#Streetfighter

What we have in these five bikes: BMW S1000R, Ducati Monster 1200S, Kawasaki Z1000 ABS, KTM Super Duke R, MV Agusta Brutale 1090RR, is an assemblage of pretenders to the throne. What throne? The literbike streetfighter throne upon which Aprilia’s Tuono V4R APRC ABS has comfortably resided since its introduction in 2012. Truth is, two of these five have a real chance of dethroning  the reigning champ on-track, so once we’ve identified the most worthy contenders in this shootout, first and second place will get a chance to meet the Tuono on the field of battle. 

It’s gonna be a good year for moto-nudity. A damn good year. We already tasted the KTM Super Duke R and are still savoring its flavor while salivating like a bloodhound hot on the trail of riding BMW’s fairingless S1000R. But before we sink our teeth into the naked Bavarian, there’s the matter of Kawi’s newest unclothed hooligan, the 2014 Z1000 ABS.

Turn off the switchable ABS and Motorcycle Traction Control (MTC) and KTM’s new 1290 Super Duke R slips, slides, wheelies and stoppies just like in the promotional video released a few months ago (certain skillset required). Leave these two rider aids on, however, and the “Beast” (as KTM affectionately refers to it) is as genteel as a 1301cc V-Twin boasting 180 horsepower and 106 ft-lbs of torque can possibly be.

It’s a time of feasting for fans of streetfighters and hooligans. The category is so chock full of badass nakeds we had to create a category unto streetfighters for our 2013 Motorcycle Of the Year awards. Between these two manufacturers alone exist 10 streetfighters of differing levels of performance. For this shootout we chose only two … an exceptionally good two!

Any bike nut who’s fascinated by performance loves sportbikes. But consumers often have a narrow focus on what makes for a desirable sporting machine, often opting for a faired crotch rocket rather than a relatively comfortable naked roadster. But while naked sporty bikes from Japan have almost never sold well in America (R.I.P. Suzuki SV650…), unfaired sportbikes from Europe are in relatively high demand.

While choosing this year’s MOBO selections we noticed that the Best Standard category was awash with bikes such as Aprilia’s Tuono and Triumph’s Speed Triple R – last year’s Best and Honorable Mention, respectively. This year adds models such as MV Agusta’s Brutale 675 and 800 as well as a revised Triumph Street Triple R. How is a true standard such as Honda’s new CB1100 to compete with bikes such as these high-performance nakeds? To solve this conundrum we created a new category for 2013, Best Streetfighter/Hooligan.

MV Agusta produces four renditions of its inline-Four powered 1078cc naked streetfighter: Brutale 1090, Brutale 1090 R, Brutale 1090 RR and Brutale Corsa.  The two Triple models, Brutale 675 and Brutale 800 brings the total Brutale count to six.