First Look at the Bimota KB998 Superbike

Kawasaki first announced in April that it would be transferring its factory race team to a joint venture with Bimota. The Japanese manufacturer acquired a stake in Bimota in 2019, and the goal for their joint racing program is to re-establish the Bimota brand. Bimota has revealed a handful of new models powered by Kawasaki engines since its acquisition, but the KB998 is a brand new machine. With WSBK being a production-based racing series, Bimota will eventually have to manufacture at least 500 units to meet homologation requirements.

We don’t know too many technical details about the KB998 yet, beyond what we already know about the engine, which is based on the Kawasaki Ninja ZX-10RR’s 998cc Inline-Four. The Akrapovič, and Brembo brakes all look similar to what was used on Kawasaki’s 2024 Superbike. Bimota has a history of employing funky front suspension, but the KB998 follows a more traditional route, using a Showa fork similar to that used on the Ninja.

The fairing is new, though the front face still has some Kawasaki Ninja styling cues. The bodywork under the (faux) headlights doesn’t jut out as much as it did on the ZX-10RR, having more of an upward curve to it. Like many modern racebikes today, the KB998 employs aerodynamic winglets. Moving along to the side panels, the fairing covers up more of the engine than the Ninja’s bodywork, but the part that catches my eye is the top edge, which curves inward on the steel trellis frame.

That bright red trellis connected to aluminum plates is where we see more of the Bimota influence. The swingarm also looks to be a new design, but we can only make out so much of the chassis from the single supplied photo.

We’ll probably learn more as testing gets underway this week, with further details likely to come in a few weeks at EICMA.

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