TIME TO BURN RUBBER
It’s that time of year once again, where we find out exactly what the very best sportsbike on the planet is. So, enjoy, because we bloody well did...
There’s something inherently addictive about sunshine and motorcycles, and beer for that matter. As temperatures rise, manufacturer press fleets begin to blossom and British summertime commences, this can only mean one thing: Fast
Bikes’ Sportsbike of the Year. SBOTY really is the most definitive, comprehensive and informative test of current supersports weaponry around. As well as the world’s finest testers – ranging from fast road pilots to fighter pilots – we use a now (sadly) old-school method of scrutinising called ‘honesty’, but mixed with new-fangled technology such as GPS.
Other than noise and ergonomics, the truth is that most bikes feel the same when being ridden at 50 per cent of their abilities, so it’s our job to bring you a no-nonsense verdict and cut the peng from the pong. All of these bikes feel brilliant in isolation. It’s about dissecting every strand and delivering a concise conclusion.
The observant among you will have clocked just eight bikes in the 2017 line-up, rather than the de rigueur ten. Simply put, with bugger-all 600s on offer, very few middleweight options, and MV Agusta’s failure to provide bikes (namely the F4 RC and new F3 800), only eight deserve to make the cut anyway.
Thanks to Euro 4, 2017 is a new bike fest, so SBOTY has a veritable feast of fresh entrants this term. Perhaps the most eagerly anticipated players are the Honda Fireblade and Suzuki’s GSX-R1000R, both boasting all-new pedigree for this season. While the Suzuki claimed top spot in our road-only
shootout last month, it has an onslaught of rivalry to contend with in Portugal – and must prove itself on the stopwatch.
Other new bikes for 2017 include Yamaha’s updated R6, which isn’t here solely to make up the numbers. The last of a dying breed of 600s, 2017’s changes are subtle to say the least, but R6s have always performed admirably at SBOTY. Talking of performers, the Aprilia RSV4 has romped to five consecutive test victories in the past, and rolls into 2017 in the heavily modified RF guise – far more than just a Euro 4 makeover. The same couldn’t be said for Yamaha’s R1M and BMW’s S 1000 RR, although that matters little for the reigning SBOTY champion from Bavaria. Mmm, beer...
Kawasaki was the first to deliver Euro 4 superbike offerings last season. For 2017, the Big K got all homologation on our arses and released the ZX-10RR. Does the Rea rep’ have enough in its armoury? Finally, unchanged for this year as the sole Euro 3 contender, Ducati’s 1299 Panigale S makes what could be a final appearance before Bologna’s superbike range gets revamped in 2018.
One again we’re back at Portimao for a fourth consecutive year. The Algarve track offers an unrivalled host of challenges and gives any bike a thorough workout – it’s the Jane Fonda of circuits. And, of course, we have a control tyre to keep things fair, with all SBOTY competitors receiving a grip upgrade courtesy of Bridgestone’s brilliant R10.
In the market for fresh metal? Read on. Just interested? Read on anyway. It doesn’t get any better than this...