Legendary Pokémon visits legendary race circuit.
Though they’re just as famous now for their cars, Honda first rose to fame with its motorcycles, establishing themselves as the producers of some of the best-engineered, highest-quality bikes on the market. But even with the company’s impressive pedigree, would Honda be up to the challenge of producing a motorcycle that’s also a Pokémon?
That’s the task that Honda set for itself earlier this year when it announced that it would be creating a real-life version of Legendary Pokémon Koraidon, which first appeared in Pokémon Scarlet and Violet. Of course, while Koraidon looks more like a motorcycle than almost any other species of Pokémon, it’s still a far more organic design than any real-world bike. So Honda definitely had its work cut out for it, and fans were eager to see the results of their efforts when the Koraidon was exhibited to the public during last weekend’s festivities for the Suzuka 8 Hours endurance race at Suzuka Circuit in Mie Prefecture.
鈴鹿8耐で「ホンダコライドン」の展示とデモ走行をします！
— Honda 本田技研工業 (@HondaJP) July 18, 2025
展示
8/1(金) - 2(土) Honda RACING Gallery
8/3(日) 決勝スタート前セレモニー
※天候やレースの進行状況によりデモ走行実施できない可能性あり。
"Hondaの本気が子供の夢になる”「ホンダコライドンプロジェクト」… pic.twitter.com/BW8cxbsK0D
Honda RACING Gallery B1Fでは「ホンダコライドン」を展示中！
— 鈴鹿サーキット Suzuka Circuit (@suzuka_event) August 1, 2025
展示は今日8/1と明日8/2だけですので是非是非ご覧になってくださいね！！
本日は18時までの公開となっております。
#鈴鹿8耐 #Suzuka8hours #FIMEWC pic.twitter.com/UgeN4b7Toc
There’s plenty of detail, accounting for Koraidon’s various fins, frills, and markings. Not only that, the eyes are incredibly expressive, able to shift and blink in a way that really makes the bike feel alive.
ホンダコライドン
— れんれん
こうみたら動きかなりリアル pic.twitter.com/ynnAK26u7u(@renrin0852) August 3, 2025
アギャッスさんしっかり動くんだよ
— ぬっきー (@Sgt_Psyduck) August 2, 2025
生きてる感じがして感動しちゃった…
#鈴鹿8耐
#ホンダコライドン pic.twitter.com/yAjX3hTWpJ
This Koraidon is no stationary statue, though, and things got even cooler on August 3 when, in a special ceremony held just before the start of the eight-hour race, Koraidon took to the track for its first-ever public driving demonstration!
＼＼ / ／／
— 【公式】ポケモン情報局 (@poke_times) August 3, 2025
ついに、走る！
／／ / ＼＼#ホンダコライドンhttps://t.co/icWj95Pkra pic.twitter.com/kQfQUKBAjg
As a sort of half-dragon, half-motorcycle, the in-game Koraidon’s movement is a mix of rolling on its wheels and running with its legs. So naturally Honda’s Koraidon was going to need to move its limbs too, and the effect is impressively convincing. It’s a little hard to tell, in the video above, whether or not Koraidon’s feet ever actually touch the ground or if they stop ever so short from making contact, but with some extra flex built into the movement of the Pokémon’s ankles to further simulate the impact of hitting the pavement.
#ホンダコライドン
— Honda 本田技研工業 (@HondaJP) August 4, 2025
走行の様子をお届け！#鈴鹿8耐 pic.twitter.com/S96yOfAQI3
Though Honda’s Koraidon looks to be sized such that a human rider could easily sit atop it, the movement of its limbs means leaves little space for a rider’s own legs. On the other hand, the fact that it’s able to drive itself and even make turns (utilizing the Honda Riding Assist self-balancing function), further adds to the sense that it’s a living creature with its own free will.
アンベイル！命を吹き込まれたホンダコライドンが遠くまで駆けていく姿にウルっときた。すげーよコライドン、すげーよホンダ#鈴鹿8耐 pic.twitter.com/JGxj5hfL7G
— J SPORTSモータースポーツ
(@jsports_motor) August 3, 2025
Maybe a demonstration with someone riding Koraidon is something Honda has planned for future demonstrations, or maybe they just haven’t found a true Pokémon Master to do the honors just yet.
Source, top image: Twitter/@poke_times
Koraidon ©2025 Pokémon. ©1995-2025 Nintendo/Creatures Inc./GAME FREAK inc.
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