Jonathan Barragan has enjoyed a position as Spain’s top motocrosser for almost half a decade and the ‘Madridleno’ comes to Honda for the first time in his career in 2012 having represented two other factories in the FIM Motocross World Championship during his six-year tenure as an MX1 rider.

Barragan immediately caught the eye as a junior on 125cc two-stroke machinery by emerging from the national scene as the brightest prospect at the beginning of the century. A wild and risky style on the smaller bike often resulted in some spectacular crashes, but the Spaniard was taken under the wing of former world champion Harry Everts, moved to Belgium for access to some of the heaviest and hardest circuits in Europe and rapidly started to progress.

Three Spanish Championships at MX2 level did not quite point to a similar level of success on the World stage but when Barragan jumped on a 450cc motorcycle for an attempt at MX1 as a twenty-year-old in 2005 his career went into overdrive. 

Supported by KTM to the point that he became a works rider in 2006, Barragan began to stamp an impression at the higher end of the points’ classification. The term in ’06 delivered first podium results with second in Portugal and third in the Czech Republic. Injury disturbed 2007, but he still gained his first moto victories as well as his first Spanish MX1 crown and he carried his form and confidence into 2008 which still remains his best season yet thanks to 4th place overall and four Grand Prix wins. Barragan set landmarks for Spanish motocross in several ways: the first Spanish MX1 GP victor, best Spanish performer in the series and first ever vanquisher of his home Grand Prix, which he managed at Bellpuig in 2009. 

Barragan has so far missed the consistency to be considered a championship contender, however his speed is undoubted (especially in the sand after nearly a decade of Belgian residence). He was particularly unfortunate to endure two rough years of injury in 2009 and 2010, but a full season in 2011 as an official Kawasaki representative (including podium results in the first and last Grand Prix of the year) got the 26-year-old back on track.