A 200-horsepower fully-faired motorcycle is great when you want to dominate on the race track. So it stands to reason that a lot of people feel these will also be some of the fastest motorcycles in the real world. But that is not the case. Put them in traffic, and you will realize the aggressive seating position is very uncomfortable, there is very little steering lock, and the gearing is too high, not to mention that your neck needs special training to keep looking up. That is why something like a punchy naked bike is so much better in the real world. A Naked Bike Can Outrun A Liter Bike In The Real-World DucatiBy removing the fairing and giving it taller, wider handlebars and shorter gearing, the modern naked motorcycle is a much more usable motorcycle on the street. You get much more leverage to turn in quicker, you get more steering lock, and you sit more upright, so you can not only be comfortable longer, but also look out easier for the dangers on the street.When you get to a twisty piece of tarmac, you can have fun at legal speeds because the gearing allows you to. And yes, the modern frames support knee-down (and even elbow down) worthy lean angles when you're going gung-ho in the turns. Get a middleweight, and the engine will have more poke at low and mid revs, which is where you will spend most of your time on the street.KawasakiThat is why a middleweight naked bike will excel at riding on the street. Not only will it have more usable torque in the right places in the rev range, but if you go to the premium end of the spectrum, you will also get a middleweight with all the bells and whistles of a liter sport bike. Only these are cheaper to buy, maintain, and run, and you don't have to get to illegal speeds to enjoy them. But some are better than others – here is the naked bike that can embarrass liter sport bikes on real roads. The Yamaha MT-09 SP Can Embarrass Liter Sports Bikes On Real Roads YamahaYamaha's MT-09 is the motorcycle that truly brought endless fun to the masses. In the lineup, it's the SP variant that offers high-spec suspension for further handling pizazz. It does mean you have to pay more for it, but it also makes the MT-09 far more built for real life. The chassis and driveline are both always willing to play, but can quieten down when required. In the real world, the MT-09's power, torque, flexibility, and full electronic suite mean that it will not merely keep up with liter nakeds but embarrass them. A Very Reasonable Price For The Features Offered YamahaAt first glance, the $12,699 price for the MT-09 SP seems a little high. Look closer, and you realize that this is a product with all the options included. There is a six-axis IMU, a by-wire throttle, and premium suspension and brakes. You get pretty much everything Yamaha has to offer as far as electronic aids are concerned, so you can tune the way the MT-09 SP responds to whichever way you like it. There are other premium middleweight nakeds that have a much better base price.There are yet other premium middleweights that have almost the same base price or are priced higher, but again, the story is the same. You need to add a few things to them, and that creates separation in the price. The 990 Duke R is a prime example. When you compare things feature-to-feature, the Yamaha turns out to be an extremely good value purchase with its Japanese durability and European precision. CP3 Engine Remains A World-Renowned Powerplant Yamaha MotorsportsThe MT-09 has been around for a decade now, and in that decade, it has shown that it can do it all. Surprisingly, it has had the same engine in the same state of tune, with the exception of an update in capacity in 2021. In the MT-09, this is an extremely good thing because we love this engine so much, we would not want anything to change about it. Oodles Of Torque At Under 7,000 RPM YamahaAs for the details, the engine displaces 890 cc, has a compression ratio of 11.5:1, and generates 117 horsepower at 10,000 RPM and 68.6 pound-feet of torque at 7,000 RPM. This is sent through a six-speed manual gearbox that has an assist and slipper clutch, a two-way quickshifter, and a chain final drive. The two-way quickshifter is one of Yamaha's latest and allows both upshifts and downshifts, whether the throttle is open or shut. Premium Suspension And Brakes Distinguish The SP YamahaThere are two variants of the MT-09. Both share the same die-cast aluminum twin-spar chassis that uses the engine as a stressed member. An interesting fact about this chassis is that it is made out of two parts split down the middle, and they are bolted together. What is also bolted on is the aluminum subframe. Where the SP differs is in the suspension. Here you get fully adjustable 41 mm KYB inverted forks, along with an Öhlins single shock with full adjustability. The travel available is 5.1 inches at the front and 4.6 inches at the rear.YamahaThe size of the brake discs is pretty similar to the regular MT-09, though, with 298 mm discs at the front and the 245 mm disc at the rear. What changes, though, is that Yamaha provides Brembo Stylema radial four-piston fixed calipers for the front, along with the Brembo radial front master cylinder. These are mounted on 17-inch rims with radial tubeless tires. The result is almost Ducati-like handling for a fraction of the price. The Dimensions Spell Out “Fun” YamahaThe MT-09 SP can only be described as a fun-sized motorcycle with a length of 82.3 inches and a width of 32.3 inches. The wheelbase is quite short at 56.3 inches. But thankfully, there is a proportionally low seat height of 32.5 inches. It offers a ground clearance of 5.5 inches, a fuel tank capacity of 3.7 gallons, and it weighs just 428 lbs. With that short wheelbase and extremely torquey engine combined with the light weight, the MT-09 SP is either a really fun motorcycle, or it can be a little overwhelming for those that are not used to it. A Full Feature Set Means You Don’t Have To Dip Into The Options List YamahaThe MT-09 SP shares its five-inch TFT display with the base variant. It has Bluetooth and navigation as standard. It also has an all-LED lighting system, keyless ignition, and a USB-C port. The turn signals have lane change indicators and are self-canceling. The electronics are where the MT-09 SP truly shines, however.The throttle-by-wire and six-axis IMU are a given. These enable different power delivery modes, cornering traction control, adjustable slide control, adjustable lift control, cornering brake control, ABS, and the Back Slip Regulator. The MT-09 SP also has an exclusive Engine Brake Management system, where you can adjust the engine braking as per your requirements. There is also an exclusive Track mode for the SP version, and this is paired with a track theme for the instrument cluster. There Is A Wide Variety Of Competitors As Well The Yamaha MT-09 SP has been around for a long time, but in the decade that it has been around, the competition has reacted and come up with its interpretation of what a premium middleweight naked should be. There is even a liter naked that competes with it on price! As with anything else, they have their own set of good and bad points. Let us have a closer look at a few of them.KTMThe KTM 990 Duke R is the performance version of KTM's premium middleweight naked bike. It has parts from the 1390 Duke, like the lighter wheels and the full electronics suite. But to unlock the full electronics suite after 932 miles, you have to pony up an extra $1,000, which means that it puts a fair bit of distance between its price and the price of the Yamaha. This is definitely KTM's most fun everyday naked that is also usable daily, but you have to pay a very high price for it.TriumphThe Triumph Street Triple 765 RS is one of the best motorcycles if you like your naked bike small and light. It is genuinely very easygoing on a daily basis, but when you give it the beans, it can also give you massive enjoyment. The full electronics suite that it has really helps its performance, and the three-cylinder engine gives it a unique feel. But it is a fair bit pricier that hurts the overall value. HondaLastly, the CB1000 Hornet SP is the kind of motorcycle that doesn't fit into conventional genres but is undeniably good for the real world. It might have an engine that displaces a liter, but it is priced lower than most of the premium middleweight nakeds. It does this with some very good cost-saving measures, although where it does steal a march on the others here is with the Öhlins TTX36 rear shock and the Brembo front brakes with the radial master cylinder. In the US market, though, it comes with a tune that is low on power and torque because of noise and emission norms and will require a flash to bring it back towards global numbers.Source: Yamaha Motorsports