Honda HRC has confirmed it will field a three-rider line-up in the 2018 MXGP and MX2 World Championship, with 2016 world champion Tim Gajser continuing to lead the charge.

Gajser will be joined in the MXGP category by Brian Bogers, as the 21-year-old Dutchman joins the factory outfit from the HSF Motorsport team.

The third machine under the Team HRC awning will be Calvin Vlaanderen, who will contest the MX2 category on the Honda CRF250RW. The 21-year-old South African joins Honda, like teammate Bogers, from the HSF Motorsport team as part of the sponsorship deal with Team HRC and HSF Logistics, effective from the 2018 season onwards.

Bogers explained that it’s a dream come true to be part of the factory Honda outfit, expressing his excitement to start preparing for his 2018 campaign.

“It’s like a dream come true for me to be part of the HRC family,” said Bogers. “Every time I walk through the paddock it’s not possible to miss Honda and the setup they have, and I’ve always thought about the chance to join this family, and now I’m also part of it. I’m so excited to get on the bike – it looks amazing and when you see how Tim is riding it I can’t wait to get 2018 started.”

Vlaanderan will commence testing aboard the all-new CRF250RW as soon as this week, and is anticipating the quarter-litre machine to be an impressive package from the get-go.

“I’m so excited to get on the new bike,” Vlaanderan commented. “I’ve seen pictures and heard things from different people and apparently it’s unbelievable, so I’m so excited. I couldn’t sleep last night looking forward to today’s announcement and starting to test tomorrow!”