Superbikes, the pinnacle of road-going motorcycles. The bikes most aspire to, to taste the performance that comes with riding top-of-the-range machinery.
It has to be acknowledged that today’s superbikes have become focussed weapons, meant for the race track. While you could, in theory, ride a superbike daily (and we have), it is a waste of the bike’s performance.
For this video, we gathered together three superbikes, a 2019 Honda CBR1000RR SP1, a Kawasaki ZX-10R SE and the Yamaha YZF-R1M. While the R1M is not currently available in the Malaysian market, the other two are and the basis for selection in this case was all three are top flight superbikes with electronically controlled suspension.
For those about to say, “but what about… ?”, well, we tried. We sent requests to all the main distributors in the country for their respective superbikes and were told the bikes were unavailable.
So, yes, the error of omission is regretted and although we did want to make the showdown as complete as possible, alas, it was not to be. Taking what we had, compare the specifications between the three and share some thoughts about what these superbikes were like to ride.
Of the three, the R1M and ZX-10R were most track focused, with the ZX-10R being particularly notable for being developed to suit five-time World Superbike Champion Jonathan Rea’s racing style. The R1M, despite being a generation of out date – it’s been replaced by the 2020 Yamaha YZF-R1M – is still a formidable race bike in its own right.
But, for us, the CBR1000RR SP was the easiest to get on and go fast, with forgiving handling manners and tolerant of ham-fisted throttle and brake inputs. It would have been interesting to see how the CBR1000RR would stack up against the BMW Motorrad S1000RR which we had for long term test last year, another approachable superbike that made it easy for the rider to look like a racing hero.
The detailed review of the 2019 Superbike Showdown will be published shortly. In the meantime, enjoy the video.
Nobody buys a litre bike unless for speed. And remember Kawasaki reigns in superbike racing world. 6 times champion in the last 7 seasons (Jonathan rea 5 times, Tom sykes once).
And don’t forget, world SBK I using production bie as it’s basis,unlie MotoGP which using non production prototype machines
Need to say no more.
In this country’s roads, the Honda will be more than enough. M’sian roads are congested, just getting to Sepang for a track session is exhausting whether you ride or drive there (if your bike is parked there or is on the back of a trailer). In your helmet, you are already sweating when you reach your destination because of the heat and the amount of concentration needed to cut through traffic and then ride like a racer in the canyons of Karak for example. Those who desire the faster bikes are techno geeks who seek that technical advantage.but can’t ride any faster
Correct. To be fair, a Honda 150R would be enough in Malaysia, no need to waste money on a CBR1000RR.
Agree with Mohan about the CBR. Let’s face the truth, all of us keyboard warriors here (lol) will never be able to make full use of the bike’s capability. If the Honda is easier to ride, most likely it will be the fastest bike.