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2020 Honda CBR1000RR Fireblade Spied

  • The 2020 Honda CBR1000RR Fireblade was spied being tested at Suzuka.

  • It didn’t debut at the Tokyo Motor Show as expected.

  • This is an all-new bike.

Okay let’s move away from Ducati for a while (yes, there are more) and head over to another great sportbike — the 2020 Honda CBR1000RR Fireblade.

We were expecting its launch at the recent 2019 Tokyo Motor Show but it didn’t turn out that way. Instead, the new model was caught testing at Suzuka by a Japanese photographer, who then uploaded the pictures and video to his Twitter account @n_mode_log.

Honda has said before that this will be a new CBR1000RR, rather than a mere update.

At first glance, you can see a new fairing which is more enclosing compared to the outgoing model’s. Besides that, there are gills at the bottom.

However, look closer at the front and you’d spot something which resembles a large inlet with winglets in them. This is the “aerobody” which the manufacturer patented a few months ago. They’re enclosed, rather than hanging out in the breeze unlike the Ducati Panigale V4 and V4 R’s. Honda also patented “active aerodynamics” for the rear in the form of foldout winglets, but they don’t appear in these photos.

Photo credit n_mode_log

But these pictures showed the race version of the bike, signified by the front fork set up. The purple-coloured slider tube shows that its coated with titanium nitrate and the true giveaway is the thin plunger-like travel sensor.

However, bear in mind that superbike racing dictates no modification to the frame and bodywork over the streetbike.

Peeking through the fairing’s opening also reveals what seems to be a new frame. The cutouts in the swingarm also look different.

Honda brought along a 2019 CBR1000RR for comparisons and the uploader also shot its pictures.

Photo credit n_mode_log

There was also a video and the bike has an inline-Four engine, quashing rumours of a V-Four.

Hope to see it at EICMA 2019.

All pictures credit @n_mode_log

Wahid's lust for motorcycles was spurred on by his late-Dad's love for his Lambretta on which he courted, married his mother, and took baby Wahid riding on it. He has since worked in the motorcycle and automotive industry for many years, before taking up riding courses and testing many, many motorcycles since becoming a motojournalist. Wahid likes to see things differently. What can you say about a guy who sees a road safety message in AC/DC's "Highway to Hell."

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