Hahn has something to prove in return to GEICO Honda team

BUCHANAN,
Mich. (June 29) -- Wil Hahn made it through one practice session in the
first race of the 2011 season before wrecking his GEICO Honda CRF250R
hard enough to break his back. It wasn't exactly the debut he was hoping
for with one of the top teams in the sport.

Half
a year later, Hahn has returned, and he's ready to show his team
owners, sponsors, and fellow riders that he hasn't lost his desire to
win and dominate in professional motocross competition. He'll take to
the track for the first time this Saturday at the RedBud National,
alongside teammates Kevin Windham, Eli Tomac, Justin Barcia, and Lance
Vincent.

"It's
been a long six months," Hahn said. "It's tough to just sit there and
watch everyone else have all the fun, but there wasn't much I could do.
You have to recover and heal, listen to what the doctors tell you, and
just wait for your turn. Now it's my turn."

Despite
the long layoff, Hahn, a runner-up in the 2010 Supercross Lites West
standings, said he's ready to contend for race titles beginning in
RedBud.

"I
feel as though I'm completely prepared," he said. "Physically, I'm 100
percent healthy. I've been riding a lot and I feel good on the bike. My
conditioning is good. 

"I
want to go after the win. In my mind I'll be a contender the moment the
gate drops. Besides, I'm pretty anxious to show these guys they made
the right choice in hiring me."

Coming
off a season-best, third-place overall result at the last tour stop in
his home state of Colorado, Tomac is anxious for another big weekend on
his GEICO Honda CRF250R that will lift him higher than his current
fourth-place ranking in the Lucas Oil AMA Motocross Championship Series.

"RedBud
is actually my favorite track," Tomac said. "Everyone thinks because
I'm from Colorado that Thunder Valley would be my favorite place, and I
definitely like it there because I'm in very familiar surroundings, but
to me nothing beats RedBud. I love the fans there and the track is just
awesome.

"I
feel like I'm riding well right now but I have room to improve. I was a
solid third in both motos in Denver and had to ride through some
traffic to get up there, but (Dean) Wilson and (Blake) Baggett were just
on it. I've got my work cut out for me to catch those two guys, but I
can definitely improve."

Also
fourth in the points, 450cc pro Windham had so much fun in Denver that
he immediately decided to race this weekend in Michigan. Windham is
filling in for injured rider Trey Canard on the American Honda Racing
team, a sister operation to the GEICO Honda group.

"It's
tough on the sponsors and the teams when you're indecisive on whether
you're going to ride or not so I told everyone last weekend that I'd
ride RedBud," Windham said. "I've had good results at the last two races
and I feel really strong and in shape. I've able to hold my own and not
get tired so hopefully we can get a podium finish soon.

"I
need to work on speed now but I'm mostly happy to be racing for all the
fans out there. It gets harder to race every year at my age (33), but
its also hard to stay away and miss out on this and the fans. Every time
the gate drops and you're not apart of it, it feels like you are
missing a piece of yourself."

Barcia
has been steaming mad since his accident-plagued outing in the Mile
High City and he's anxious to put that memory behind him with a big
weekend in Michigan on his 250cc Honda.

"I've
been riding hard this week," Barcia said. "I wasn't happy with anything
that happened last weekend. All I can do at this point is direct my
energy to RedBud and fight for a podium finish. That's really the only
thing that's going to make me feel better."

Rookie Lance Vincent also will compete in RedBud, giving the team four 250cc riders.

"I
rode up there with the top guys for a long time in Denver until my bike
stopped working," Vincent said. "It showed me I have the speed to run
with anyone. My confidence is growing each race."