I've got no axe to grind & no particular allegiance to Seton, but, I can only speak from my own experience. I had my R1M mapped by him & quickshifter/blipper fitted, the throttle pick up was faultless, something that the standard bikes really suffer from & the bike did two full seasons of track day usage & it never missed a beat. It supposedly did 202bhp on his dyno, but, I didn't care what the figure was, the bike was quick enough to hold on to most other bikes on track.
As hard as it is, the dyno figure to look at is the af and how smooth the curves are and forget the power. JHP have a similar rep, as does CJS. For big numbers but their bikes are always smooth and easier as they are well mapped. It’s hard boys, but it’s the way to go…
Yeah spending a few quid on decent braking setup can gain as many seconds as spending a fortune on power. On my old carby r6, just switching the pads out and swapping the cylinder for the front brake gained me more time per lap than an engine tune would of. Admittedly its not a 200hp monster with huge gains to be made like the bikes your talking about, but it all adds up to smiles per lap in the end
I have an R1M on order. Couldn’t resist as I’ve always fancied one and my Yamaha dealer whom I haven’t used for 20 years (since I first bought a Ducati) remembered me and ordered one. Only 40 coming into the U.K. this year, most likely the last batch to be made. They are absolutely beautiful to behold in the flesh and really hold their value. I went to town a bit and ordered a shed load of Gilles parts from the Yamaha catalogue. Also, turning the clock back a bit as I had a brand new 1998 R1 in red & white.
According to my dealer, possibly no more R1M’s/R1’s after this year in Europe due to the upcoming changes in emission regulations. They are able to homologate for WSBK with their GYTR bikes. Only a rumour but it seems to be gaining traction in some of the motorcycling press. Additionally, Honda are likely to release a new Fireblade CBR-RR this year and that’s likely to be the last too. Very sad if these rumours are true.
In 2021 Honda sold 6 fireblade across the 3 months June-august…….. Yamaha sell a few more but yeah I’ve heard the same, interestingly my local one has a lovely used r1m on a 2022 reg and a new stock standard r1 which is more than I’ve seen in there for a while
There’s definitely something not quite right with the early 2cr motors! My 2016 which I had from new 2800 miles meticulously maintained blew itself to pieces at snett! Balance shaft was sliced in two by a flailing rod! Had new 2019 black motor popped in so all good now! Setons a knob BTW!
Very worrying news about the future of sport bikes. It seems they have evolved themselves to the brink of extinction.
it’s funny because I think the 600 sportsbike market was killed by the development of electronics on 1000’s. Because suddenly it didn’t matter that they made loads of power cause you just turned them down
Perhaps but the bikes in the USA are more strangled than they are here as the emissions regulations in California are very restrictive but they are easily undone.
