couple wins and I think we could've finished second in points. Injuries are never fun, but there's nothing to do now but get this taken care of and try to be healthy for the outdoor series. I appreciate all the support from my fans, and I look forward to seeing everyone as soon as possible."

Dan Betley: Team Manager "I can't say enough about how well Eli and Cole rode tonight. Both guys were solid the whole day. Eli showed incredible speed, putting down the fastest time in qualifying and coming in second in his heat race. Cole was also impressive, winning his heat race and getting a good start in the main to fight for the podium. I'm really happy, and I think Honda made a statement tonight, but on the other side, it's unfortunate for Trey. He had a crash and injured his arm, so he'll still be there in spirit until the end of Supercross. Hopefully he'll come back strong for outdoors."

Keisuke Inomoto: Team Honda/ HRC Motocross Representative Director "GEICO Honda's Eli Tomac rode very well tonight and his pace was fast throughout the whole day. Cole Seely also rode very strong. Overall, we're pretty happy with these guys finishing first and third. It's very unfortunate for Trey Canard, but he was trying hard and hopefully he can come back quickly. Congrats also to GEICO Honda's Justin Bogle for his first win of the 250SX season!"

Rich Simmons: Mechanic (Cole Seely) "Things went well tonight. Cole got a really good start in the heat race and won. He didn't get the best start in the main but was able make it through the first two turns pretty good. He made important passes and put himself in a good spot. He just needs to be up front earlier in the race like he was last week. I think tonight was the night that he could've pressured [Ryan] Dungey a little more but all in all, it was a great night."

Brent Presnell: Mechanic (Trey Canard) "The day started out well, Trey was second in the first qualifying session and fourth in the other one, just a few tenths off the top time, so that was good. He was running well in the heat race but made a small mistake and went down, so he ended up going to the semi. He got a bad start, was back in the pack and just found himself in a bad situation. It was a freak racing incident, but he's very fortunate because he did take a foot peg to the face too, which could've been very bad.

450SX Results 1. Eli Tomac GEICO Honda 2. Ryan Dungey 3. Cole Seely Team Honda HRC 4. Chad Reed 5. David Millsaps 6. Joshua Grant 7. Broc Tickle 8. Blake Baggett 9. Andrew Short 10. Justin Brayton 11. Kyle Chisholm 12. Nicholas Wey 13. Kyle Partridge 14. Ben Lamay 15. Phillip Nicoletti 16. Killian Rusk 17. Ronnie Stewart 18. Nicholas Schmit 19. Alex Ray 20. Heath Harrison 21. Jason Anderson 22. Weston Peick

450SX Championship Points (after 12 of 17 rounds) 1. Ryan Dungey 271 2. Trey Canard 204 3. Eli Tomac 194 4. Cole Seely 180 5. Chad Reed 170 6. Ken Roczen 156 7. Blake Baggett 154 8. Jason Anderson 145 9. Andrew Short 136 10. Broc Tickle 134 11. David Millsaps 119 12. Joshua Grant 95 13. Weston Peick 92 14. Jacob Weimer 74 15. Justin Barcia 71 16. Kyle Chisholm 63 17. Phil Nicoletti 52 18. Mike Alessi 48 19. Josh Hill 40 20. Brett Metcalfe 40