Friday, September 28

Ernesto Fonseca - The Honda Dream

By MotoWorld.com Staff Writer

LAS VEGAS, NEV - With two 125cc Supercross titles in three years, Ernesto Fonseca is more than ready for the big jump to the 250cc class. And with the backing of Team Honda, Ernie will have plenty of support for his full-time Supercross debut. We caught up with Fonseca at Honda's recent dealer convention in Vegas:

Honda stepped up their program for the 2002 season by adding three riders to their roster. Two-time 125cc SX champ, Ernesto Fonseca joins Ricky Carmichael and Nathan Ramsey on the team.

MotoWorld.com: You signed with Honda, tell us about it.

Ernesto Fonseca: Yeah I'm really happy I think I'm ready for a change and I hope we have a really good season. We've got a lot of great people behind us, Honda makes a 100 percent effort and I think that's what I need and I'm going to try and give it my best. I think we've got a great bike and a great team and we should have a lot of success.

MW.com: You won the Supercross title last season so the decision to change must have been a tough one.

EF: It really wasn't that tough for me, I always wanted to ride a Honda it's always been my dream ever since I was a little kid. I just had opportunity and I wanted to take it and take a challenge and we'll see how every thing works out. I think we've got everything and it all depends on me right now.

MW.com: Why did you always want to ride with Honda?

EF: I think it's kind of a legacy. It started from back in the day there were a lot of guys, I don't want to say part of the legacy but there is a group of guys that really won a lot of races and a lot of championships in a row. And I think that's one of the main reasons why everybody thinks it's a legacy. I just think their image, their equipment, just everything. It's such a good environment that makes everybody think that way.

MW.com: You'll be racing in the 250 class, which is something you always wanted to do.

EF: Yeah, it's a new challenge. I want to learn some different stuff, there are a lot of fast guys in the 250 class and I think that sooner or later I had to do it so it's about time right now. I have a couple of years to learn and hopefully we'll get some good results and I think it will be a little more competitive.

MW.com: You'll be going up against guys like Jeremy, Ricky and LaRocco, talk a little about the competition you'll be facing on a weekly basis now. It'll definitely be a challenge for you.

EF: It is a big jump but I think it's also kind of like going to school. I think I'm going to learn a lot from Ricky, I'm going to be his teammate and I'll get to ride with him and I think that helps everybody. Like I said the whole team is going to work great together.

MW.com: Talk about the bike you'll be riding next year and have you tested it any?

EF: Yeah I've ridden a couple of times, I've ridden the CR 250 2-stroke and everything is working good, we've been testing a little bit and I'm pretty excited. Everything been going good the few times we tested, the bike works great, the team works great and we work real good together. We're just waiting for some new stuff to come on the way and we're just going to keep on working on getting used to the bike and try and get it set up the way I want it. I'm real excited, everything is going real good.

MW.com: You've got some good riders on this team.

EF: Yeah we've got a pretty solid team this year. I think with Ricky being the Supercross champion will help everybody with their confidence and we're going have the guy that was on top last year so we can pick up a lot of from him. Mike LaRocco is a real good example, he's been racing for a real long time and he's always stayed on top. I get along with Nathan real good so I think it's a real good combination, we have a lot of fun together and we get along good and Honda definitely has the best equipment so I don't think we can ask for nothing better.

MW.com: For you, what would make this up coming season a success?

EF: I think you've got to be realistic, it's been hard for a lot of people. For Ricky it was hard the first year (in the 250's) to win the championship but I just want to give it 100 percent and do my best and try and be in the top five, maybe, hopefully be on the podium a couple of times. But take it serious and really try and make a big improvement.