Sanrio and Honda are sending Hello Kitty and Friends on one of their highest octane adventures of all time.
Per Oricon, Sanrio and Honda have officially unveiled their latest collaboration, the Smile Rider Project. This new initiative is geared towards young Sanrio fans and auto enthusiasts, with the hope of sharing the appeal of motorcycles and other motorsports while also emphasizing the importance of traffic safety.
Honda is Officially Taking Hello Kitty and Friends to the Racetrack This Summer
Unlike previous collaborations between Sanrio and Honda, the Smile Rider Project initiative is going beyond tie-in merchandise and commemorative designs, this time taking Hello Kitty and Friends all the way to the racetrack. The Honda Ryokuyokai Kumamoto Racing, an employee racing team based out of Honda’s Kumamoto factory, will be burning rubber for at least one portion of the 2026 FIM Endurance World Championship.
Honda Ryokuyokai Kumamoto Racing will be entering the 47th Coca-Cola Suzuka 8 Hours Endurance Road Race under a (temporary) new team name, SANRIO CHARACTERS × Honda Kumamoto Racing. The team will enter the event on a specially designed CBR1000RR R Fireblade, developed and manufactured right at home in the Kumamoto Factory. The motorcycle will be covered in Kuromi-themed livery and features the mischievous Sanrio character’s trademark deep purple hue.
Hello Kitty, Pompompurin, and other Sanrio mascot characters will be featured in a variety of themed merchandise and apparel that fans can pick up ahead of and during the race. Among these are a brand-new traffic safety T-shirt, buttons and patches featuring several iconic Sanrio characters, and a whole host of still undisclosed exclusive products that will only be available at the event, which will be held at Suzuka Circuit in Mie Prefecture on July 5.
The Smile Rider Project is just the latest in a seemingly endless list of brand collaborations between Sanrio and other major companies. And, considering how bright the future is looking for Hello Kitty and her fellow Sanrio mascot characters, there really has never been a better time for Honda to jump back on the bandwagon.
Currently, Hello Kitty is slated to headline multiple upcoming video game releases, with Sanrio Party Land quite possibly standing out as the most exciting of the bunch. Slated for release sometime this Fall, Sanrio Party Land will drop players into a brightly colored world inspired by and populated with their favorite Sanrio characters, and will be one of the first games released by the newly founded Sanrio Games.
Hello Kitty is also set to take center stage in her very first feature film outing. Developed and produced by FlynnPictureCo., Warner Bros. Animation, and New Line Cinema, Hello Kitty was officially announced in October 2025, along with its planned release date of July 21, 2028.
Although details surrounding the film remain sparse, there is little doubt that Hello Kitty is being produced by some of the most dedicated creatives in the industry, especially after the reports of FlynnPictureCo. founder Beaugh Flynn, spending nearly a decade in personal negotiations with Sanrio founder Shintaro Tsuji in order to secure the rights to Hello Kitty on the silver screen.
- First Film
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Hello Kitty: Cinderella (1989)
- First TV Show
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Hello Kitty’s Furry Tale Theater (1987)
- Latest Film
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Hello Kitty in The Sleeping Princess (1991)
- Latest TV Show
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Hello Kitty and Friends Supercute Adventures (2020)