Round 14 of the AMA Supercross series was cause for celebration for the Team Honda HRC crew, as Cole Seely turned in the best performance of his career, leading every lap of the main event en route to his first-ever 450SX victory. Seely got off the line to a great start and quickly overtook the two riders in front of him to assume the early lead. Once out front, the premier-class rookie rode more like a veteran, setting an unmatchable pace that at one point carried him to an impressive 12-second advantage over second place. His solid performance advanced him to third place in the championship points chase.

Joining Seely on the podium was GEICO Honda rider Eli Tomac, who battled his way through the field following a mid-pack start, eventually finishing third.

NOTES

• The night before race day, Team Honda HRC's Cole Seely and GEICO Honda's Matt Bisceglia attended an autograph session at local dealership Honda of Houston.
• During the daytime qualifying practice, a mere 0.326 seconds separated the top three riders. Tomac was quickest with a best lap time of 45.204 seconds, while Seely's 45.530-second lap was good enough for third.
• Assigned to the second heat race, Seely launched his CRF450R off the line to a second-place start, made a pass stick on lap two and rode unchallenged the remainder of the race, logging the fastest lap time along the way. Tomac was in the same race but struggled off the start and was forced to transfer through the second semi.
• On his way to the win in the 20-lap main event, Seely clicked off the fastest lap of the race with an impressive 46.430, over .7 seconds better than the next-best time. Seely was the only rider to dip into the 46-second range.
• Whereas Ryan Dungey clinched the title in Houston, the Red Riders continue to occupy the next three positions in the points chase. Tomac is second with 236 points, while Seely's 223 moved him past injured teammate Trey Canard, who still holds fourth with 204.
• Seely is the second first-time winner in the 450SX class so far this season, with the first being Tomac in Phoenix. Since the beginning of the year, there has been at least one Honda CRF450R on the podium at every round, and three different Honda riders—Seely, Tomac and Canard—have scored a combined total of five wins.
• With Tomac taking third in Houston, it marked the fifth time this season that Honda riders have occupied two podium positions in a 450SX main event. The feat was also accomplished at Anaheim 3, Atlanta 2, Indianapolis and Detroit, a list that includes four of the last six rounds. No other manufacturer has managed a double-podium so far this season.
• For round 15, the Honda Red Riders head west to California for the inaugural Santa Clara Supercross at Levi's Stadium on Saturday, April 18. On Friday, Seely will join GEICO Honda riders Tomac, Bisceglia and Malcolm Stewart for an autograph signing at Freemont Honda.

THE FOCUS: HRC, Texas-Style

While Cole Seely's debut 450SX win at Houston was a big deal for the Red Riders, it wasn't the only good news out of Texas for Honda and HRC. The day after that Supercross success, the factory Repsol Honda MotoGP team was victorious at its series' second round, in Austin.

Many Supercross riders and team members are fans of MotoGP, and following Saturday night's Houston race, several of them made the 160-mile trip west to Circuit of the Americas. Among them were Team Honda HRC Chief Engineer Masamitsu Hirashima and Chassis Engineer Satoshi Matsushima, who have friends that work on the HRC MotoGP project in Japan. "I really like to watch the MotoGP races, but this is the first one that I've been to," Matsushima said. "The track is very big compared to Supercross, and the sound and speeds are great."

Repsol Honda had a dream weekend at the Grand Prix of the Americas, with reigning MotoGP champion Marc Marquez taking pole position on Saturday before extending his perfect win record at the venue on Sunday, adding to his victories from 2013 and 2014. In addition, Honda riders took the top four positions in the Moto3 support class. (All bikes in the Moto2 class are powered by Honda CBR600RR control engines.)

QUOTES

Cole Seely "This just doesn't feel real. I'm so ecstatic and am really waiting for all the emotions to kick in. The past five or six weekends have been really good, and I feel like I've been right there with it just at my fingertips, so being able to pull off a win tonight is amazing. I'm so stoked for myself, my team and everyone else in my corner. It's been a steady progression this season for sure, but once I found my groove, that was all I needed. It was a matter of just figuring out these 450 races and getting adjusted to the class, riders, and having so many rounds. The bike handled so awesome tonight; my suspension was working great and my Dunlops were hooking up perfect. We had worked throughout practice to get the right setup and we definitely found it. It was crazy when I was leading and could see the other riders so far back. I just tried to relate it to when I would lead the 250 class last year: just to stay calm, hit my marks and click off each lap consistently. I'm still in shock and so happy."

Dan Betley: Team Manager "It was an awesome night. Cole rode fantastic all day and I couldn't be happier for him. We all knew it was coming; it was just a matter of time before he'd deliver the big win. He got a great start and for over half the race he was pulling away from everyone else on the track. Then he just settled into a good rhythm and brought it home. Eli didn't have a great start but it was an impressive ride from behind to get third. He rode solid. Now all three of our riders have won this season, so we're hoping to finish out the season strong."

Satoshi Matsushima: Chassis Engineer – Team Honda HRC Motocross "It was a very good night for Honda. First of all, congrats to Cole on his first 450 Supercross win! He had a good pace throughout the day, and in the main he got a good start, then pretty much ran away from everybody! We're very pleased with the way he rode and are very happy for him! Eli started mid-pack in the main and came back to third, so that was good too. I'm very happy that we have now had all three riders win on the CRF450R, as it showcases the potential of the bike. We still need to work on the starts though. Congrats to KTM for the championship, but we'll keep trying."

Sam Mishima: Motorcycle Sports Manager "It was pretty great night for us. Cole got his first 450 win, and I couldn't be happier for him and the team. The way he rode all day and especially in the main event was so great. He led every lap of the race, which is impressive and shows what he's capable of when he gets a great start. Tomac had a challenging night after a bad start, but he came back and finished third so that was good—two Hondas on the podium again!"

Rich Simmons: Mechanic (Cole Seely) "This is pretty exciting. When I first started working for Cole, he wasn't even making any money, so to be with him throughout the whole process, from winning a 250 race to now a 450 race is pretty amazing. What I've seen him go through and accomplish is a pretty big deal. I know his confidence has been building, and it's been all-out to try and win a race. Getting on the podium is great but he had his mind set that he wanted to win one before the end of the year, and he did. Everything felt good all day, and I couldn't be prouder of him and the entire team."

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

450SX Championship Points (after 14 of 17 rounds) 1. Ryan Dungey          318 2. Eli Tomac               236 3. Cole Seely             223 4. Trey Canard          204 5. Chad Reed              199 6. Blake Baggett          175  7. Jason Anderson     170 8. Broc Tickle              159 9. Ken Roczen            156 10. Andrew Short       152 11. David Millsaps       147 12. Joshua Grant        128 13. Weston Peick        109 14. Justin Barcia         83 15. Kyle Chisholm        82 16. Jacob Weimer       74 17. Phil Nicoletti           66 18. Nicholas Wey        65 19. Mike Alessi            48 20. Josh Hill                 40