The Triumph Speed Triple, like every true streetfighter, started life as a sportbike. The Speed Triple 1200 RR, on the other hand, is a sportbike that started life as a streetfighter. Based on the hyper-naked Speed Triple RS, the double-R’s genesis can be taken for a sign of the times. Triumph doesn’t produce a liter-class race replica sportbike—though we wish it did—but its latest Speed Triple 1200 RS, totally revised in 2021, produces sufficient performance that giving it a slinky neo-cafe fairing and clip-ons put it in its own sportbike-adjacent niche. Triumph calls the RR “the ultimate sportbike for the road.” Compared to the RS, the RR has higher and further-back footpegs and lower and further-forward clip-ons that impart a more attack-ready posture for apex hunting. Nonetheless, ergos are nowhere as extreme as on Triumph’s purebred 675 Daytona supersport—making it far better suited for all the miles spent between apexes.
Further differentiating it from the RS, the RR has Öhlins Smart EC 2.0 semi-active suspension (the RS uses electronically adjustable, but not semi-active Öhlins suspension). It also has Pirelli Supercorsa SP tires and loads of carbon fiber parts. For undiluted sporting sensations, tuck behind the sleek fairing and open the throttle; the 1,066cc three-cylinder engine produces a claimed 177 hp at 10,750 rpm and 92 lb.-ft. of torque at 9,000 rpm, with a whopping portion of it delivered in the midrange of the powerband. IMU-managed rider aids, preset in four ride modes and configurable in a custom mode, help transfer that copious torque to the ground. As we’ve come to expect from Triumph, there’s a host of premium features, including Brembo Stylema brakes, a 5-inch TFT display, keyless ignition, cruise control, a quickshifter, LED lighting, and illuminated switch gear.
The 2025 Speed Triple RR is available in Crystal White Storm Grey for $20,950 and Red Hopper Storm Grey for $21,275.
- Suzuki Katana, $13,879
- BMW R 1250 R, from $15,345