Remember the 2020 Honda CBR1000RR-R (pictured above)? How about the Suzuki GSX-R1000R? Well, the Japanese just can't get enough of their Rs, and just recently, Young Machine Magazine from the Land of the Rising Sun has revealed that Honda may soon unveil a middleweight sportbike that will carry that extra R on its badge.
According to Young Machine Magazine, Honda may soon unleash the CBR600RR-R as a middleweight street and track weapon to complement its literbike brother, the CBR1000RR-R, at a MotoGP event once the coronavirus pandemic situation improves.
If the rumors are true, the new 600cc bike is likely to be powered by a newly-developed inline-four engine, complete with all the top-shelf bells and whistles to make it a formidable machine.
But why 600cc? For starters, the Asian market is now the largest in the world. In the Philippines, for example, a quite popular upgrade from those who are “graduating” from riding small bikes is the 400cc class. These guys, too, will soon find the power of a 400cc motorcycle insufficient and will be longing for a larger displacement bike. What's next? The middleweight.
Honda CBR650R
Locally, those who can afford usually jump from 400cc (or even from 150cc) to 1000cc not because they want to, but because the price difference between the middle and literbikes is typically just a couple of thousands of pesos apart.
Another reason why Honda may be “upgrading” the CBR600RR is that the current model has pretty much remained unchanged since the 2013 model year. By now, it is in dire need of a major overhaul to be competitive with the new middleweights in the market.
These are all speculations, none of which have been confirmed by Honda. However, there could certainly be interest for a triple-R model more affordable than Honda's top-of-the-line Fireblade. Let's just hope that if the rumors are indeed true, the Philippine-spec model's pricing will be affordable enough to convince a customer to choose a middleweight instead of going straight to the liter-class.
