BEEMERS BOOZE AND BURN-OUTS...BMW MOTORRAD DAYS 2023

Back in July, some 37,000 people flocked to BMW's Motorrad Days, held for the second time in the German capital, Berlin. I was one of them...

GROUND-BREAKER

The time is right to buy Yamaha's class-defining litre bike.

ON ROAD...DUCATI V4R

This is a hard bike to criticise, to the extent that I'll jump in with both feet and lay my biggest hang-up on the table from the get-go... I don't like the number one sticker on the front number board.

ON TRACK...DUCATI PANIGALE V4R

Ducati settles for nothing less than perfection, and the V4R is right at the very forefront of that. Experience is the first word that springs to mind; it's a truly special experience to ride this Panigale (just like the rest of the V4 range), and you can just tell that every last detail has been thought about with this bike.

UNDER THE SKIN...DUCATI V4R

I've said it before, and no doubt I'll say it again - Ducati doesn't do things by halves.

ON ROAD...HONDA FIREBLADE RR-R SP 30TH ANNIVERSARY

I Know the Blade well. I had one of these back in 2020 and did the best part of 5000 miles on it. Not much has changed since the inaugural version, aside from a tooth on the rear sprocket and some slightly revised electronics.

ON TRACK...HONDA FIREBLADE RR-R SP

To kick things off, I decided the Fireblade would be the weapon of choice to get my senses sharpened and the ball rolling for this year's Ultimate Sports Bike track test.

UNDER THE SKIN...HONDA FIREBLADE RR-R SP

What's interesting about the Fireblade is that unlike the other bikes on this test - pumped-up trick homologation versions of existing bikes in their ranges, so BMW and Ducati can go racing the Fireblade was made from day one as a race bike.

ON ROAD...BMW M 1000 RR

Just like that, our three days of testing were done and dusted, barring a final blast over the Mountain. The question was, what bike would I be doing it on?

ON TRACK...BMW M 1000 RR

When I first clapped eyes on this carbon-covered kryptonite, I can't say I was particularly dazzled by the new styling and upgraded aero package. Now I've seen one in the flesh, I've turned a full 180 and can completely appreciate the bodywork overhaul and the detail within.

UNDER THE SKIN...BMW M 1000 RR

The latest M 1000 RR must surely be the first bike to be faster in a straight line as well as around corners than the bike it’s replacing without getting a single upgrade to its engine or chassis.

HOMOLOGATION Special

Sportsbikes… they’re bloody awesome. They always have been, and for us, they always will be.

Charlie Nesbitt

Our last chat with SHARK Helmets’ 2023 crop of British riders is with Swindonborn Hawk Honda man Charlie Nesbitt.

SHED FIND TO SUPERBIKE...

It’s been out of the mag for a few months, but Bruce has finally pulled his finger out and made some solid progress on his ZX-7R.

WHAT THE TECH: AIRBOXES

As we recently discovered with Project R7, which concluded last month, an airbox can make a massive difference to the performance of an engine and, therefore, motorbike.

FACTORY RACER

In 2012, Aprilia armed its RSV4 models with a WSB-derived electronics package.

DUCATI DRE - RACETRACK ACADEMY

Some days just start better than others... like when you open your bedroom curtains and stare down at one of the sauciest racetracks in the world – Silverstone.

BABY BLADES...HONDA'S OTHER CBRS

Sportsbikes come in all shapes and sizes, as Honda’s middleweight CBRs hammer home.

SPORTSBIKE VS SUPERNAKED - WHICH is FASTER?

It’s a question that needs answering. With a chunk of help from Ducati, Pirelli and a certain BSB star, we pitched one of the finest sportsbikes on the market against its technically similar supernaked sibling.

Christian Iddon

Iddon's one tough cookie, as we're sure you'll agree after reading this.

Heal like Wolverine

Unfortunately, crashing is part of the job when it comes to racing motorcycles, and completing an entire season without copping for the odd spill is relatively unheard of... even the most successful riders get a little too intimate with the tarmac every now and then.

Kyle Ryde

Every now and then, it seems like there’s a bit of a changing of the guard in the top race series. The big names you’ve grown accustomed to begin to drift down the results sheets and new, less familiar names start to rise to the top.

THE FINALE - ROAD TO THE TT YAMAHA R7 PROJECT

Now the dust has settled, it’s time to tell the tale of how Rutter’s R7 cut it around the 2023 Isle of Man TT.

MID-SIZED MAESTRO 2023 KTM RC 8C

The second-generation KTM RC 8C took all of two minutes to sell out its 200-unit production run. Cathcart was not lucky enough to have bought one, but he bagged another golden ticket – to try one out for size around Valencia.

HIDDEN TREASURE

Remember the 2005 YZF-R6? This one-hit wonder is worth searching out...

THE Fairy-tale TT

The dust might only just be settling on this year’s epic TT, but we want to take you back to 2017 and one of the most magical wins around the Island ever. To a Senior TT victory that could, and maybe even should, have gone very differently. It’s time to talk about Michael Dunlop and the Hawk Suzuki GSX-R1000R…

BEEN THERE, DONE THAT...

So, there you have it… you’ve got our take on the bikes to buy, the bikes to salivate over, and the bikes to take a punt on. But before we sign off and leave you to a weekend of scrolling online ads for overlooked bargains, we thought we’d give you a bit of insight from a bloke who’s built up an impressive collection of bikes on the back of buying them at the right time and for the right price.

WORTH A PUNT...

2004 Fireblade - The 2004 Fireblade is the result of Honda deciding it wanted to go superbike racing, abandoning its ‘less is more’ approach to superbike design and going all in with a 1000cc example. It also drew heavily on Honda’s design philosophy of mass centralisation it was using to great effect on the V5 RC211V MotoGP bike. And it was the first non-Baba designed Fireblade, which, unless you’ve been living under a rock for the past 20 years, you’ll know is significant.

ON THE UP...

2009 Yamaha R1 - In 2008, when Yamaha released the teaser adverts for the upcoming replacement to the ever popular R1, all they did was publish a photograph of a crankshaft.

BIKES THAT HAVE BOOMED...

Ducati 916 - Like all the bikes in this category, the 916 should really not need any introduction, but as an example that in recent times has gone mad in value, this shines.