Interview: New Monster/Honda HRC Rally Rally2 team member – Brazil’s Bruno Crivilin

Right out of the woods and rugged off-road trails of Brazil and onto the FIM World Rally-Raid Championship’s main stage, Monster Energy/Honda HRC Rally’s latest addition to the team, Brazilian Bruno Crivilin, paid instant dividends with a runner-up podium finish at last week’s Desafio Ruta 40 Rally in Argentina.

Beyond making the move to the pro ranks and the Rally2 class, the preamble to W2RC’s premier RallyGP class, Crivilin brought to the table the necessary credentials to not only make a quick transition to the team, but to also perform right out of the gate on Honda’s revolutionary new ‘Crate-to-Gate’ CRF450RX Rally motorcycle. Affable as he is eager, Crivilin hit on all positive points with Monster Energy/Honda HRC Rally team manager Ruben Faria, himself a former professional rally-raid competitor, and joined the team in full stride for his first race of the season, Round 3 of the W2RC in Argentina.

MonsterEnergy.com was able to catch up with Bruno and get his take on such a momentous start with the Monster Energy/Honda HRC Rally team, his feelings when he got ‘The Call’ from team officials and what it’s been like during these whirlwind past several weeks, culminating with a podium run at the Desafio Ruta 40.

Monster Energy: Bruno! Congrats on a great W2RC event this past week for Monster Energy/Honda HRC Rally at the Desafio Ruta 40. You've got to be pretty pleased with your 2nd place overall Rally2 finish.

Bruno Crivilin: Thank you very much for the congratulations. I was really happy to win a stage in my very first race and finish second overall in the Rally2 category, reaching the podium. But above all, I’m even happier to start being part of the team and to become an official rider for Monster Energy Honda HRC Rally.

ME: As a recent addition to the Monster Energy/Honda HRC rally team, talk a bit about your feelings when you first received the phone call, inviting you to join the team.

BC: My first contact with the Monster Energy Honda HRC team was here in Brazil. They came with Ruben, Tosha (Schareina, team RallyGP racer), and part of the staff to race the Rally dos Sertões, which is the biggest rally we have here in Latin America, last year in 2025. That’s when I had my first contact with the team. I didn’t know Ruben, but I had already raced some Enduro World Championship rounds and the Six Days with Tosha. Then I got a call saying there was a possibility of joining the team. That brought me a lot of joy—I had always had that desire, that dream, of racing for a factory team, and now I had a great chance for it to happen. So I felt a real sense of accomplishment and confidence, like everything I had planned and dreamed for my career was coming true.

ME: Excellent. Your history with the Honda brand runs deep, joining Brazil's Honda Racing program back in 2019. Talk a bit about your history of motorcycle racing, how you got started, and was the plan to, ultimately, end up racing enduro-style events over motocross or road racing?

BC: My journey with Honda started early here in Brazil, in 2019. But I began competing on motorcycles in 2013, riding in my hometown, a small city, starting with more accessible bikes. It was always very difficult, and I didn’t imagine I would become a professional rider when I started. I always had that dream and desire, but I didn’t expect it. Things just happened. In 2013, I raced a Honda CRF 230, a bike made in Brazil, and it was my first year in Enduro. I’ve always liked speed—even as a kid riding bicycles, speed attracted me and I felt comfortable with it. So I started racing Enduro. I never really raced motocross, only trained and did a few races here and there, but never championships. The same with road racing, partly due to limited financial resources. So I focused on Enduro, did well in Brazil, won championships, and eventually started racing abroad. But my journey with Honda officially began in 2019. I stayed with Honda for seven years in Enduro, always with the desire to race rally.
 

ME: The following year, 2020, you made Brazilian motorcycle racing history when you won a bronze medal in the FIM Enduro World Championship Junior division. This would lead you competing consistently in Europe where you became the top Brazilian in history competing in the Enduro World Championship's competitive E1 class. Talk a bit about this point in your career, and how it eventually led to the Monster Energy/Honda HRC Rally team.

BC: In 2020, together with Honda Brazil, we created a project to compete in the Enduro World Championship, and it worked thanks to them and also to Italian rider Alex Salvini. Salvini had his own Honda team in Europe and was, if I’m not mistaken, the last rider to win the Enduro World Championship with Honda, in 2013. I joined his team and moved to Italy, which helped me a lot—he trained me and contributed greatly to my development. That year I made the podium in every race, won one round, and finished third overall in the Junior 1 category. Then I spent three more years racing in Europe in the EnduroGP World Championship, in the E1 class, finishing two seasons in sixth place overall—something no Brazilian had done before. I raced two years with Alex Salvini’s team and one year with Honda RedMoto, Honda’s official Enduro team. It was very rewarding to represent Brazil among the best in the world.

ME: Very interesting. You've been tabbed, along with Portugal's Martim Ventura and America's Preston Campbell, to race the revolutionary crate-to-podium Honda CRF450RX Rally. A very near factory bike that's available, in limited quantities, to the general public. Talk a bit about the bike, what your first impressions of it were during testing, and how it responded in the full gas race situation this past week in Argentina.

BC: I was very happy to have Martim and Preston as teammates. They’re a bit younger than me, two or three years younger. We’re riding the Honda CRF 450RX Rally, which is actually a bike that anyone can buy, even though it’s produced in limited numbers. Essentially, the bike we race is the same one available to the public. I was really surprised—it’s very easy to ride, very stable. I’ve already talked to friends who are interested in bringing it to Brazil. It’s easy to handle and very durable, which is a key Honda characteristic. It impressed me a lot, and racing outside Brazil with it felt like a perfect match.

ME: Along with the bike comes the team. From top to bottom, the support the racer receive from the Monster Energy/Honda HRC Rally team is first class. From a team masseuse, chefs, a litany of mechanical experts and top shelf management, how does that play into your confidence when you boot up to race an FIM World Rally-Raid Championship event?

BC: We have a very complete team that covers every aspect needed during a race. From team managers to top mechanics, massage therapists, physiotherapists—everything is carefully planned. That gives you great peace of mind. You can focus only on racing without worrying about whether your bike is 100% ready, because the mechanics are the best. You don’t have to worry about food or hydration—it’s all prepared. The work of the massage therapist and physiotherapist is essential to keep your body in good condition for the next day. And the staff is extremely experienced, helping with strategy and advice—people like Ruben, who have lived through all of this. It’s a huge advantage.
 

ME: Back to Argentina, what were your thoughts of the route the race officials laid out? And what area did you feel suited your riding style the best?

BC: Ruta 40 was a very mixed race with all types of terrain and conditions. It was a complete rally, which is rare at this level. We had sand, hard terrain, rocks, CAP navigation, track navigation, technical sections, and fast sections. For me, the desert and CAP navigation were new—I hadn’t experienced that before in Brazil. But overall, it suited my riding style well. I enjoyed it, had fun, and felt confident on the bike. Now I need to focus on improving certain aspects.

ME: Conversely, what area(s) gave you the most difficulty, and were areas that you feel you need to possibly improve upon?

BC: The biggest challenge was definitely the dunes. It was one of my first times riding in dunes, especially with CAP navigation since there’s no visible track to follow. That was very new to me. I also feel a bit uncomfortable maintaining very high speeds—150 to 160 km/h—for long periods. But these are things I can work on in Brazil, and we’re already planning that. I definitely have room to improve in these areas.

ME: Talk a bit about your relationship with your teammates, Martim and Preston. Being that you're the new guy so-to-speak, were the two helpful in getting you up to speed on the Honda CRF450RX Rally?

BC: I had a good relationship with both Martim and Preston. I talked more with Martim since we share the same language. He helped me a lot with information and advice. With Preston, it was also smooth—he’s very technical on the bike, and we talked about riding feel and other aspects. He’s a good guy, younger, calm, and very fast.
 

ME: What was the best advice you received from each racer?

BC: I received a lot of advice—not just from my Rally2 teammates but also from the RallyGP riders. The main one I took was that rally requires patience. You have to look forward. What’s done is done—you can’t go back and fix a mistake. The key is to move on and focus ahead so it doesn’t happen again. And you only win a rally when you cross the final finish line, not in the early days or corners.

ME: Like you mentioned, you're also around the Monster Energy/Honda HRC Rally RallyGP racers, some of the top competitors in the world in current W2RC No. 2 ranked Schareina (Spain), No. 3 ranked Ricky Brabec (USA), along with American Skyler Howes and France's Adrien Van Beveren. How has it been for you interacting with those guys, in addition to your Rally2 teammates? Have they helped get you up to speed as well, offered any key pointers to handing the grind W2RC racing?

BC: I spent every day with the RallyGP team. They’re all great guys and treated me very well. I already knew Tosha, but I met Brabec, Skyler, and Van Beveren. Being around Brabec, a two-time Dakar champion, was really special. They’re very experienced and have a deep understanding of everything that can happen. Van Beveren is also very technical and knowledgeable about the bike. Off the bike, they’re relaxed, joking around, which helps you feel comfortable. But when it’s time to work, they’re fully focused. It was an incredible experience to be among them.

ME: Bit of a break here on the W2RC tour before returning to action Sept. 26 to Oct. 4  for the Rallye du Maroc (Morrocco). What's your plans during these next few months to prepare for Round 4 of 2026 W2RC?

BC: We have a long break until Morocco. I’ll compete in some important races in Brazil, like Rally Jalapão and Rally dos Sertões. I’ll also train specific areas I mentioned, possibly in locations that offer those conditions. And maybe I’ll meet the team before Morocco for training and testing. Everything is on track—we want to come back even stronger for Morocco and Abu Dhabi.
 

ME: Well, Bruno, congrats again on your runner up finish at Desafio Ruta 40. Everyone at Monster Energy is very proud of your accomplishment and look forward to your upcoming successes moving forward.

BC: Thank you all for the opportunity to share my story and where I come from. I’m very happy to be part of Monster Energy and such a select team of athletes. I hope to keep delivering strong results for Monster Energy Honda HRC Rally and for all of us.