Sito Pons was a Spanish rider who won the 250cc World Championship twice before transitioning into team management. The team bearing his name became closely associated with Honda machinery in the premier class, running high-profile riders and delivering consistent results at the front of the grid. In addition to motorcycle racing, Pons also operated in single-seater motorsport, winning the 2004 World Series by Nissan championship with Finnish driver Heikki Kovalainen.
Pons Racing competed in the 500cc class from 1992, fielding riders including Alex Barros, Max Biaggi, Loris Capirossi, and Sete Gibernau, establishing itself as a leading Honda customer team. West cigarettes replaced Emerson Electronics as title sponsor for 2001, giving the team renewed commercial backing as the sport approached the transition to four-stroke regulations.
The 2002 season bridged the eras, with Barros and Capirossi continuing on factory-spec NSR500 two-strokes while four-stroke RC211V machinery debuted for the championship's new era. The West Honda Pons team performed solidly with the two-strokes: Barros took two consecutive podiums at Assen and Donington Park, and Capirossi scored a third place at Welkom before suffering a wrist injury at Assen. In the final four races, Barros was given the new RC211V and responded impressively, winning at Motegi and Valencia and finishing four races in succession inside the top three. He ended the season fourth overall. Capirossi's podium at Motegi on the two-stroke made him the highest-placed two-stroke rider for the full year, placing eighth overall.
Both Barros and Capirossi left the team at the end of 2002, along with title sponsor West. For 2003 R.J. Reynolds brought their Camel cigarettes branding to the team, and Max Biaggi joined from the factory Yamaha squad. Honda moved Tohru Ukawa from the Repsol factory team to partner Biaggi. Both riders campaigned customer RC211V machinery. Biaggi won at Donington Park and Motegi and finished third in the standings, with Ukawa eighth before transitioning to a factory testing role.
Biaggi remained for 2004, now joined by Makoto Tamada through a collaboration with Pramac Racing. The season began on a somber note when technical director Antonio Cobas died in Barcelona just days before the opening round in South Africa. Biaggi responded with second place in that race after a battle with Valentino Rossi. The team then won two consecutive races, with Tamada winning in Brazil — the first MotoGP victory for Bridgestone tyres — and Biaggi in Germany. Tamada won again at Motegi and placed sixth overall, while Biaggi repeated his third-place championship finish.
The Pramac collaboration ended for 2005. Alex Barros returned alongside MotoGP newcomer Troy Bayliss, who had left Ducati. Barros won in Portugal and accumulated eleven top-ten finishes to place eighth overall. Bayliss scored five top-tens in eleven appearances before a motocross accident cut his season short. Various replacements filled Bayliss's seat, including Tohru Ukawa, Shane Byrne, Chris Vermeulen, and Ryuichi Kiyonari.
Pons signed Carlos Checa and Australian rookie Casey Stoner for the 2006 season, anticipating a continued presence in the premier class. However, the loss of Camel as title sponsor — the brand moved to Yamaha — forced the team to withdraw from MotoGP after 25 seasons in the sport. Checa transferred to the Tech 3 team, and Stoner was taken on by Lucio Cecchinello's LCR team, which secured the lease of a RC211V.
After its exit from MotoGP, Pons Racing continued in the 250cc class from 2009 and subsequently in Moto2. The team's association with elite riders, its contribution to Honda's success through the 500cc and early MotoGP eras, and its role in developing or fielding champions including Biaggi and Barros underline its stature in the sport's history. At the end of 2023, Pons Racing formally exited Grand Prix motorcycle racing entirely.