A lesson in how to turn a simple, effective roadster into a wild thing.

By Chris Northover, cycleworld.com

How many times have you heard a motorcycle racer saying they could have won it if they’d had the cash for a faster bike? It’s a well-worn complaint, but in most cases a good rider on an average bike can compete with an average rider on a good bike.

Thing is, nobody will get close to the best rider if he’s on the best bike. At clubman and entry-level racing, the point where riders are trying to make a name for themselves, it’s tough to get noticed on riding talent alone. This has bred one-model race series, championships founded on the principle of making the machinery equal so that rider talent can shine through.

Providing the technical regulations are policed effectively, these series make for spectacular racing. In the past, one-make series have acted as a breeding ground for some serious riding talent. Take the United Kingdom: A series for Aprilia RS 125 production machines called Superteens launched the careers of Bradley Smith, Danny Kent, Cal Crutchlow, and Casey Stoner. Racing always needs classes with fire-spitting superbikes for us to drool over in awe, but for close racing and nurturing rider talent, the one-make championship is king.

The organizers of the British Superbike Championship know this all too well. They’ve run various single-model championships as support classes for many years, and 2023 there’s a new one-make series in town. Perhaps it’s not as exotic and sexy as the Ducati Panigale V2s that formed the outgoing TriOptions Cup, but it’s considerably more cost-effective.

Next year, the BMW F 900 R Cup will serve as the one-model series support class for the British Superbike Championship. To buy a bike, fully race-prepared to strict regulations, will cost 11,000 pounds sterling, or about $12,500, and riders are limited to two sets of tires for each of the eight rounds. A rough estimate of the cost of a season racing in the cup is around 25,000 pounds ($28,500), including buying the bike. There are two reactions to that number: the reaction of those who’ve been involved with a national-level race team nodding their heads in approval of a cheap formula, and those who haven’t shaking their heads in disbelief at why anyone would drop the college fund on one year’s worth of riding around in circles. Hey, some educations require gasoline, tires, and a ton of spare parts.

Clearly the focus of a one-make series isn’t on the outright speed of the bikes, but rather on how closely matched they are in terms of performance; BMW’s decision to base a race series around the F 900 R makes sense from that point of view. And a race series full of bikes going bar to bar on track isn’t going to do the R’s slightly sensible reputation any harm either.

The F 900 R in standard trim is a solid roadster; it shies away from the crazy hooligan image of the KTM Dukes and takes a more comfortable, reserved stance than the Yamaha MT-09. Which is a nice way of dancing around the fact that the F 900 R isn’t all that sporty. The motor has a rather nice spread of power. The handling, while heavy at low speed, is solid and stable on faster roads. The dash is well designed and easy to use, and the electronics package keeps everything nicely in line when faced with the performance ambitions of a crazy rider. But as a base for a racing series? A raced-up Duke 890 R, perhaps, or the 765 Street Triple, but the F 900 R has always been pegged firmly in the “nice road bike” camp.

Our test took place at the Anglesey Circuit in North Wales; if you’re drawing a blank, don’t worry, most British riders have never heard of the place either. Anglesey is one of the UK’s best kept racing secrets. It’s like a British Phillip Island with big coastal views, a back straight that isn’t, and even a mini-corkscrew section. On a 1,000cc bike it’s challenging, on a 600 it’s a blast; so for a 105 hp roadster, it’s just about perfect.

Before jumping on the racebike, I took a stock F 900 R for a few laps to calibrate my brain. The chassis, while slightly lazy on the road, can be made to steer well with some trail-braking on track, and there’s enough ground clearance for a decent amount of fun. But just as you start getting aspirations of hounding sportbikes on a tight track, you start to hit issues like the footrests grinding out and the ABS restricting hard, late braking. It’s great fun, enough to build track experience on, but not really the thing for serious circuit use.

Tuned in, it’s time for a shot on the racebike. The BMW technician fires up the motor as I walk over. I damn near jump out of my leathers. For such a well-mannered standard bike, this thing is louder than a ‘90s motocross jersey. BMW has tried to use standard parts wherever practical to keep the cost of the racebikes down, so seat, handlebar, and levers are all as per the stock bike. A set of custom rearsets give more ground clearance than the standard items and allow some adjustability to suit riders of different sizes. An HM Racing quickshifter is mated to the gear lever in place of the stock unit.

By far the most significant change to the bike is in the suspension, with a shortened fork to sharpen up the steering geometry. The fully adjustable shock and fork internals are from UK-based K-Tech and will be available with a couple of different spring rate options for racers to choose from. Aside from a race undertray and fiberglass nose cone, there’s little else to comment on; BMW has kept it simple.

The good news is that when tipping the bike into turn 1 for the first time the chassis immediately displays racebike feel to match its shouty exhaust note. The whole bike feels taut and purposeful, begging to be pushed harder into and out of the turns. Where the stock bike needs a little coaxing from side to side, the racer falls on its ear with ease by comparison. We’re not talking supersport-sharp steering, but once over it holds a tight line right to the apex. With an abundance of grip from the Pirelli Supercorsa SP tires the throttle can be opened hard right from the middle of the turn, and it takes a pretty keen right hand to get things sliding or moving around.

With each lap confidence in the bike grows until I start to find the limits of rear grip with ever more ambitious throttle openings. The electronic throttle has no cable slack to take up, meaning there’s pretty sharp response when cracking the gas mid turn. On worn tires in the afternoon this got the rear kicking out a few times, but the bike stayed stable and planted and never showed any signs of wanting to put me on the deck. Despite losing a decent amount of weight through the race exhaust and bodywork, the 900 is not a flyweight bike; BMW didn’t have an official weight for the race version, but as the base model comes in at 465 pounds, a conservative guess would put the racebike around the 430-pound mark with a full tank of gas.

The weight isn’t really noticeable until pushing the limits of braking; this bike does not like to be backed in or thrown into a turn while it’s still out of shape. It encourages a smooth, flowing riding style, carrying speed through the corners and taking more sweeping lines. It rides more like a Ducati 848 than a Yamaha R6, which given its wide spread of power makes it a joy to try and earn fast lap times with. Instead of sliding sideways into every turn, parking the thing on the apex, and then squaring off the corner to fire out onto the straightaway, the rider has to be accurate with turn-in points from way out wide, getting the bike onto the side of the tire and then picking up the gas as early as bravery permits.

Stock power is claimed at 105 hp; no official figures were yet available for the racebike as it’s still being developed, but around 110 hp at the rear wheel would be a pretty safe estimate. So instead of battling with the power, sliding and weaving out of every turn, the rider ends up rolling on smooth and early, before running right out wide onto the curbs, fully tucked in and squeezing the motor for every last brake horsepower. In terms of a trackbike ridden in isolation, it’s a really satisfying thing to ride fast.

And in terms of the basis for a one-make race series, it should be the perfect recipe for some epic battles as riders slipstream and fight for every last inch of track. Best of all, the horsepower and riding style will suit younger riders moving up from the 400cc classes and give them a good chance against established racers looking for a cheaper format to be competitive in. Expect drama, expect tantrums, and expect a few new names to appear in race control, apologizing to the old dudes for wild overtakes. With over 200 riders registering interest for the 40-bike grid, it’s going to be an exciting series to watch, ideally from behind a sturdy catch fence.