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Supermotos have a special place in our Asphalt & Rubber loving hearts, so we celebrate every new model release we can, and today sees us looking at the 2023 Husqvarna FS 450 – the pointy end of production supermotos.

The Swedish brand claims that the 2023 is “all new” for the coming model year, though a careful look at the previous year’s machine shows that things are a close evolution of before.

That being said, the 2023 Husqvarna FS 450 does feature a new hydro-formed frame, as well as a new 450cc single-cylinder engine, and promises to be a class-leader on performance.

If you are a loyal reader of Asphalt & Rubber, then you know that we love us some supermoto motorcycles. As such, we bring you today the only factory-built race-ready supermoto for the next model year. Say hello to the 2020 Husqvarna FS 450.

Before you put your 2019 model up for sale, we should note that the changes for the 2020 model year aren’t terribly large.

The Husqvarna FS 450 got a pretty good update last year, with more torque and less weight (thanks to the changes made to Husqvarna’s 450cc motocross bike), so the 2020 machine remains at a claimed 63hp and 220 lbs without fuel.

It is curious that the past couple of weeks have been rife with internet chatter about Ducati working on a 450cc motocross bike. It is a strange rumor, and if true it would be big news for Ducati.

Of course, for the very same reason that it would be big news, this rumor is also hard to believe, if for no other reason than Ducati getting into the MX scene would be a huge jump for the Italian brand.

What is more curious though is the timing of the story, as it comes only two weeks after we published some thoughts about how Ducati can expand its lineup, through the acquisition of a brand like TM Racing.

Much was said about the 2019 Honda CRF450L before it even debuted in the United States, and the resounding collective opinion of the moto-journalists in attendance at its press launch was that the 450cc dual-sport is potent off-road, and well-mannered on the street.

Our own thoughts on the new Honda CRF450L are quite positive, and it rises to the top of the list of dual-sports that we would put in our garage. Getting an up-close look at the machine, you can see Honda’s quality shine through, from the engine to the switchgear, and even the body panels.

Making roughly 45hp at the crank, the CRF450L isn’t the most powerful bike in the category, put the torque curve on the Honda is tabletop flat and without holes. This makes the machine easy to hookup on the dirt, and refined for street riding…all the way to 85mph or more.

One of five new 450cc dirt bikes from Honda, the CRF450L is a true dual-sport – letting bikes like the CRF450RX and CRF450X fill the enduro niches for racing and pure trail riding. Thus having a weapon for every use, Honda smartly focused the CRF450L to be a dual-sport that can actually handle on street riding, instead of just compromising an exist dirt-focused machine.

Where do you begin about the 2019 Honda CRF450L? You can start with the dearth of 450cc dual-sport motorcycles for the American market, for one. You can talk about Honda’s new 450cc dirt bike lineup, which has spawned five separate models for the 2019 model year.

We of course have to mention the domination of the market by a certain European manufacturer, which prefers the color orange. And naturally, we should give a nod to the resurgence of the American off-road scene, and how Big Red wants to be part of that growing movement.

The truth is, all of these points are realities when it comes to the new Honda CRF450L – a dirt bike that is street-legal from the factory, for all 50 states of the Union. The United States is the target market for the 2019 Honda CRF450L, and for good reason. Honda sees a real opportunity for a 450cc dual-sport in the USA, one that can slot in between the woefully old Suzuki DRZ-400S and the “race bike with lights” KTM 450 EXC-F (sold in the US only as its kitted-out “Six Days” variant).

Among the first in the world to ride the 2019 Honda CRF450L, American Honda brought Asphalt & Rubber out to our own backyard, and let us loose on the CRF450L in Washington’s Gifford Pinchot National Forest. Providing a mix of gravel roads, single-track, double-track, and proper street use, we spent over 100 miles getting to see how well the Honda CRF450L plays on both the dirt and asphalt. In short? Very, very well.

It has been a long-time coming, but Honda has finally has a road-legal 450cc dirt bike back in its lineup. As such, say hello to the 2019 Honda CRF450L.

Taking its DNA from Honda’s 450cc MX bike (which is also updated for 2019), the Honda CRF450L offers mirrors, LED lighting, an electric starter, and even a place to stick a license plate, giving you the ability to on-road, between trailheads.

Other features include a wide-ratio six-speed transmission, 18″ rear wheel, a two-gallon titanium fuel tank, Showa suspension front and back, and more crank mass than the Honda CRF450R MX bike. The curb weight is claimed at 289 lbs, topped up with fuel and ready to ride.

Honda says that the CRF450L will be available in September 2018, with pricing set for now at $10,399.

The All-Japan Nationals for motocross always seem to give us a glimpse on what to expect from the Japanese manufacturers’ dirt bike divisions, so much so, that it has become a thing in moto-journal circls.

This year, Yamaha decided to drop some of the pretenses and help the journalists out, and even provided some photos and a statement about its upcoming motocross machines.

As such, the above motorcycle is the 2018 Yamaha YZ450FM – Yamaha’s revised 450cc motocross racing machine, and while actual details on the new motocross bike are thin, we can glean some details from the photos.

You probably haven’t heard of Fantic Motorcycles, but you won’t want to miss the company’s two new 500cc models, which are tastefully done heritage models.

Bringing Italian sexiness to a segment dominated with an American aesthetic, the Fantic Caballero 500 street tracker and scrambler bikes are remarkable examples of purposeful and elegant machines.

Based around a 449cc single-cylinder four-stroke engine that makes 43hp, the Fantic Caballero 500 scrambler comes with a 19″ front wheel and 17″ rear wheel, whereas the street tracker model comes with 19″ hoops fore and aft.

A reader asked me recently what I knew about the upcoming 2017 Honda CRF450R dirt bike, and admittedly I had to say “not much” – it’s called Asphalt & Rubber after all.

For the past year though, even my radar has picked up sighting of Akira Narita (one of the greatest Japanese MX racers of all time) showing up to events in Japan with a race bike that looked pretty advanced from what was currently on dealership floors.

This is nothing new in the world of Honda though, with next year’s models often ending up at events on the other side of the Pacific…usually in Narita-san’s very capable hands.

But today, we can answer more accurately what Big Red is up to with the 2017 Honda CRF450R, as the folks at VitalMX caught the new motocrosser spinning laps at an MX track in Southern California (read their expert breakdown of the new bike, here).