Best of the Best

Sportsbikes are the most incredible performance vehicles you can buy to use on the road today. With up to 200bhp in a race-ready chassis weighing under 400lbs, they offer mind-blowing acceleration and speed, with amazing rideability and drive.

Super-powerful brakes and wide, sticky race tires give phenomenal stopping power, massive lean angles, and tenacious grip under acceleration. The whole package is then wrapped up in stylish, aerodynamic bodywork and shipped to the owner, often for less than $10,000.

Sportsbike engines broadly fall into two categories – inline-fours, and V-twins. The ‘Big Four’ Japanese manufactures; Honda, Suzuki, Yamaha and Kawasaki, make four-cylinder powerplants in 1,000 and 600cc capacities. Exotic Italian firm MV Agusta also builds inline-four engines. The other major Italian manufacturers – Ducati and Aprilia – produce V-twin engines in capacities from 850-1200cc. There are also three-cylinder sportsbike engines – UK firm Triumph and the Italian company Benelli make inline-three motors that combine the strong, torquey character of a twin cylinder engine and the top-end power of a four.

We’ve listed five of the best sports machines below – but there are a couple of notable machines which just missed the top five spot. Honda’s CBR1000RR Fireblade makes a fine road bike, with its civilised, sophisticated ride and seductive performance. On the other hand, Kawasaki’s ZX-10R is a machine for committed riders only: its lunatic performance and switchblade-sharp handling require nerves of steel to get the most from.