he became a full-time 250cc world championship rider in 2005, finishing eleventh overall on a honda. for 2006 and beyond honda did not develop their 250cc two-stroke racing machine, but takahashi was still able to take two wins and sixth overall. he came eleventh overall without a podium in 2007 as the team began to struggle, but in 2008 he took three podium finishes, and qualified eighth and finished sixth in his home race. in his final 250cc appearance at valencia he qualified tenth, but rode well, finishing second. he ended up in fifth place in the final standings: his best performance since starting to compete in the world championship.