The new Triumph Speed Triple 1200 RS is a bike that is positioned in the naked market in a unique way. With 180 hp from its 1,160 cc in-line 3-cylinder it is perfectly halfway between the super-naked from around 150-160 hp – BMW S 1000 R, Ducati Monster 1200, Honda CB 1000 R, Kawasaki Z 1000, Suzuki GSX S 1000 and Yamaha MT-10 – and the hypernaked ones with over 200 HP, namely the Aprilia Tuono V4 1100, the Ducati Streetfighter V4, the Kawasaki Z H2, the KTM 1290 Superduke R and the MV Agusta Brutale 1000 RR. The fourth generation Speed Triple tries to take the best of both worlds, packaging an avalanche of power in an exploitable way, both on the road and on the track, especially with this RS version which has state-of-the-art components, of those that between the curbs can make a difference. To understand this we came to Imola, in one of the most fascinating and difficult circuits not only in Italy, but probably in the whole world.
A track that with its ups and downs, counter-slopes and the lack of reference points, tests both the bike’s chassis and the rider’s technique. Here the new Speed Triple can make the engine blend up to 11,150 rpm of the limiter, reaching and exceeding 250 km / h in at least three points: before the braking of the Tamburello, at the end of the climb that leads to the Tamburello and finally in the descent that precedes the entrance to the Rivazza. These are remarkable results for a bike without a fairing, which makes this characteristic feel only with some swaying of the handlebars in the most critical sections, where the front tends to float. But it is a phenomenon that does not create problems and that should be easily solved with the adjustments allowed by the top-of-the-range Öhlins suspension, namely the NIX 30 inverted fork and the TTX36 monoshock for the single-sided swingarm.
The first supports without problems, even the most violent braking, allowing to maintain a lot of precision in insertion. The second prevents the rear from sitting too much in acceleration, copying bumps and allowing the tires to give all the traction they can. The brakes are also passed with flying colors for both power and fatigue resistance and modulation. The system is signed by Brembo Stylema with monobloc and radial mount front calipers, with double 320mm discs. The original equipment tires are Metzeler Racetec RR, but for this test we used the Pirelli Diablo Rosso IV, of which we appreciated the feeling and the communicativeness of a tire that was born anyway for road use with some digression between the curbs. Speaking of the track, in the ups and downs of Imola we clearly perceived the work of the IMU inertial platform which, once the Track mode is set, allows a small degree of wheelie before cutting, as well as a certain amount of spin of the rear tire.
In other words, you can open the throttle without too many awe and it is not a foregone conclusion considering the thrust that the three-cylinder is able to generate in the central part of the tachometer, and then it shoots in no time at all towards the red zone, also helped by the very rapid changes allowed by the electronic quickshifter. In short, the Triumph Speed Triple RS 1200 is absolutely at ease on the track, although this is not its natural habitat. We would be curious to try it on a mountain road of the right ones, but we imagine that even in the city it does well, thanks to the saddle placed 83 centimeters from the ground and the good turning radius granted by the handlebar. There is also a device such as the keyless system that allows you to keep the key in your pocket and to start the engine directly from the controls of the right block. All this starting from € 17,600, a price that is all in all commensurate with the qualities of this mode, which proved to be very balanced and fun, but also easy.