Top 10 World’s Fastest Bikes: Extreme Performance On 2 Wheels

Bikes = performance. No matter how comfortable an ADV is or how well a cruiser … cruises, what really makes the hair on the back of our neck stand is outright performance. A fast bike makes us giggle inside the helmet like we’re little kids and at the end of the day, that’s what gets us going. And to celebrate exactly that, let’s go through 10 of the fastest bikes in the world as of now. This is in no order of course and these are all tremendously powerful bikes. 

10) Suzuki Hayabusa - 299kmph

Rs 18,06,107 (ex-showroom Delhi)

Suzuki made the Hayabusa with one thing in mind: to make it the fastest thing on two wheels and hence beat the Honda Blackbird, which was the fastest bike in the world back then. Cut to 26 years later, the Suzuki Hayabusa is still among the fastest bikes in the world. In its latest iteration, the Hayabusa actually became a little less powerful than before and keyboard warriors were quick to point that out when the 3rd gen Hayabusa was launched. 

But what you should absolutely not forget is that the bike still makes almost 200PS, still has that iconic low and long silhouette and is still the bike that was developed in wind tunnels. Take it to a drag strip and in experienced hands, this 26-year old bike can still eat up modern day 1000cc sportbikes all-day long without burping. The Hayabusa was, is and probably will always be iconic. 

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9) BMW M 1000 RR - 314kmph

If you thought the BMW S 1000 RR was a bonkers bike, wait till you check out the M 1000 RR. When BMW adds the M badge to a bike, you know things are getting serious. It uses the same engine as the standard S 1000 RR, but here it makes 212PS and 113Nm, while the kerb weight is only 193kg. Apart from the fang-like winglets, what you’ll also notice is that a lot of things on the M 1000 RR are made out of carbon fibre, be it the winglets or even the carbon wheels. With that also come a whole host of extra electronics which will give you the exact setting you need to go as quick as you physically can on this mad, mad bike. 

8) Ducati Panigale V4 R - 318kmph

If it’s a list about the world’s fastest bikes, it has to have a Ducati Panigale V4. The Panigale V4 R is a tremendously powerful bike with its 998cc V4 engine churning out 218PS and 114.5Nm. While those are very powerful numbers, wait till you hear that it weighs just 186.5kg (wet weight without fuel). Even if we account for fuel, it’s still just around the 200kg mark, so the power to weight ratio is still close to 1:1. 

And that means the Panigale V4 R can still outrun pretty much all the high-end powerful cars that you can think of. In fact, in the right hands, it could even keep up with a proper supercar. So if you’ve always wondered why Ducati bikes are so expensive, remember they pack performance and tech that no one else does too. In Europe, the Panigale V4 R’s pricing starts at a whopping GBP 43,990 (around Rs 51.28 lakh)

7) Yamaha YZF R1M -299kmph

The legendary R1 had to make its way to this list, of course. And in that, we’re talking about the R1M today, a bike that gets more carbon fibre, better suspension and a couple of other racetrack-focused bits over the standard Yamaha YZF R1. While the R1 didn’t stick around in India for a long time, Indians absolutely love it and every time you mention it in front of a motorcycle enthusiast, you’ll see their face broaden into a big grin. When it was on sale in India, the R1M was priced at Rs 29 lakh (ex-showroom), and currently it is available for around GBP 25,000 in Europe.

6) Kawasaki ZX-10R - 299kmph

Rs 19.78 lakh (ex-showroom Delhi)

The Kawasaki ZX-10R is one of the most value for money big bikes that you can get in India. And it helps that it’s also one of the quickest bikes in the world. Us Indians love Kawasaki big bikes, especially the way they sound and the ZX-10R is no different. Its 999cc in-line four cylinder engine makes an impressive 203PS and 114.9Nm, while the bike weighs 207kg (kerb). Rev the bike up, get it singing and you’ll see that its melodious exhaust note and roaring power delivery go hand in hand. 

5) Honda CBR1000RR-R Fireblade SP - 299kmph

It’s said that every extra R in the Fireblade’s name adds more performance. While that remains to be verified, there’s no doubting that the Fireblade SP is a monstrously fast bike, has always been and still is one of the fastest in the world. Its four cylinder engine makes an impressive 217.5PS and 113Nm, while weighing only 203kg (kerb). And of late, the European superbikes might’ve dominated the 1000cc sportbike space a bit more than this Japanese bike, the Fireblade is still an iconic bike and no can deny that. 

While most modern day superbikes look extremely edgy and angry, the Fireblade still has some of those curves and that’s very refreshing to look at. Yes, it still looks very mean but it does stand out a bit from the others. Then there are those winglets which don’t awkwardly stick out and instead blend into the fairing much better than some of the other bikes in the class. And finally, while a lot of bikes here get just one single tone colour scheme, the Fireblade gets some gorgeous old school colour schemes and we think the red-white-blue colour  scheme looks absolutely rad. 

4) Aprilia RS V4 Factory 1100 - 305kmph

One of our favourite 1000cc superbikes, the Aprilia RS V4 Factory 1100 is one of the easiest bikes to ride on this list. But that doesn’t mean it’s any less capable than any of the above mentioned bikes. In fact, it’s really commendable that despite not getting any major updates in the past couple of years, the RSV4 can still compete in this segment very well. Yes, Aprilia big bikes are expensive to purchase and often to maintain as well, but they give you experiences that other bikes often just cannot match. Its 1099cc V4 motor is good for 220PS while this beast screams up to a redline of 13,000rpm.

3) Lightning LS218 - 351kmph

You might’ve heard people say that EVs can be extremely fast and the LS218 is an example of that. The brand claims that you can go from 0-100kmph in just over 2 seconds and honestly as unbelievable as it sounds, it could be true, for electric bikes make all of their power all the time. No gear shifting, no clutch engagement, so just twist the throttle and it’ll hit its top speed from zero in one single motion. This beast produces 200PS and a massive 228Nm, while weighing 225kg (kerb).

2) Kawasaki Ninja H2R - 386kmph

With its supercharger, the H2R does sound like the kid who brings a gun to a knife fight. Does a supercharger on a bike sound like a bit of an overkill? Maybe. Is it incredibly exciting? YES! The H2R is unlike any bike out there and anyone who’s even a remote motorcycle enthusiast will have seen videos of its brutal acceleration and the supercharger’s ‘chirping’ noise. It’s absolutely no surprise, then, that it makes its way to this list. The supercharged 998cc engine makes 305PS and 165Nm. This bike was priced at Rs 77 lakh (ex-showroom), in India.

1) MTT 420RR - 440kmph 

Talking about an overkill, the last bike on the list is the MT 420RR. A bike with a Rolls Royce engine will obviously find a way onto this list. With about 420PS and 678Nm on tap, it beats most high-end luxury cars in terms of output. Hence it’s not surprising that the company claims a 0-100kmph run in under 3 seconds.

All said, you will notice that all road-legal Japanese bikes have a claimed top-speed of 299kmph. This is since the Japanese bikemakers have a gentlemen’s agreement on capping the top-speed. However, since the H2R is track-only, this agreement isn’t applicable and hence it has a higher top speed. On that note, these are all claimed top speeds by the respective manufacturers.