MT-09 SR VS Hypermotard VS Rivale

There is a lot to be said about the supermoto craze that came and went in a mad five years of wheelies, skids and engine rebuilds. In terms of pure fun, not much gets close to a proper supermoto the low weight, punchy power delivery and impossible lean angles are an equation for infinite amusement. Infinite until they go bang, run out of fuel or vibrate your hands into numbing submission, that is. Ever since the late nineties where supermotos were going to be the next big thing, manufacturers have been trying to figure out how to make them work as a proper road bike. The fact is, they don't, well, not supermotos as originally intended anyway. However, if you take a few of the key traits big suspension, punchy engines and upright riding positions and apply them to a naked sports bike, things start to get interesting. The full-bore madness may be watered down a touch, but what you do get are wild road bikes that you can enjoy for more than 100 kilometres at a time. We took these three mid-capacity supermoto pretenders to the coast to see if they were more than just good wheelie machines.

The world of supermotos, at the height of the craze, was dominated by small, European manufacturers companies like Husaberg, Husqvarna, VOR and TM unleashed wild machines that looked gorgeous, went like stink and exploded if you didn't care for them like a new born child. KTM and Aprilia were in on the act too, the latter unleashing the wildest of the lot a 550cc super-compact V-Twin monster that, in tuned guise, will push out over 75 bhp from the 180 section rear tyre. There were plenty of watered-down options too, but nobody seemed to be able to retain the full childish fun factor as soon as practicality muscled in. As soon as you add weight to a small capacity dirtbike to allow a decent fuel range and a seat that’s more comfortable than sitting on razor blades, the modest power isn't so effective. As soon as you knock off some revs to stretch service intervals and make them more reliable, they become slower still. So you stick a big engine in it and the weight goes up more, but what you’re left with isn't really a supermoto anymore.

But that’s not necessarily a bad thing. What all three bikes here do is take the best bits of a supermoto and apply them to a naked sports bike. The suspension first more compliance and more travel so you can hammer down bumpy roads as hard as you like. But not just that when your bike is moving around more on softer springs, you get more weight transfer and more feel, giving you confidence when there’s less grip. Sure, the payoff is less composure when you’re really pushing in good conditions, but all that does is make you feel like a hero as the bike moves around. Yeah, you might be slightly quicker on a sports bike, but who’s timing? The motors make perfect sense too, you get strong bottom end power to fire out of turns and past cars, but with enough top end not to feel asthmatic when the road opens out. And while high seats and bolt-upright riding positions suck on the motorway, the view you get over cars and hedges lets you carry speed and stick in overtakes while the sports bikes are still staring at the road in front of ‘em.

So actually, what started out as a tool for the wild, the loose and the mentally deranged, has actually become a pretty smart option for those who want a great road bike. These three are a balance between full on supermotos and naked sports bikes, powered by motors that strike the balance between light, revvy 600s and brute power 1000s. They’re basically the sensible option; not too slow, not too heavy, just right Goldilocks would be all over them.

Interference
Judder, judder, judder; bollocks. Remove key from ignition, find seat release, flip seat onto verge and start hunting. I’m looking for a fuse. Ah ha, there, that one, the one marked “ABS”. Remove fuse from bike, insert into bum hole of the relevant electronics engineer and replace seat. There, fixed it. That was all it took to make me fall in love with the MT-09 SR. Yep, sure it still has a few foibles but a great bike like this should not be permanently strangled by its electronics. ABS is a fantastic thing and has prevented so many crashes that Mr. ABS should be awarded a knighthood. But, on a bike masquerading as a supermoto, there should also be a switch. Of course, you could just buy the non-ABS version, but it would be nice to have the option to swap between the two.

The MT-09 Street Rally is essentially a standard MT-09, with some extra bodywork bolted on and a different seat. Love or hate the crazy aero-wing across the handlebars, you can’t argue that it looks pretty wild. Does it offer more wind protection than a standard MT-09? We’re not convinced it does, but who’s buying these to rag around the motorway anyway? The seat on the SR is narrower and flatter than the original MT’s, giving it that motard look and feel. You’re sat higher and have more room to move about, which we loved. You’d think the extra foam would make it more comfortable, I did too, but John wasn't so sure. I suspect the difference in opinion comes from a difference in backside girth…

One of our gripes with the original MT was the jerky initial throttle response. New bikes have a different map on the ride by wire throttle to smooth things out. It has definitely improved things and now most of the time you don’t notice it. But just when you've convinced yourself that the problem is cured, it jerks you backwards with a surge as you come back on the gas. It happened a couple of times rolling on and off the throttle during a motorway cruise and also when rolling along in town at low speed with the clutch out. It could well be driveline slack, but it still feels like a punch in the fuelling as you take up the slack in the throttle. Better, but still not perfect. Some of the plastic additions look cool, some look wank and some flapped in the wind. We love the rear number boards and the seat, we were not so impressed with the stick-on side panels that un-stuck.

My overwhelming thoughts every time I get off the MT are ‘wow, what a motor’. The engine is absolutely gorgeous, balancing character and refinement nicely. And it’s fast too. Of the three bikes here, the Yamaha required the least gear changes, happy to zing itself along at any pace from anywhere in the rev range. Which is a shame, because the gear shift feel is the nicest by a country mile as well. It does feel bigger and heavier than the other two here, but that feeling vanishes once the
speeds get up above 50 km/h. The lack of slipper clutch will only annoy those who want to do big slides into turns the rest of the time it really isn't an issue. Through the turns, the Yamaha is fun to fling around, but runs out of composure and grip before the other two. It’s not helped by the tyres, which sit on the mileage and longevity side of the grip fence. The huge hero blobs look like they came off a Honda SP1 (for those who are sad enough to remember that much detail, that far back) and there isn't a huge amount of ground clearance, but we fixed that. Well, that kinda fixed itself really; the right hand hero blob ejected somewhere along the ride, possibly on a sweet right hander, possibly because it was being ground into submission. All possible. Grinding your pegs to pieces will make you feel like an absolute hero, right up to the point when an MV Rivale rails around the outside of you with lean to spare.

Arch Rival. E
Ah yes, the MV Agusta Rivale. A rare beastie, but even if they were two a penny, you’d never get used to the visual impact. It looks nuts. The styling split opinion on this test Hoagers loved it, I wasn’t so sure. From one angle I’d love it, but then I’d walk around the back and decide the seat cowls reminded me of a Suzuki AE50 scooter. That’s taste for you. What I couldn’t wait to get involved in was that 800cc triple – I’ve been raving about it since I rode the MV F3 800 at the start of the year. In the F3 it was wild, so what’s it like in a supermoto chassis? Detuned, thankfully. Call me a wuss, but a motor than manages to feel wild in a low, poised supersport chassis would be carnage sat atop big suspension. Power is chopped from 148hp to 125 and the spare ponies have been wedged in the midrange to make the spread more relevant to the road. And it sounds amazing. Like Beelzebub himself is sat lighting off the charge in each cylinder. When he’s not busy smearing grease on the front brake disc. It’s been a while since I was disappointed with the brakes on a bike, but this Rivale has that dubious honour. The lever feel is rock-solid, like the brake fluid has been replaced with concrete and the power is only there when you’re squeezing as hard as you can. It is good for making you run into corners a touch faster though, although I think I’d rather make that decision for myself ta. Yes, of course I’m being dramatic and of course the brakes are adequate, but I’m afraid adequate doesn’t really cut it with a R150,000 price tag in this company.

Bad signal
The MV’s slightly odd ride-by-wire feel is in this bike too. If it was your bike, you’d get used to it and ride round it (not that you should have to). A good rideby-wire system should take your inputs and optimise them without you realising anything is going on between you and the throttle bodies. The MV still does things you haven’t asked it to and you do notice them shut the throttle quickly and it runs on for a fraction of a second. Just long enough to panic you. In anything other than smooth, fast riding, I didn’t feel I could fully trust what it was going to do. There are clearly still a few gripes that need to be addressed, but the Rivale fired out its trump card to good effect. What. A Chassis. It cheats a bit by using a stiffer setup, making it feel amazing on smooth roads, but not quite so plush on
the bumpy stuff. But by then, you’re so in love with the sweet steering and level of feel on fast swoopy bends that the odd fuel tank in the nuts is easily ignored. The glitches are annoying but that chassis definitely makes up for them. Almost certainly. I think.

Hyper music
Quick, turn the ignition off, try to look innocent. Oh no, they’re all staring. Someone’s coming over. Dammit why did they have to leave the baffles out? The Termignoni exhaust fitted to the Ducati Hypermotard on this test sounds absolutely gorgeous. I mean, ridiculously nice. The trouble is, the Hyper is also great for mucking around in car parks, at which point you want the quietest exhaust available to maintain a low profile. The Termi, with no baffles, is not the quietest exhaust available. So when you’re messing about jumping stuff, other people will know. In our case, the ‘other person’ turned out to be an old dude who loved engines, loved the bikes and wanted to come over for a nose. Phew. And who can blame him, the Hypermotard looks as cool as anything. I wasn’t completely convinced when Ducati ditched the old air-cooled 1200 motor for this more modern 821cc liquid-cooled unit. I loved the raw punch of the old one, but the more I ride the new, higher revving 821, the more I love it. You get enough low-down power to make every corner exit a onewheeled affair there’s so much stomp you shift up early automatically. But let the engine rev out and it flies, only crashing into the rev limiter after a tasty top end rush. And it sounds really good, or did we say that already?

The Hypermotard gets the Ducati riding mode system, with traction control, engine maps and ABS all preset into three different, easily customisable modes. The three engine power settings are great on this bike, 110hp high response is perfect for fast road riding, 110hp medium response does the job for skids, wheelies and pratting about, while the 75hp Urban mode soothes you home when you’re knackered and don’t want to pay attention any more.

Of course it’ll wheelie
The Ducati is tall, taller than the other two and that does make it feel a little harder to mess about with at low speeds. As soon as you’re rolling though, it becomes a big, red unicycle, charging sump-first towards the next set of bends to be terrorised. Sat taller on its springs than the MV, the Ducati with its extra 20mm of travel gets better and better the harder you ride it. Braking right into a turn keeps the front wheel loaded up and makes it steer beautifully, but if you’re a little lazier it
loses out to the MV. The flipside to that is when the road gets bumpy or slippery the Hypermotard carries on regardless. Drifting across gravel or launching speed humps, the big daft red thing left us with big daft smiles.

Just the job
At the end of a long day skidding around in front of the camera, I had a 100 kilometre ride home to look forward to. Did I blast straight up the motorway to get home as quickly as possible? Did I bollocks. It was 100 kilometres before I even got to a motorway and then a quick 50 kilometre blast back. That sums these bikes up pretty damn neatly they’re so much fun to ride, that you’ll take the interesting route, even when you’re knackered. But when the playing is over, you can hop on the motorway and fire along at 140km/h no problem at all. Well, ok, one slight problem if you’re not a fan of windblast, but hey, motorways are never interesting anyway. The MV was sublime in the turns and made us want to spend all day carving back and forth through the countryside. I did struggle to trust the throttle for more technical riding and we were unnerved by warning lights and electrical glitches. It’s perfect for someone who wants an exotic Italian sports bike but doesn’t want a supersport bike. The dealer we picked it up from were super helpful and knowledgeable if you live near one, you’ll be fine. The MT-09 SR held its own in this elite crowd and if value for money is your thing, it’s worth a phone call and a test ride. Take the price advantage away and it can’t match the other two on looks or handling. But that engine is stunning and belies the bike’s more humble presence. Plus with the ABS, er, disengaged, it was the best for doing skids and powerslides, that’s important, right?

The clear winner of this test for John and myself was the Ducati Hypermotard. It packs in more supermoto character than the other two, without handicapping its usability. The electronics are sophisticated, but so easy to use, the engine gives you power without needing to be revved and the suspension eggs you on to add another 15km/h to your humpback bridge approach speed. Every time. I loved it so much that I gave myself half a day’s extra work and running around to do, just so I could ride it home. Is it the best interpretation of a roadworthy supermoto yet? You know what, it just might be.

Yamaha MT-09 Street Rally
Engine
Type: 847cc, liquid-cooled, inline triple, DOHC
Bore x stroke (mm): 78.0 x 59.1mm
Compression ratio: 11.5:1
Fuel system: EFI with YCC-T ride-by-wire
Transmission: six-speed, wet clutch, cable actuation
Final drive: chain
Chassis
Frame: 2-piece die cast aluminium, external swingarm pivot
Front suspension: Inverted telescopic forks, adjustable preload and rebound damping, 137mm travel
Rear suspension: Progressive linkage-type monoshock, adjustable preload and rebound damping, 130mm travel
Brakes: (F) Twin 298mm discs, four-piston radial callipers (R) single 245mm disc, single piston sliding calliper
Tyres: (F) 120/70-17 (R) 180/55-17
Geometry
Wheelbase: 1,440mm
Head angle: 25.0 degrees
Trail: 103mm
Seat height: 815mm
Weight (claimed, full fuel load, ready to ride): 188kg
Fuel capacity: 14 litres
Performance
Peak power (claimed): 115hp @ 10,000rpm
Peak torque (claimed): 87.5Nm @ 8,500rpm
Rider Aids
Selectable throttle/fuelling maps, ABS

MV Agusta Rivale
Engine
Type: 798cc, liquid cooled, triple, 12-valve, DOHC
Bore x stroke (mm): 79 x 54.3
Compression ratio: 13.3 : 1
Fuel system: Single injector per cylinder, Mikuni ride-by-wire
Transmission: 6 speed, cassette gearbox, wet clutch, cable actuation
Final drive: chain
Chassis
Frame: Tubular steel trellis with aluminium cast outriggers
Front suspension: Marzocchi inverted fork, 150mm travel, fully adjustable
Rear suspension: Sachs monoshock, 130mm travel, fully adjustable
Brakes: (F) twin 320mm discs, radial four piston Brembo callipers (R) single 220mm disc, two piston calliper
Tyres: Pirelli Diablo Rosso II (F) 120/70-17(R) 180/55-17
Geometry
Wheelbase: 1,410mm
Head angle: 24.1 degrees
Trail: 104.5mm
Seat height: 881mm
Weight (claimed, full fuel load, ready to ride): 195kg
Fuel capacity: 12.9 litres
Performance
Peak power (claimed): 125hp @ 12,000rpm
Peak torque (claimed): 84Nm @ 8,600rpm
Rider Aids
MVICS  ABS, Eight-stage TC, Switchable power maps, quickshifter

Ducati Hypermotard
Engine
Type: 821.1cc, liquid-cooled, 90-degree V-twin, Desmodromic, four-valve heads
Bore x stroke (mm):88.0 x 67.5
Compression ratio: 12.8 : 1
Fuel system: Magneti Marelli electronic fuel injection, ride by wire
Transmission: 6 speed, wet self-servo slipper clutch, cable actuation
Final drive: chai
Chassis
Frame: tubular steel trellis
Front suspension: 43mm inverted fork, 170mm travel
Rear suspension: Linkage-type, monoshock, 150mm travel, fully adjustable
Brakes: (F) twin 320mm discs, radial Brembo Monobloc callipers (R) single 245mm disc, two piston calliper
Tyres: Pirelli Diablo Rosso II (F) 120/70-17 (R) 180/55-17
Geometry
Wheelbase: 1,500mm
Head angle: 25.5 degrees
Trail: 104mm
Seat height: 890mm
Weight (claimed, full fuel load, ready to ride): 198kg
Fuel capacity: 16 litres
Performance
Peak power (claimed):110hp @ 9,250rpm
Peak torque (claimed):89Nm @ 7,750rpm
Rider Aids
ABS, TC, switchable power maps