Italian Stallion

Ever since the price of Aprilia's made-in-India new entry segment track machine was annouced, we've been waiting to get a leg over and we got a chance to do just that at the gruelling Kari Motor Speedway

Of all the tracks in the country, the Kari Motor Speedway has always stood out as a proving ground. Heavy braking, narrow bankings, hairy double apexes, dusty corners and a mysterious slippy patch that is said to have been formed from years of oil leaking into the tarmac. And of course, the famed Bermuda Triangle. Kari is neither for the faint of heart nor for the machine. It was our first hint of how confident Aprilia is in their new 'sports-tourer' guise fully faired 457. Naturally, we were there with bells on to find out exactly how it rides.

Design is subjective, but do you even love motorcycles if you don't think Aprilias are unconditionally beautiful? The same goes for the 457, the design is very unapologetically derived from the RSV4 right down to those cool MotoGP-inspired winglets on the front, and the 457 looks like a scaled-down version of its bigger sibling. One of the elements that you have to love is the way the fairing neatly integrates the belly exhaust. It does look instantly like a big bike. One might even mistake it for an RS 660 at a glance. Build quality on initial inspection did seem to be above par, the same goes for the switchgear.

There's a 5-inch TFT colour display for the instruments that gets Bluetooth connectivity as well. I wish adjustable levers were a part of the standard kit, but that is as much as one can complain about.

On paper, the Aprilia RS 457 is properly kitted out. For one it's based on a dual-beam aluminium frame that adds the rigidity it needs for proper direction changes. Front and rear springs are adjustable for preload with a 41mm USD upfront with 120mm of travel and a mono-shock at the ear. Braking comes from a pair of discs with a 320mm floating disc up front and a 220mm disc at the rear. The brakes and the callipers are ByBre and use organic pads instead of top-shelf Brembo signature callipers and sintered pads. We'll get back to this when we talk about how it rides.