The Demo Site

Snicking the bike into gear and heading down the pit lane, you quickly realize that this is definitely no ordinary inline four, and certainly nothing like the previous generation R1. Despite its more oversquare dimensions (the new powerplant sports bore/stroke figures of 78 x 52.2mm versus the previous 77 x 53.6mm measurements), the new engine has an abundance of torque at lower rpms that its predecessor could only fantasize about. Even with the same tall first gear (albeit with two extra teeth on the rear sprocket), the new Yamaha effortlessly pulled away from a stop without any of the deft clutch manipulation usually required, and it's a sure bet the R1's enhanced low-end and midrange power will pay dividends in real-world street use. No longer will the R1 pilot be forced to keep the rpms higher than usual to get serious steam from the engine room. In addition, we found the previous 7000-rpm flat spot of previous generation R1s to be completely banished in the '09 model.

Once the Michelin Pilot Power rubber (U.S. models will be fitted with the new generation Dunlop D210 Qualifier tires) was warmed up after a couple of laps, it was time to put the hammer down and see if the new Yamaha was going to live up to the hype. It didn't take long.