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The Honda Fireblade or the CBR1000R has always been a wonderful litre-class motorcycle always known for its gentle mannerisms and the ease of riding. But a lot of people were critical of the power gap between the 'Blade and its counterparts. This year the Tokyo based marquee came up with a fire-breathing answer to all of that... the Honda CBR1000RR-R! And it has already powered past the Ducati Panigale V4 R when it comes to the top speed in WSBK!
Ever since the introduction, motorcycling enthusiasts were going nuts over the 200+ bhp of power and the radical overhaul that Honda brought for the Fireblade. With the MotoGP project of HRC (Honda Racing Corporation) already enjoying a wildly successful run, the WSBK campaign was a bit lacklustre, to say the least. But not anymore!
The Honda CBR1000RR-R was just what the doctor ordered to bolster the chances of the Tokyo-based manufacturer in World Superbike Championship. With full HRC backing, Honda is already looking very strong and is poised for a heck of a show at Phillip Island this week. The motorcycle has a purported 210-214hp on tap and it was more than apparent during the final practice at Phillip Island.
Both Alvaro Bautista and Leon Haslam have been consistently topping the speed traps during two days of WorldSBK testing at Phillip Island. Bautista hit 322km/h during Tuesday’s morning session, while the Spaniard was easily fastest again with a 317.6km/h in the afternoon despite only clocking the 17th fastest lap time.
It is more or less like last year when the Ducati Panigale V4 R debuted. It was simply a rocket in a straight line. With a massive power figure courtesy of the 90-degree V4, it was remarkably faster than its inline-4 competitors. But this year, the Honda CBR1000RR-R has managed to edge past and take the crown of Speed King from the Bologna rocket.
Now, something interesting... Last year, when the Panigale V4 R was dominating its counterparts, FIM jumped in and the intervention saw the rev-limits of the Panigale V4 R dialled back. That reduced most of the top speed advantage that the V4 R had... but even then, the V4 R was more or less the fastest motorcycle on the straights.
What's interesting is if the same thing is going to happen to the new 'Blade. The Honda CBR1000RR-R revs up to 15,600 rpm in comparison to the other inline-4s of Kawasaki and Yamaha at 14,600 rpm and 14,900 rpm, respectively. Whether that happens or not remains to be seen, but we are glad to see the 'Blade back on the sharp end of the superbike speed spectrum.
Our fondness of the 'Blade goes way back to 2006 when we took it for our roadtrip around India during The Great Indian Roadtrip. And to think we were perhaps the first ones to do that... no wonder we wanted the 'Blade back on top again!
Ever since the introduction, motorcycling enthusiasts were going nuts over the 200+ bhp of power and the radical overhaul that Honda brought for the Fireblade. With the MotoGP project of HRC (Honda Racing Corporation) already enjoying a wildly successful run, the WSBK campaign was a bit lacklustre, to say the least. But not anymore!
The Honda CBR1000RR-R was just what the doctor ordered to bolster the chances of the Tokyo-based manufacturer in World Superbike Championship. With full HRC backing, Honda is already looking very strong and is poised for a heck of a show at Phillip Island this week. The motorcycle has a purported 210-214hp on tap and it was more than apparent during the final practice at Phillip Island.
Both Alvaro Bautista and Leon Haslam have been consistently topping the speed traps during two days of WorldSBK testing at Phillip Island. Bautista hit 322km/h during Tuesday’s morning session, while the Spaniard was easily fastest again with a 317.6km/h in the afternoon despite only clocking the 17th fastest lap time.
It is more or less like last year when the Ducati Panigale V4 R debuted. It was simply a rocket in a straight line. With a massive power figure courtesy of the 90-degree V4, it was remarkably faster than its inline-4 competitors. But this year, the Honda CBR1000RR-R has managed to edge past and take the crown of Speed King from the Bologna rocket.
Now, something interesting... Last year, when the Panigale V4 R was dominating its counterparts, FIM jumped in and the intervention saw the rev-limits of the Panigale V4 R dialled back. That reduced most of the top speed advantage that the V4 R had... but even then, the V4 R was more or less the fastest motorcycle on the straights.
What's interesting is if the same thing is going to happen to the new 'Blade. The Honda CBR1000RR-R revs up to 15,600 rpm in comparison to the other inline-4s of Kawasaki and Yamaha at 14,600 rpm and 14,900 rpm, respectively. Whether that happens or not remains to be seen, but we are glad to see the 'Blade back on the sharp end of the superbike speed spectrum.
Our fondness of the 'Blade goes way back to 2006 when we took it for our roadtrip around India during The Great Indian Roadtrip. And to think we were perhaps the first ones to do that... no wonder we wanted the 'Blade back on top again!
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