5 Fastest Japanese Sports Bikes On The Market (and 5 Italian Alternatives)

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If you want something that is fast, reliable, and easy to maintain, you need to look to the Far East. But if you want style and bragging rights, no one does it better than the Italians. However, in recent times, the Japanese have learned to make some motorcycles that have a much broader appeal, especially in the looks department, while the Italians are learning more and more that a regular customer would sacrifice the last tenth of performance if it meant a trouble-free ownership experience (pat yourself on the back for the Granturismo engine, Ducati!).




It gave us an interesting thought: what Japanese and Italian motorcycles matched up with each other, and where would they hold the upper hand? So answering that, we’ve picked five of the fastest from each country, and we’ve thrown in a couple of middleweights as well so that things aren’t monotonous. Here we go, then: Japan vs Italy, two-wheeled style.

In order to bring you the most up-to-date information, the data used to compile this article was sourced from the various manufacturers featured here, as well as other authoritative sources, such as Motorcyclenews.com, and Cycle World. We’ve arranged them in order of top speed to give some order to the proceedings.

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10 Honda CBR600RR

Top speed: 160 MPH (est)

2024 Red Honda CBR600RR Sport Bike
Honda


It was a sad day for all of us when Honda decided to discontinue its 600cc replica racer, even though most of us would happily eschew a 600cc supersport in favor of the only slightly heavier and much more powerful 1000cc motorcycles. However, happy days are here again, and Honda has brought back the CBR600RR to the international market, although it doesn’t seem like it will enter America this year. The supersport gets a suite of rider aids now, along with a heavily revised design, so that you can do what it was designed to do even better than before. All of this means you can reach a top speed of around 160 MPH, but you’ll have to wring every last bit of performance it has from the top end of the rev range.

Engine Type

Inline four

Displacement

599cc

Max Power

119 HP @ 14,250 RPM (European spec)

Max Torque

46.4 LB-FT @ 11,500 RPM (European spec)


9 MV Agusta F3 800

Top speed: 149 MPH

MV-Agusta-F3-RR
MV Agusta

The F3 800 is the Italian take on what a supersport should be, and it looks like they’re getting some things right – they’re doing quite well in the European World SSP championship, with a win going to the F3 with Bahattin Sofoğlu aboard it in 2023. The F3 gives up one cylinder to the CBR600RR but offers more displacement, so it should be easier to ride in the real world and the wider torque spread should also help on the racetrack. MV also offers the hardcore almost track-spec ‘RC’ variant as well as a racing kit, which offers a street-legal Akrapovič exhaust. Which gives us an idea…


Engine Type

Inline triple

Displacement

798 cc

Max Power

147 HP @ 13,000 RPM

Max Torque

64.9 LB-FT @ 10,600 RPM

8 Honda CBR1000RR-R Fireblade SP

Top speed: 186 MPH (limited)

2024 Honda CBR1000RR-R Wheelie
Honda

We’re now dealing with the big guns, and almost all the 186 MPH examples you see here are limited to that speed as per the gentlemen’s agreement. The Fireblade is a legendary motorcycle; at the beginning of the 1990s, it showed the world what a supersport should be like – not just quick in a straight line, but around a corner as well. But since then, others have come along and taken the crown from the Fireblade. The CBR1000RR-R SP seeks to restore that glory with a fistful of weight-saving and race tech derived from its MotoGP program, and the results are better than we’ve expected. Now, Honda just needs to get some good results in WSBK and MotoGP, so they can restore the Fireblade name to its old glory.


Engine Type

Inline four

Displacement

999.9cc

Max Power

215 HP @ 14,500 RPM

Max Torque

83.3 LB-FT @ 12,500 RPM

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7 Ducati Panigale V4 SP2

Top speed: 186 MPH (limited)

A Ducati Panigale V4 SP2 Motorcycle
Ducati

Ducati’s Sport Performance (SP) models combine the best of its roadgoing models and track day specials to make a motorcycle that is fast no matter where you choose to ride it. And, equally importantly, rare. There aren’t SP models for all Ducati models, so when the company does launch one, it is an occasion. The V4 SP2 has nothing to prove to anyone, as it’s heavily derived from the dominant V4 R in WSBK in the hands of Alvaro Bautista. So reaching its top speed won’t take too long for anyone except the most ham-fisted, thanks to Ducati’s legendary suite of electronics. Oh, there’s just one other thing: you can have the Panigale V4 SP2 in any color you like, as long as it is black.


Engine Type

90 degree V4, Desmodromic valves

Displacement

1,103 cc

Max Power

215.5 HP @ 13,000 RPM

Max Torque

91.2 LB-FT @ 9,500 RPM

6 Yamaha YZF-R1M

Top speed: 186 MPH (limited)

2024 Yamaha YZF-R1M front 3/4 action shot
Yamaha

Yamaha is the second most successful manufacturer in the history of motorcycle racing, and they’ve won a lot of its races with the YZR-M1. In fact, the M1 is the reason everyone in MotoGP is now running a ‘big bang’ firing order. The R1M takes Yamaha’s MotoGP know-how and puts it into a road-going missile. Like the Fireblade, it opts for an inline-four engine, and peak power has crept near the 200-horsepower mark. Of course, there are multiple sentimental reasons to get yourself one of these, like Noriyuki Haga, Jorge Lorenzo, and Valentino Rossi, but we doubt you’ll remember any of them when you’re screaming at its 186 MPH top speed.


Engine Type

Inline four

Displacement

998cc

Max Power

198 HP @ 13,500 RPM

Max Torque

82.9 LB-FT @ 11,500 RPM

5 Aprilia RSV4 1100 Factory

Top speed: 199 MPH

A side right shot of a 2023 Aprilia RSV4
Aprilia

Aprilia should be the underdog in racing, given the size difference of the Noale factory’s worldwide production compared to the Japanese giants we have here. However, Aprilia goes toe to toe with the best of them in racing, and the RSV4 1100 Factory was one of the first to offer customers a race-spec machine for the road. It also thumbs its nose at the gentlemen’s agreement, and allows the rider to reach a max velocity of almost 200 MPH! The extra displacement and the unique engine layout of a 65-degree V angle will also ensure that you get an experience unlike any other.


Engine Type

65-degree V4

Displacement

1077cc

Max Power

217 HP @ 13,200 RPM

Max Torque

90 LB-FT @ 11,000 RPM

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4 Kawasaki Ninja ZX-10RR

Top speed: 186 MPH (limited)

Kawasaki Ninja ZX-10RR Winter Test Edition Hero
Kawasaki

The ZX-10RR is Team Green’s entrant to the racing arena, and it has had unprecedented success with Jonathan Rea. The ZX-10RR offers electronic control of everything, Marchesini forged rims, and even some strange, wonderful tech like the outside brake pads applying more pressure than the inside ones in the middle of a turn. All this means that you should be able to achieve its 186 MPH limited top speed quite quickly – and the ‘screamer’ firing order means that it sounds like a blast from the past. It also offers Bluetooth connectivity via the Rideology smartphone app, so you can check your top speed and maximum lean angle from your last ride – a definite plus for bragging rights at the pub!


Engine Type

Inline four

Displacement

998cc

Max Power

204 HP @ 14,000 RPM

Max Torque

82.4 LB-FT @ 11,700 RPM

3 Ducati Panigale V4 R

Top speed: 198 MPH

2023-Ducati-Panigale-V4-R front 3/4 shot.
Ducati

We talk about motorcycles sold to the general public that are race replicas. A few of them are here. However, the Panigale V4 R is still a cut above them in a few ways, which is why it won our award for Best Italian Motorcycle of 2024. For one, Ducati made a different displacement engine to comply with WSBK rules, and, as such, it is under 1000cc, unlike the standard Panigale. It also sports a rearward rotating crankshaft, which is something racebikes run to reduce wheelies under acceleration. Another trick element is Ducati’s hydraulic ‘Desmodromic’ valve actuation system that allows for a freakishly high redline and a correspondingly high power output. The result is it still can run with the best superbikes and reach a top speed of nearly 200 MPH, despite the smaller displacement.


Engine Type

90 degree V4, Desmodromic valves

Displacement

998cc

Max Power

218 HP @ 15,500 RPM

Max Torque

82 LB-FT @ 12,000 RPM

2 Kawasaki Ninja H2

Top speed: 200 MPH

Kawasaki_Ninja_H2_Carving_Through_The_Wilderness
Kawasaki

There are supersport motorcycles, and then there are hypersport motorcycles. Interestingly, Kawasaki has two of them in its lineup, but we’ll opt for the top-speed king here, the Ninja H2. It achieves its power from a supercharger bolted onto a ZX-10R-derived 998cc inline-four. The H2 is the street-legal version, while the H2R is the track-only version with an even bonkers output and top speed. Still, if you get yourself just the ‘base’ H2, you’ll be able to access 200 MPH. It also helps that the H2 is designed to look like a two-wheeled Dementor, with that exposed bright green trellis frame giving it other-worldly looks. Not something we expect from Kawasaki.


Engine Type

Inline four, supercharged

Displacement

998cc

Max Power

228 HP @ 11,500 RPM

Max Torque

104.5 LB-FT @ 11,000 RPM

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1 Bimota Tesi H2

Top speed: 186 MPH (limited)

Bimota Tesi H2
Bimota

Bimota is essentially a motorcycle chassis designing company, and it sources engines from other manufacturers to power its works of art. It used to use Ducati power a long time ago, and now that Kawasaki owns 49 percent of the Italian company, it had an obvious choice of engine for the new Tesi H2 – which is what contributes to its name. The current Tesi runs the same supercharged engine from the H2 series of Kawasakis in a lighter, and we must admit, beautiful package. The hub center steering has offered Bimota the option of forgoing a conventional frame altogether, with the engine being the mounting point for both swingarms. Bimotas, including the Tesi H2, will remain rare and exclusive, especially when you know it will reach its 186 MPH (limited) top speed in the blink of an eye.


Engine Type

Inline four, supercharged

Displacement

998cc

Max Power

228 HP @ 11,500 RPM

Max Torque

104.5 LB-FT @ 11,000 RPM

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