Indeed, the sportbike game has changed, as Kawasaki revealed the Ninja H2R, the racing version of its newest motorcycle. The H2R is equipped with an in-line four supercharged engine, and even though Kawasaki did not reveal any other technical, the 300 hp max power no longer seems such a far out idea.
A tubular trellis steel chassis was built around the engine, and is definitely a step outside Kawasaki’s traditional approach to bike-building, just like the single-sided swingarm which looks pretty high-tech. For some reason, the frame looks a bit fragile, but maybe it’s only the mind playing tricks on us, and the awesome power figure rumored being hard to accept.
The house of Akashi made liberal use of carbon fiber for the Ninja H2R, as the whole bodywork is carbon, the dual-intake air duct reaching to the supercharger in the back of the engine being constructed from the same material. The bodywork looks stunning, even though the repair costs after a wipeout will probably be stellar, given the ultra-exposed winglets. While they will surely add increased downforce in straight or almost straight lines, it will be interesting to see how they perform through the turns.
H2R also shows an ABS ring on the front wheel, with Brembo radial-mount calipers, so we could probably safely assume that Kawasaki has developed their own racing version of anti-locking brakes. The engine cutaway photos also show dual-stage injectors and a DOHC architecture. Check back with us soon as more official tech data is expected presently. So far, the all-new Kawasaki Ninja H2R receives a big “yay” here.
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