ON ROAD...HONDA FIREBLADE RR-R SP 30TH ANNIVERSARY

I Know the Blade well. I had one of these back in 2020 and did the best part of 5000 miles on it. Not much has changed since the inaugural version, aside from a tooth on the rear sprocket and some slightly revised electronics.

- BRUCE

Oh, and the paintjob of this SP that came about last year, alongside the tweaks, in celebration of the Blade's 30th anniversary. The decision to include the Honda in this test spawned from appreciation of the brand's efforts to make such a cracking bike in the first place, starting ground-up to deliver a machine with more than 200bhp, top-level tech, and pioneering GP-derived features such as its double skin wings and RCV-honed geometry. At the design stage, it was completely uncompromising and race-focused, but you'll already know that because Johnny's covered it a few pages back. What you're less likely to know is how this bike hacks it on the road… and this is where things get interesting.