How Much Power Does the 2023 Honda CRF250RX Make?

The CRF250RX is one of Honda’s newer dirt bike models, having been in the CRF Performance line since 2019. Since then, it has drawn praise from Dirt Rider testing staff—namely for being fun to ride. This closed-course off-road competition model is campaigned by Phoenix Racing Honda in the Grand National Cross Country (GNCC) and AMA US Sprint Enduro series, as well as Slam Life Racing (SLR) Honda in the AMA National Grand Prix Championship (NGPC) and World Off Road Championship Series (WORCS).

Big Red gave the CRF250RX and its motocross-focused CRF250R sibling a complete overhaul in 2022, and left well enough alone for 2023—just changing the radiator shroud graphics. We could hardly wait to swing a leg over Honda’s MY23 quarter-liter cross-country racer, but before we did, it spun the drum on the Dirt Rider dyno to determine peak output from its fuel-injected liquid-cooled DOHC four-stroke 249cc single-cylinder engine. With a Dunlop D404 street tire on its rear wheel, it produced 37.1 hp at 11,800 rpm and 17.8 lb.-ft. of torque at 9,300 rpm.

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“The CRF250RX engine is very responsive and has a light-feeling character,” test rider Allan Brown said. “Powerband has a decent midrange and builds higher into the rpm with good over-rev.”

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