'It laps as fast as a 1290 R'
KTM’S Chief development rider, and ex-gp star, Jeremy Mcwilliams gets all excited about the new 890 Duke R…
‘I want to see riders’ faces when they get off. I think riding it will be a “wow” moment. It’s that good’
The new 890 Duke R is a comprehensively boosted version of the already fruity 790 Duke. It gets a reworked engine (more capacity, hotter cams, lighter pistons, higher compression), new suspension and a more aggressive riding position. And it’s shockingly fast, says KTM’S development rider and ex-gp star Jeremy Mcwilliams.
‘My preference has always been the bigger capacity bikes, so I would have always preferred the 1290 Super Duke R to the 790. But the 890 has changed my whole perception. If feels like you’ve got big bike power on tap, and I don’t expect a mid-weight bike to steer and stop and wheelie like the 890 does.’
Ever the racer, Mcwilliams’ benchmark for these matters is not purely feel. ‘It depends a bit on the track, but I can hit the same lap time on the 890 as I can on the 1290 [the 1290 R makes 180bhp don’t forget]. At places such as Jerez or Oschersleben where there isn’t a 1.5km straight, the 890 can lap just as fast.’ The frame and geometry is the same as the 790’s, which is no bad thing – the 790 Duke was Bike’s Bike of the Year in 2018. But the base chassis did create problems for the test team when they pushed on. ‘Ground clearance was one area we had to work on,’ Mcwilliams tells Bike. ‘ The Michelin Power Cup 2 tyres we chose are capable of pulling 58-degree lean angles, so we knew we needed to improve ground clearance. That had implications for shock and fork lengths, and of course footpeg position [which is higher and further back than on the 790].’
So it is purely a track tool? ‘No. We did more testing on road than on track. It’s a real pity that no-one can try it for a while – this was the launch I was most looking forward to because I want to see riders’ faces when they get off. I think riding it will be one of those ‘wow’ moments. It’s that good.’