A Honda CR500 two-stroke will race in the prestigious Dutch Masters series against factory riders Jeffrey Herlings, Gautier Paulin, and Glenn Coldenhoff.
Dutch rider Jan Spliethof will be competing in the MXGP class of the 2020 Dutch Masters riding this well-used 2001 Honda CR500 mounted in an alloy beam frame from a Honda CRF250.
The 20-year-old rider previously raced the 250cc Dutch Masters and races in the EMX 2T championship. Last year he only raced in the Latvian round where he was 18th overall.
An injury-filled 2019 season made Jan realise that he wanted to return with another mindset. Being intrigued by the raw power of a 500cc 2-stroke, he decided to buy a 500ccc to ride ‘just for fun’ at local tracks. However, after a couple of training sessions it dawned to him that the KNMV allows engines up to 500cc in the MXGP class of the DMoMX.
As a result, plans quickly changed and Spliethof decided to ride the DMoMX with a 500cc 2-stroke. “The thought of riding this beast in a field full of GP stars is challenging and fun at the same time!”, according to Spliethof. Goals for the season are to qualify for the DMoMX, stay injury free and most of all: enjoy it. The first race will be at Harfsen on the 29th of March if the Corona situation allows it, while the season will include riding at the Zwarte Cross in front of 200,000 visitors.