“As difficult as any rider had experienced” conditions for rounds two and three of the 2025 Japanese Enduro Championship at the off-road park in Fukushima – reigning champion Ryota Baba puts his Yamaha YZ250FX on top both days.

The second round of the All Japan Enduro Championship, held about a month after the opening round in Hiroshima, took place at the off-road park in Fukushima. 

The two days of racing prepared for the 150 riders from all over the Japan with a lap of about 10km in length and a special test of roughly the same. 

It was a tough one for all however as the track was covered in heavy mud due to the rain that had been falling since the day before the race. The organisers were busy making changes to the tracks and carrying out tasks right up until the start.

By the time the weekend got underway the rain had stopped, the temperature had gradually risen, and the ground began to dry but it turned into sticky mud making the track in Fukushima as difficult as any the riders had experienced.

Day 1

Under extreme conditions, Yoshikazu Hosaka (GASGAS) recorded the best time on the opening lap with big mother KTM 500 EXC-F mounted Takashi Katsuyama marked best time on lap two rather than Ryota Baba (Yamaha) who is a defending champion.

Katsuyama is a hard enduro rider with experience in motocross, and he was able to use the bad weather to his advantage.

In the end though Baba recorded consistent times on every lap which meant he took the victory for the day. Hosaka, who recorded the best time in three tests, came in second, while rookie Katsuyama came in a surprise third place.

Katsuyama said he loved it: “I love difficult courses, so it was a fun day. I made a lot of mistakes in the second half, so I ended up in third place, but I still had fun.”

Meanwhile winner Baba-san says: “The transfer and test were also difficult and I made many mistakes. I was close to my physical limit. Hosaka was fast today, so I'll try to push harder tomorrow.”

DAY 2

On Sunday the rain had stopped but the course was still rough, forcing the organisers to make significant changes to allow the race to go ahead.

As day two got underway it was Katsuyama, Hosaka, and Baba competing for the best times once again. In the end, Yamaha mounted Ryota Baba won with Hosaka in second and Katsuyama in third, making it the same podium as Saturday.

“I made a lot of mistakes yesterday, but today I only fell once.” Baba explained. “I felt the pressure because Hosaka was closing in on me by a small margin. I struggled to get into a rhythm in the early stages, but I’m glad I was able to win in the end.”

Yusuke Nobehara (Yamaha) won the B class. Natsume Kinoshita (Kawasaki) won the Women’s class. 

DAY 1

A class

1. Ryota Baba, Yamaha YZ250FX

2. Yoshikazu Hosaka, GASGAS MC300

3. Takashi Katsuyama, KTM 500EXC-F

4. Yukihito Ota, KTM 350EXC-F

5. Takase Tanaka, Honda CRF450RX

6. Ren Ishidoya, Beta RR2T300

B class

1. Nobuhisa Owari, KTM 350XCF

2. Yu Shimada, Yamaha YZ250FX

3. Yusuke Nobehara, Yamaha YZ250X

4. Koji Ikeda, KTM 350EXC-F

5. Kohei Wada, Yamaha YZ125

6. Takafumi Ogino, Beta RR2T250

Women

1. Natsume Kinoshita, Kawasaki KX112

2. Akiko Matsumoto, KTM 250EXC

3. Yukiko Yamazaki, Kawasaki KX100

DAY 2

A class

1. Ryota Baba, Yamaha YZ250FX

2. Yoshikazu Hosaka, GASGAS MC300

3. Takashi Katsuyama, KTM 500EXC-F

4. Hidetaka Horikoshi, Yamaha YZ125X

5. Yukihito Ota, KTM 350EXC-F

6. Ren Ishidoya, Beta RR2T300

B class

1. Yusuke Nobehara, Yamaha YZ250X

2. Nobuhisa Owari, KTM 350XCF

3. Yu Shimada, yamaha YZ250FX

4. Koji Ikeda, KTM 350EXC-F

5. Kohei Wada, Yamaha YZ125

6. Takeru Ito, Husqvarna TE300

Women

1. Natsume Kinoshita, Kawasaki KX112

2. Akiko Matsumoto, KTM 250EXC

3. Akane Yokoshima, Husqvarna TE150i

The next JEC round will be the International Hidaka Two Days Enduro in September.

Words Credit: BIG TANK | Hisashi Haruki

Photo Credit: off1.jp | Masanori Inagaki